Food Safety

Food poisoning is very common and can make you very unwell. Some food can look, smell and taste good and still have harmful bacteria in it so it’s important to know how to handle food properly to keep it safe. How to Handle Food Safely 1. Wash your hands • before making food or eating • after handling raw meat, raw egg or raw chicken • after using the toilet • after smoking. 2. Don’t make food for others if you are sick or if you feel unwell. Don’t eat food made by someone who is sick or is feeling unwell. 3. Wash all fruit and vegetables before cooking or eating them. 4. Don’t use cracked or dirty eggs. 5. Don’t use foods if in damaged packaging, or past their “Use by date”. Foods past their

“Best before date” are safe to eat but won’t taste as good as when they were fresh. 6. Don’t let raw egg, raw meat, or raw chicken get onto food that isn’t going to be cooked.

Chop raw meat or chicken on a separate cutting board. If you only have one chopping board, then chop the other foods first and meat or chicken last. Wash chopping boards, knives and utensils in hot, soapy water. How to Keep Food at a Safe Temperature Cooked meals or processed foods such as salads and sandwiches, as well as eggs, meat, chicken, fish and dairy need to stay at the right temperature to be safe. Bacteria can grow in these foods between 5 °C and 60°C. Keep them on the stove or in the oven above 60°C or in the fridge below 5°C. How to Thaw Out food safely Thaw out frozen food in the fridge. It’s not safe to thaw food outside of the fridge - although the inside of thawing foods can stay very cold, the outside becomes warm enough for bacteria to grow. If you need the food thawed more quickly, put it in a microwave on the defrost settings. Cook foods thawed in the microwave straight away. Raw chicken must be completely thawed before cooking. How to Cook Food Safely Cook meat and chicken thoroughly so that there is no pink left and juices run clear. Mince, sausages and chicken often have dangerous bacteria in them and need to be cooked all the way through to kill the bacteria and make them safe to eat. Steaks can be cooked to rare or medium but need to be seared on the outside and shouldn’t be pierced by a fork or cut during cooking. How to Store Cooked Food Safely If you plan to eat all the food or throw away any leftovers, you can keep food off the stove or out of the fridge for up to 4 hours. If you plan to put leftovers in the fridge don’t keep food off the stove or out of the fridge for more than 2 hours. Cool cooked foods quickly by placing them into smaller, shallow containers with a lid or plastic wrap and put them into the fridge once they have cooled a little (15-20 minutes is enough for most foods). How to Store and Reheat Leftovers Safely Leftovers can be kept for up to 3 days but don’t keep any foods that were on the plates you or others have been eating from. If you want to keep extra serves of food for longer put them in a sealed container and freeze them. Reheat leftovers until they are hot all the way through. If using the microwave, stir the food half way through if possible and leave to sit for a minute or two once it’s finished heating.

Source: sahealth.sa.gov.au/wps/wcm/connect/public+content/sa+health+internet/conditions/food+safety