FOOD SAFETY:
Barbecues and Outdoor Picnics
Simple precautions
to help prevent food poisoning:
Wash hands
Avoid cross-contamination of foods
Keep cold foods cold
Refrigerate leftovers immediately
What causes food
poisoning?
Unwashed hands, undercooked meats,
cross-contamination from raw meats to other foods and eating unwashed
fruits and vegetables can spread E. coli, salmonella and a host of other
food-borne diseases. There are approximately 1.5 million cases of
food-borne illnesses per year in our state, including 6,500
hospitalizations and 100 deaths.
What many people call "stomach flu"
or "intestinal virus" is often food poisoning, resulting in symptoms
from mild nausea to a serious condition requiring medical treatment and
hospitalization. Especially at risk are young children, the elderly, and
people who have diseases that involve the immune system, such as asthma,
arthritis, cancer, HIV, diabetes, liver and kidney diseases.
How can I prevent
these illnesses?
Wash Hands Frequently
Wash hands with soap and water before and after handling raw meats.
Where running water is unavailable,
set up a make-shift hand wash station using hand soap and a container
with a spigot, filled with warm water.
As a last resort, waterless hand
sanitizers or disposable hand wipes can be used.
Everyone should wash hands before
eating to prevent passing germs to food.
Keep cold foods cold - below 45
degrees Fahrenheit
Keep hot foods hot - above 140 degrees Fahrenheit
Cook Meats Thoroughly
The safest way to ensure meats are cooked well enough is to use a food
thermometer.
Ground beef patties: insert
thermometer in center of patty - 160 degrees Fahrenheit
Chicken: 170 degrees Fahrenheit
Beef, veal and lamb cuts: 145
degrees Fahrenheit
If a thermometer is unavailable, cut
into meat to check for signs that it is done. Hamburgers should be brown
in the middle and chicken should have no pink inside. Consider serving
chicken that has been precooked and chilled, or cooking chicken pieces
in advance by boiling or microwaving in your kitchen before barbecuing.
Take-out chicken is also a potential hazard if not kept hot or
completely chilled before serving.
Preparing Salads
While mayonnaise has been implicated as a cause of food poisoning, the
real culprits in salads are the other ingredients (potatoes, eggs,
pasta, tuna, etc.) that are often combined with mayo before being
thoroughly chilled and then left at room temperature for several hours.
Bacteria can be introduced and multiply while ingredients are warm.
Thoroughly chill salad ingredients, including mayo, before combining.
Even canned tuna needs to be pre-chilled, unless you will be eating it
immediately after opening the can.
Transport on ice: potato, macaroni and other salads containing milk,
meat or eggs.
Nest salads in ice: Outdoors, consider nesting the salad bowl in a
larger bowl filled with ice.
Wash Fresh Fruits and Vegetables
Nearly all types of fruits and vegetables have been implicated in
food-borne illnesses.
All fruits and vegetables should be
washed with running water before cooking and/or serving.
Use a vegetable brush and running
water (no soap) to clean the outside of melons. Bacteria and other
pathogens can be transferred to the inside of the fruit or vegetable by
cutting through it.
Cut melons, fruits and vegetables
should be kept cold. When served outdoors, consider placing the serving
dish on ice or immediately store in an ice chest after serving.
Storing Leftovers
Immediately store leftovers in an ice chest after everyone has eaten.
Food left out for more than two hours should be discarded.
Cooking and Clean-Up
Clean utensils and cutting surfaces to avoid contamination from raw meat
to other foods.
Use a different utensil and dish for
cooking than what is used for serving. For example, do not return cooked
meat to a dish that held raw meat.
Wash utensils and surfaces with hot
soapy water, then rinse.
Source:
Washington
State Department of Health
Take a Mop to Your Meats!
Kabobs-Another
Word For Dinner On A Stick
How to Create
the Perfect Ribs in Your Smoker
Spicy Chipotle Flank Steak
Sandwich Recipe
Advice on Buying
and Using a Meat Smoker
11 Tips to Making the
Best Pork Ribs.
Natural Gas Grills
- the Best Way to BBQ Your Steak
Simple
BBQ Chicken
BBQ Sauce - What Style
Do You Prefer?
Barbecuing, a Fun and
Convenient Way to Make Dinner
|
