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To what extent do you practice food safety in the kitchen?
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amother
Ivory


 

Post Tue, Mar 31 2015, 6:15 pm
I am in the foodservice field, and I have much knowledge when it comes to food safety rules. However, if I try to adhere to every rule all the time, I will become a nervous wreck. For example, when my husband cooks, he will sometimes defrost poultry or meat at room temperature. Or he might be not so careful to avoid touching the spice containers or cabinets with hands that are dirty from raw meat/fish etc.
I learned to turn the other way so that I don't see it, but when I cook, I make myself crazy to follow the rules (For example I will use 10 different spoons if necessary, because I won't use a spoon that was used for raw food to handle cooked food).
When I was pregnant, I was even more careful, and I didn't eat at my in laws or parents house, because I know that my mom and mil leave food out for a while- beyond the food safety limitations.
I am wondering to what extent you all keep the food safety rules. Am I extra cautions because I am involved with this field and have intimate knowledge, or am I normal and just like everyone else?
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rainbow dash




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Mar 31 2015, 6:26 pm
im being more careful since watching food safety documentaries on youtube.
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Raisin




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Mar 31 2015, 6:28 pm
I cook for a lot of people so I try and be aware. like the spoon thing, defrosting safely, etc. I won't use the same spoon from one dish for another to avoid spreading allergans. (people are allergic to the oddest things)
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momX4




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Mar 31 2015, 7:37 pm
I would like to think im very careful, but im not an expert. Im sure you can probally find some thing wrong in my food prep, but I do my best. Im constantly washing dishes as I cook to limit the spoons and forks.
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MagentaYenta




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Mar 31 2015, 7:40 pm
I'm pretty rigorous in terms of food safety on a continual basis. Food in my fridge is dated as well as the items in my freezer. I practice safe defrosting methods, good prep hygiene and always use an instant read thermometer to determine if my holding temps are safe.
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sequoia




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Mar 31 2015, 7:46 pm
I am careful with food safety -- I wash a utensil that has touched raw food immediately, wash my hands with soap and hot water, wipe down all the taps and surfaces with clorox. The only thing is I defrost at room temp. Is that bad? It takes forever in the fridge. I guess you're supposed to defrost in cold water. Who actually does that?
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Amarante




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Mar 31 2015, 7:48 pm
I am aware of food safety but K'H no one has gotten sick from my food yet and I think I am probably safer than a LOT of commercial establishments.

I am not fanatic except for certain things. I treat raw chicken as potentially toxic so I am VERY aware of the surfaces it is on and also washing my hands if I am touching foods that aren't going to be cooked. Handling raw chicken is pretty slimy so I think most people want to wash their hands anyway but I generally try to turn on the faucet without touching with my fingers. My friend has a kitchen faucet that turns on with her foot and that would be ideal.

Most bacteria needs a moist environment to grow so even if your spice container is used with "dirty" hands, it's an unlikely source for contamination. Still, I bought a few very small stainless bowls (minuscule) and I will try to have my spices, herbs and seasonings in the little bowls before I start cooking. It's convenient because often recipes call for stuff to be added at different times so I just put all the spices together in their different little bowls. I am absent minded anyway so this way I know that I have the ingredients I need in the right amounts because otherwise I have been known to make mistakes. The French call it mise en place.

I am also VERY careful about temperatures - especially when cooling down large amounts of hot food especially if the food is not being reheated for a long period of time. Besides campylobacteria, there is also potential for botulism if the conditions are right. It's an easy precaution even if botulism is unlikely.

I am probably not so careful about pesticides though which are also a form of food safety because I don't use one of those special fruit/veggie washes.

ETA - I defrost at room temperature but only if I am home so that I know that I will be refrigerating the meat before it gets warm - or using it. I don't see a difference between that and defrosting in the refrigerator but I don't let it sit at room temperature.


Last edited by Amarante on Tue, Mar 31 2015, 7:52 pm; edited 1 time in total
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MagentaYenta




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Mar 31 2015, 7:49 pm
sequoia wrote:
I am careful with food safety -- I wash a utensil that has touched raw food immediately, wash my hands with soap and hot water, wipe down all the taps and surfaces with clorox. The only thing is I defrost at room temp. Is that bad? It takes forever in the fridge. I guess you're supposed to defrost in cold water. Who actually does that?


I sometimes defrost in cold water, but thats only if I forgot to take an item out in time to defrost in the fridge. I use it a lot for marinara sauces which I freeze in mason jars.
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amother
Honeydew


 

Post Tue, Mar 31 2015, 8:02 pm
sequoia wrote:
I am careful with food safety -- I wash a utensil that has touched raw food immediately, wash my hands with soap and hot water, wipe down all the taps and surfaces with clorox. The only thing is I defrost at room temp. Is that bad? It takes forever in the fridge. I guess you're supposed to defrost in cold water. Who actually does that?


I confess, I also defrost on the counter. Given that a refrigerator is supposed to be kept between 35 and 38 degrees, it would take more than a week to fully defrost a roast otherwise. And at that point, I'd be worried about food safety! The surface is always still quite cold when I put things in the refrigerator, and the center still frozen but thawing.

I will also reuse spoons on the same dish, so long as the dish will continue to cook. So if its add garlic, stir, cook for 5 minutes, add carrots and celery, stir, bring liquid to a boil. simmer for 30 minutes, you bet its going to be the same spoon twice.
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Fox




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Mar 31 2015, 8:43 pm
I will admit I'm all *over* the place when it comes to food safety, and I probably need to improve.

