Don’t let your Christmas Festivities be ruined by a bout of Food Poisoning. In the Cove has had many jobs in her life. One of them was working for the Food Standards Authority in Canberra. I would have to sit through so many boring meetings and read a massive amount of materials. One of the brochures I always read from cover to cover was information on Food Safety. Ask anyone who knows ITC well and they will tell you I am paranoid about food safety (I always rush home with my groceries and never reheat rice!!)
Did you know that a high risk time for food poisoning is Christmas Time? It can happen very easily at home if you do not follow some simple rules.
According to the NSW Food Safety Authority “Food poisoning is the name for the range of illnesses caused by eating or drinking contaminated food or drink. It is also sometimes called foodborne illness. It is quite common, affecting an estimated 4.1 million Australians each year. The symptoms can be unpleasant, and for some groups they can be quite serious.”
According to experts you are more at risk at Christmas time because the weather is hot, the fridge is packed, the fridge door is opened and closed more often.
Here are a few simple steps to take to avoid food poisoning:
- Make sure you have enough room in your Fridge and make sure that food is kept cold at or less than Five Degrees Celsius;
- Put your drinks in an esky with ice or the bathtub with ice – don’t take up fridge space with things that don’t need to be kept in the fridge (i.e soft drinks);
- Always wash your hands with warm water and soap. Dry your hands thoroughly afterwards not on a tea towel (and definitely not on a Lane Cove Tea Towel);
- Use separate cutting boards and utensils for raw meat;
- Avoid keeping food in the temperature danger zone between 50C and 60C where food poisoning bacteria grow best;
- Prepare foods as close as possible to serving time;
- Don’t leave food out to nibble on too long, for example put out small serves of dips and replace every few hours;
- Cook the Turkey properly – It must be cooked all the way through to ensure that nasty bacteria is killed;
- Use a Meat Thermometer to check that the Turkey is properly cooked (your butcher will tell you the correct temp). The liquid from the Turkey must be clear not pink;
- We all love stuffing – but stuffing slows down the cooking and cooling – so cook it separately;
- We all love Seafood and many people from Lane Cove go to the Seafood Markets for their seafood. Make sure you take an esky or cooler bag with ice and and pack it around the fish for the drive home. Take it out of your car and immediately put in the coldest part of the Fridge;
- If you like to do a big cook up before guests arrive, make sure you divide into small containers so it cools quickly and then put in the fridge or freezer with good air circulation around the containers;
- Never leave leftovers out on the Kitchen Bench. Use refrigerated leftovers within 2 to 3 days. Reheat food all the way through to at least 75 °C so it is steaming hot;
The Food Safety Information Council recommends the following in relation to your Christmas Ham:
“Your Christmas ham will keep several weeks with proper handling by removing it from its plastic wrap, covering with clean cloth soaked in water and vinegar so it doesn’t dry out. Follow any instructions on the packaging and store it in the fridge at or below 5 °C. Reduced salt hams are now becoming popular but will not last as long as conventional hams so follow instructions on the packaging”
If you would like to find out more about food safety, you can watch this video.
Do you have a local issue you would like help with? ITC is here to help just email us at [email protected]
- Sign up for the weekly In the Cove Newsletter
- Like us on Facebook
- Follow us on Instagram @inthecove
- Tweet us on Twitter @InTheCoveITC
- Pin us on Pinterest inthecoveITC
- Tell your friends about ITC (they will thank you!!). Remember to tell them that ITC is a website and they do not have to have access to any Social Media to enjoy ITC – we often speak to people who tell us they want to follow ITC but don’t have Facebook or Instagram account (you don’t need them)
