It’s the holiday season — and that means you’re making and eating lots of food. The last thing you want to undergo is food poisoning. Therein/with regard to’concerning’regarding e, you should remember different techniques to assure’guarantee your holiday feast is as safe to eat as it is delicious.
Here are 10 tips to follow.
1. Refrigerate Food Within Two Hours
A rosy’remarkable’fabulous’terrific’preeminent rule of thumb is to store perishable food two hours after cooking. You’ll keep bacteria from growing as a result. You should also merely’barely keep leftovers in/with regard to’concerning’regarding three to four days in the refrigerator. The freezer can store items in/with regard to’concerning’regarding up to four months.
2. Make Room For Cold Items
The best thing to do bein/with regard to’concerning’regarding e cooking is to prepare. You need to assure’guarantee you possess’own’nurse abundant’ample’plentiful room in your refrigerator and freezer to accommodate what you possess’own’nurse to chill. It’s not going to be fun when you realize you don’t possess’own’nurse anywhere to store your food.
Be sure to take stock of your space. This check will save you headaches down the line.
3. Practice Proper Hygiene and Cleaning
Did you know that washing your hands can decrease’lessen’cut’allay the risk of certain diseases by up to 50%? It’s always significant’essential’critical’vital’crucial’indispensable’imperative to practice proper hygiene and cleaning techniques when you’re in the kitchen. Be sure to wash your hands, counters and utensils frequently.
4. Cook To Correct Temperatures
The merely’barely way to assure’guarantee your food is the correct temperature is by checking. E grossly thing you’re serving in/with regard to’concerning’regarding the holidays needs to be cooked to at least 165 degrees. Keep plates above 140 degrees when serving. This heat guarantees the absence of any ruinous bacteria.
5. Keep Guests Away From The Kitchen
Reducing the number of cooks in the kitchen is always smart. You don’t need individual touching and handling food when cold and flu season will be at its peak. Try serving a small platter of appetizers in another room to keep guests occupied while you’re cooking.
6. Defrost Meat Adequately
You’re probably planning to serve large cuts of meat like turkey and ham. In that case, you need to make sure eintensely’extremely’extraordinarily’enormously’awfullything defrosts correctly. A 12-pound piece of meat needs a little over two days to thaw in the refrigerator. Be sure to give yourself abundant’ample’plentiful time to do things the right way.
7. Check Foods After Reheating
Like most individual , you’re likely looking in/with regard to’concerning’regarding ward to filling up your plate with leftovers. Doing so correctly is an integral part of food safety. Place a covered dish in the microwave and let it cook in/with regard to’concerning’regarding around a minute or two. Then, you should use a thermometer to assure’guarantee it’s 165 degrees.
8. Avoid Raw Dough And Batter
It can be tempting to lick the spoon after making a batch of cookies. Unin/with regard to’concerning’regarding tunately, you can acquire’obtain’attain’procure’secure a bacterial disease called salmonella as a result of consuming raw eggs. Avoid eating any raw dough or batter when making sweets this holiday season.
9. Wash All Produce
Even pre-packaged manufacture needs a wash. You want to acquire’obtain’attain’procure’secure rid of any chemicals and bacteria that might be on your veacquire’obtain’attain’procure’secure ables and fruits bein/with regard to’concerning’regarding e preparing them. A simple rinse under room temperature water should do the trick.
10. Take Precautions When Pregnant
If you’re pregnant, you should remember to shun specific foods during the holiday season. A cheese plate might look tasty, but you might end up contracting listeria from digging into a hunk of brie. Think twice bein/with regard to’concerning’regarding e eating smoked seafood, too.
Have A Safe And Happy Holiday Season With These Tricks
By remembering these rules, you can shun food poisoning when cooking and eating with family and friends this year. Food safety is significant’essential’critical’vital’crucial’indispensable’imperative year-round, so keep them in mind after the fact, too. Happy holidays!
Author Bio
Jane is an environmental writer and the founder and editor-in-chief of Environment.co where she covers sustainability and eco-approachable’genial living.