Holiday Food Safety

KEEP YOUR HOLIDAY HAPPY – PUT FOOD SAFETY FIRST

It is the season for making memories, gift giving, and hosting parties with good food! As you prepare your festive holiday spreads, remember to keep foods fresh and safe to eat. If your guests consume food containing harmful bacteria, they could become sick with a foodborne illness. So, when planning your holiday get together, follow this food safety checklist:

Clean Up

Thoroughly wash your hands with soap and water for a full 20 seconds before and after handling raw products.
Use plastic or other non-porous cutting boards. Cutting boards should be cleaned in the dishwasher--or washed with soap and hot water--after each use.

Combat Cross-Contamination

Store raw meat, poultry, and seafood on a plate or tray, so raw juices don't drip onto other foods.
Use one cutting board for raw meat products and another one for salads and other ready-to-eat foods, or wash cutting boards thoroughly in between each use.
Never place cooked food on a plate that previously held raw meat, poultry, or seafood unless the plate has been washed.
Don't spread bacteria with dirty sponges, dishcloths, or towels. Bacteria often thrive in the moist areas of these items where bits of food may also exist. Use paper towels or freshly-cleaned sponges or cloths and soap and hot water to clean food preparation surfaces.

Did You Know?
The average used kitchen sponge harbors 7.2 billion bacteria! Consider using paper towels or clean cloth towels.

Cook Safely

For meat, poultry, and other dishes, use a food thermometer to make sure foods are cooked to a safe internal temperature.
Cook eggs until the yolks and whites are firm or reach 160 ºF on a food thermometer. Don't use recipes in which eggs remain raw or only partially cooked. Cook egg dishes until they reach 160 ºF.
Cook fish until it's opaque and flakes easily with a fork.
When microwaving, make sure there are no cold spots in food (where bacteria can survive). For best results, cover, stir, and rotate food for even cooking. If there's no turntable, rotate the dish by hand once or twice during cooking.
When reheating sauces, soups, and gravies, bring them to a boil. Heat other leftovers thoroughly to 165 ºF.

Chill Thoroughly

Make sure the refrigerator temperature is 40 ºF or below and 0 ºF or below in the freezer. Occasionally verify these temperatures using an appliance thermometer.
Refrigerate or freeze perishables, prepared foods, and leftovers within 2 hours.
Never defrost or marinate food at room temperature. Use the refrigerator. You can also thaw foods in airtight packaging in cold water (change the water every 30 minutes, so the food continues to thaw). Or, thaw in the microwave, if you'll be cooking the food immediately.
Divide large amounts of leftovers into shallow containers for quick cooling in the refrigerator.
Don't over-stuff the refrigerator. Cold air must circulate to keep food safe.

The Fairfield Department of Health wishes you and your family a safe and joyous holiday season. To find out more about proper food handling, the following websites and toll free numbers are available: