Food Safety for the Holidays

added 12/14/11

by Tracey Hull, Dietetic Intern

Holidays are a time to be with friends and family, enjoying good food and good company. The last thing you want to happen at your big holiday dinner is a food borne illness outbreak. It’s easy to get caught up and overwhelmed with the cooking process and to forget keep washing your hands and to change knives or cutting boards between raw and ready to eat foods.

Keeping these simple tips in mind can ensure that your holiday is happy and free from food-borne illness:

  1. Clean
  2. Separate
  3. Cook
  4. Chill

Clean:
Make sure to wash hands, cutting boards, utensils, and surfaces before preparing food and especially after handling raw meats. Use warm water and soap for 20 seconds (That’s about the time it takes to sing “Happy Birthday to You” twice.) Turn off the faucet using a towel to keep your hands free from the germs on the faucet handle.

Separate:
Cross-contamination can leave dangerous bacteria on foods. For example, by using the same cutting board for raw turkey and then raw salad vegetables, the harmful bacteria from the turkey can cross-contaminate the salad. Using separate cutting boards for raw meats and for vegetables is an easy way to keep these foods safe.

Cook:
People sometimes cut into the meat to see if it’s done. Just because it looks done doesn’t mean it’s safe, and frequent piercing to check doneness allows juices to escape and can result in dry meat. Using a food thermometer is a more accurate way to ensure your food is cooked to perfection. A list of safe temperatures can be found at www.HolidayFoodSafety.org

Chill:
The refrigerator temperature should be 40˚F or below to keep foods safe for the longer. Make sure leftovers are put into the refrigerator within two hours and eat them up or freeze them within three to four days.

For more tips, visit www.holidayfoodsafety.org It’s has valuable tips for how to keep food safe, including the safe way to thaw a turkey, as well as planning tips, recipe ideas, shopping lists, activities, games, and print outs for kids.

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