Sanitation

If you went to a restaurant would you care if your fork had been sanitized or just cleaned? I know I would.

When you clean a dish all you technically have to do is clear the funk from a surface. Sanitizing means to clear the surface of any harmful bacteria through the use of high heat or sanitizing chemicals like bleach and dish detergent. I would prefer my fork to be sanitized please.

Temperature Danger Zone

Keep hot food hot (above 140º F) and cold foods cold (below 40º F). Bacteria and yucky stuff like to grow in between 40º-140º F.

Cross Contamination

This is the spreading of bacteria from one food or food surface to another. Cutting chicken on a cutting board and then cutting veggies after that is no good. First cut all of your fruits and veggies, (non-hazardous foods) and save the meat for last. Finally, wash your cutting board with lots of soap and hot water. Take it one step further and rinse with a bleach and water solution

F - A - T - T - O - M – This is what bacteria and gross stuff need to grow.

Food - The type of food you have will determine if it is potentially hazardous or not. Foods high in protein from animals, and cooked grains are both considered to have high potential.

Acid - The level of acidity will determine if it is a good environment for bacteria to grow. Bacteria do not like acidic foods like, lemon and lime juice, tomatoes, and vinegar.

Time and Temperature - The more time food is in the Temperature Danger Zone – the better chance that bacteria can spread. They love warm temps, which is the perfect environment for them to reproduce - Oh yeah that’s business time for little microscopic organisms, and they can go all day!

Oxygen - Most of these little buggers need oxygen to grow. That’s why we wrap our food in plastic and seal containers tight.

Moisture - Bacteria need a certain amount of moisture to live and produce. Foods that are low in moisture have less of a chance for bacteria to grow.

The Dishes

I love to cook, but I hate to do the dishes. I know it is not a great way to end an evening, but try to make it a habit to clean the dishes after your meal. Sometimes it’s hard, but it’s important because you do not want a sticky dirty kitchen. Bugs and rodents love dirty kitchens.

When hand washing dishes use hot water to clean the yuk from the dishes. Apply soapy water to sanitize the plate and rinse with clean hot water. Let the dishes dry in drying rack. Do not run the water full tilt. Try to limit the water usage.

When you choose to use the dishwasher make sure that you wash on a full load.