Cooking food safely
It is important to cook food correctly, just as it is important to prepare and keep the food. Food Poisoning is often caused by inadequate cooking. Food poisoning can be caused by cross-contamination of raw and cooked food, for example, from hands, cutting boards, or other utensils. To kill food poisoning bacteria, it is important to cook all foods thoroughly, including poultry, salmon, and egg.
Food should generally be heated to at least 75 degrees Celsius or higher. Food should either be consumed immediately, heated to a temperature higher than 60 degrees Celsius, or kept cool, covered, and placed in the refrigerator or freezer.
This video will teach you how to cook food properly.
Food poisoning: Who is at Risk?
Food poisoning can affect some people more than others. The following groups are at risk:
- Pregnant women
- young children
- The elderly
- Anyone with a chronic disease.
When preparing, cooking and serving food to these groups, special care must be taken.
Cooking high-risk food safely
Some foods are more susceptible to food poisoning than others. High-risk foods include:
- Raw and cooked meat, including chicken, minced meat and food containing it, like casseroles, curries, lasagne and others
- dairy product such as cheesecake, custard tarts or other dairy desserts.
- Eggs and eggs products, such as mousse
- Small goods, such as salami and ham
- Seafood – including seafood salads, patties and fishballs, as well as stews with seafood stock
- Cooked rice and pasta
- Prepared salads such as pasta salads, rice salads and coleslaws
- Prepared fruit salads
- Ready-to-eat food – including sandwiches, pizza, and rolls containing any of the above.
Temperature danger zones and high-risk food
Be careful with foods that are high in risk. Remember to:
- Avoid storing high-risk food in the danger zone between 5 and 60 degrees Celsius.
- Foods that are high risk should not be left out in the danger zone of temperature for more than 2 hours. They can either be eaten, reheated or refrigerated.
- Immediately consume high-risk food that has been in the danger zone of temperature for more than two hours but less than four hours.
- Foods that are high risk should be thrown out if they have been in the danger zone of temperature for longer than four hours.
All food should be cooked to 75 degrees Celsius
It is important to know how you prepare food. The way you cook different foods is important.
- When cooking food, aim for a temperature inside of 75 degrees Celsius or higher. This temperature will kill most bacteria that cause food poisoning. Check the temperature inside foods as they cook using a thermometer.
- You can cook mince meat, whole chickens, sausages and stuffed meats to the center. The meat should not have any pink color and the liquids should appear clear.
- You can generally cook red meat, including steaks, chops, and whole cuts to your liking as most food-borne bacteria reside on the surface. If you’re at higher risk for the serious consequences of Toxoplasmosis, such as being pregnant or immune compromised, it is important to cook your meat thoroughly.
- Fish should flake easily when sliced with a fork.
- Egg-based foods such as baked custards, omelettes or a baked egg pudding should be cooked thoroughly.
Raw eggs and food safety
Prepare foods containing raw eggs with extra caution. This includes homemade mayonnaise and sauces such as hollandaise. Desserts such as mousse and tiramisu also contain egg. These foods can be contaminated by bacteria on the shell and in the egg.
Food containing eggs should not be given to anyone who is pregnant, has a young child, an elderly person, or suffers from a chronic disease.
Microwave cooking and food safety
The microwave is a convenient and quick way to prepare food. If they are used incorrectly, microwaves can cause food to be cooked unevenly. It may result in food that is partially or incompletely cooked, and not reach a temperature of 75 degrees Celsius. You can cook food using the microwave in three ways:
- If possible, cut food into equal-sized pieces or place larger items or those that are thicker towards the outer edge of your dish.
- Cover your food using a lid that is microwave safe or plastic wrap. The steam will be trapped and the food will cook more evenly.
- Rotate the food and stir it during cooking.
- Check the food is done after the standby time. Even after you turn off the microwave, food continues to cook.
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Food cooling and storage
Wait until the steam has stopped rising before covering the food in the refrigerator. It helps to keep food as far away from the danger zone of temperature as possible. Put large portions of food into shallow trays, or cut them up into smaller portions.
Keep food hotter than 60 degrees Celsius and away from the danger zone.
In ideal circumstances, you can store cooked food in the refrigerator for several days. You can keep the cooked food for longer by freezing it immediately after it has cooled in the refrigerator.
Store cooked foods separately from those that are raw, including raw fish, meat, and poultry. Raw meat and poultry should be stored at the bottom shelf of your fridge. This will prevent raw juices from dripping on other foods. All food should be covered or sealed.
Heat food until it is steaming.
Food should be reheated until it is boiling hot or above 75 degrees Celsius. The food should be steaming all over, and not only on the edge. When reheating in the microwave, be careful. To ensure that all food reaches 75 degrees Celsius, follow the same steps as you would when using a microwave.