It was the night after feasting at a holiday party and all through the house, my husband and I could sense we had something to dread. Our stomachs – how they rumbled, and our eyes lost their twinkle. No visions of sugar plums danced in our heads, just thoughts of getting better by Christmas Day.

Our recovery from what we suspect was food poisoning was quick and is now a distant memory, but it’s a good reminder to review food safety tips during the holiday season. The U.S. Department of Agriculture offers four basic food safety tips to reduce the risk of food-borne illness during the holiday season.

1. Clean:

The first rule of safe food preparation in the home is to keep everything clean.

•Wash hands with warm water and soap for 20 seconds before and after handling any food. To help you remember, it takes about 20 seconds to sing 'Happy Birthday' two times.

•Wash food-contact surfaces (cutting boards, dishes, utensils, countertops) with hot, soapy water after preparing each food item and before going on to the next item.

•Rinse fruits and vegetables thoroughly under cool running water and use a produce brush to remove surface dirt.

•Do not rinse raw meat and poultry before cooking. Washing these foods makes it more likely for bacteria to spread to areas around the sink and countertops.

2. Separate:

Don’t give bacteria the opportunity to spread from one food to another (cross-contamination).

•Keep raw eggs, meat, poultry, seafood, and their juices away from foods that won’t be cooked. Take this precaution while shopping in the store, when storing in the refrigerator at home, and while preparing meals.

•Consider using one cutting board only for foods that will be cooked (such as raw meat, poultry, and seafood) and another one for foods that will not be cooked (such as raw fruits and vegetables).

•Keep fruits and vegetables that will be eaten raw separate from other foods such as raw meat, poultry or seafood — and from kitchen utensils used for those products.

•Do not put cooked meat or other food that is ready to eat on an unwashed plate that has held any raw eggs, meat, poultry, seafood, or their juices.

3. Cook:

Food is safely cooked when it reaches a high enough internal temperature to kill harmful bacteria.

•Color is not a reliable indicator of doneness. Use a food thermometer to make sure meat, poultry, and fish are cooked to a safe internal temperature. To check a turkey for safety, insert a food thermometer into the innermost part of the thigh and wing and the thickest part of the breast. The turkey is safe when the temperature reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit. If the turkey is stuffed, the temperature of the stuffing should be 165 degrees Fahrenheit.

•Bring sauces, soups, and gravies to a rolling boil when reheating.

•Cook eggs until the yolk and white are firm. When making your own eggnog or other recipe calling for raw eggs, use pasteurized shell eggs, liquid or frozen pasteurized egg products, or powdered egg whites.

•Don’t eat uncooked cookie dough, which may contain raw eggs and raw flour.

4. Chill:

Refrigerate foods quickly because harmful bacteria grow rapidly at room temperature.

•Refrigerate leftovers and takeout foods — and any type of food that should be refrigerated — within two hours.

•Set your refrigerator at or below 40 degrees Fahrenheit and the freezer at 0 degrees Fahrenheit. Check both periodically with an appliance thermometer.

•Never defrost food at room temperature. Food can be defrosted safely in the refrigerator, under cold running water, or in the microwave. Food thawed in cold water or in the microwave should be cooked immediately.

•Allow the correct amount of time to properly thaw food. For example, a 20-pound turkey needs four to five days to thaw completely when thawed in the refrigerator.

•Don’t taste food that looks or smells questionable. A good rule to follow is, when in doubt, throw it out.

•Leftovers should be used within three to four days.

For more information, contact the USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline at 1-888-674-6854.

Now hang those stockings and enjoy those holiday treats safely.

Laurie Sidle is an Ohio State University Extension Family and Consumer Sciences and 4-H program assistant and may be reached at 330-264-8722 or sidle.31@osu.edu
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This article was previously published in The Daily Record.