On one hand, I definitely defrost stuff on the counter. Bad, bad Fox!

On the other hand, I love using disposable gloves when I cook, and I definitely use them when handling raw meat, fish, eggs, etc. Good girl, Fox! Here's a treat!

I don't have the problem with spoons, since I usually manage to dirty every dish and utensil in the kitchen just to make Rice Krispie treats.

I'll admit I haven't really looked hard for it, but I wish it was easy to get information about realistic food safety in the home. A lot of the info out there seems geared toward "best practices" that either aren't always feasible for busy homes or just take the most conservative stand no matter what, thus losing credibility.

One of the non-Jewish homemaking magazines -- I've forgotten which one -- has a column I love. It's called "How Bad Is It . . ." and each month they list three or four things that people commonly do (or are tempted to do). Then they assign a "badness" rating (Super bad, pretty bad, not so bad, just fine) and explain why something is or isn't a big deal. They usually quote various experts to explain the science behind the issue.

I've learned so much! I've changed certain things I used to do (and not just food safety stuff) because I now understand the problem, and there are things I used to do that I discovered were just silly.

I wish someone like the OP would take that idea and create a food safety guide in a similar format -- not the "don't ever do this if you don't want people falling dead at your dining room table" approach, but the "here are the risks and why" approach.
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Ruchel




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Apr 01 2015, 9:21 am
I don't do most things recommended here but do most things recommended in our safety manuals. I'd say I'm pretty average. People don't get sick LOL. My parents are very very clean in kitchen, and also don't do most things mentionned above Smile
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oliveoil




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Apr 01 2015, 9:41 am
I'm sure you could find things I am doing wrong, but I always defrost in a bowl of a cold water, and the other things you mention are very basic (not using the same spoons, not getting raw chicken and meat on your spices).
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etky




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Apr 01 2015, 10:39 am
sequoia wrote:
I am careful with food safety -- I wash a utensil that has touched raw food immediately, wash my hands with soap and hot water, wipe down all the taps and surfaces with clorox. The only thing is I defrost at room temp. Is that bad? It takes forever in the fridge. I guess you're supposed to defrost in cold water. Who actually does that?


This is me, exactly. I'm careful in general and am particularly zealous about contamination from raw food.
Yet I also defrost on the counter at room temperature. I am very careful though to refrigerate the food while it is still very cold, even a bit frozen still. It can take literally days to defrost in the fridge.
Recently however I discovered that my oven has a defrost function. I can put frozen chicken bottoms in the oven at 35-40 C and they are defrosted about 3 hours later. It is convenient and does a much better job than the microwave defrost setting.
BTW I just read an article that claims that defrosting in cold water is not safe either....
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OOTBubby




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Apr 01 2015, 11:01 am
Question for OP --

What is the most preferred method for cooling/storing a large pot of soup or something similar?

Once the fire is off, should the whole pot be refrigerated immediately (doesn't that warm the whole fridge too much) and divided into containers after it cools? Or should it be immediately divided into containers (hard when it is so hot)? And, then at what point could/should the containers be frozen?
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Scrabble123




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Apr 01 2015, 11:05 am
I am extremely careful and conscientious about food safety. I will use multiple spoons and not use something used for raw items on cooked. I wipe down surfaces, and I do not defrost at room temperature. On the other hand, I do not refrigerate cheese cake because I do not like it cold and would eat yogurt or cheese that has been out of the fridge for a few hours (I wouldn't serve it to someone without full disclosure).
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Raisin




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Apr 01 2015, 11:12 am
OOTBubby wrote:
Question for OP --

What is the most preferred method for cooling/storing a large pot of soup or something similar?

Once the fire is off, should the whole pot be refrigerated immediately (doesn't that warm the whole fridge too much) and divided into containers after it cools? Or should it be immediately divided into containers (hard when it is so hot)? And, then at what point could/should the containers be frozen?


some commercial kitchens have a food cooler for this reason.
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OOTBubby




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Apr 01 2015, 11:14 am
Raisin wrote:
some commercial kitchens have a food cooler for this reason.


So, what is the best procedure at home?
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amother
Ivory


 

Post Wed, Apr 01 2015, 11:20 am
OOTBubby wrote:
Question for OP --

What is the most preferred method for cooling/storing a large pot of soup or something similar?

Once the fire is off, should the whole pot be refrigerated immediately (doesn't that warm the whole fridge too much) and divided into containers after it cools? Or should it be immediately divided into containers (hard when it is so hot)? And, then at what point could/should the containers be frozen?


Divide the soup into containers before it cools- this way it will cool down faster. You can then place the containers into a large bowl filled with ice or cold water to cool down a little bit more. Finally, place the containers in the fridge or freezer on the top shelf and make sure that no other perishables (such as dairy products) are on the same shelf. Additionally, a while before placing the soup into the fridge/freezer, you can lower the degree setting even more- just for a little bit, until the soup is cool.

As to others who asked about defrosting at room temperature: To avoid the problem I personally buy fresh meat/poultry/fish- or else I freeze it in smaller portions so that it will defrost faster in the refrigerator.

Glad to see I am not the only one practicing food safety! Makes me feel a lot better.
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Raisin




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Apr 01 2015, 11:21 am
I let mine cool enough down and then transfer to small containers or soup bags. then I put them in the fridge or freezer.

I rarely make soup ahead for this reason - the time transferring it cancels out any advantage of making ahead.
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ra_mom




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Apr 01 2015, 11:34 am
I am super vigilent when it comes to handling raw poultry.
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