Eco Vida – Holiday Food Safety

Holiday Food Safety

The upcoming holidays can bring joy, but also lot of anxiety, especially if someone gets sick. Knowing how to handle, prepare and store foods like poultry and leftovers can reduce the chance of your holiday becoming one you’ll never forget.

A fast and delicious alternative to traditionally baking a turkey is to deep fry it. However, deep frying a turkey comes with risk that must be accounted for, in order to have a safe holiday feast. There is a tradeoff when deep frying turkeys that must be considered before the cooking task is undertaken. Deep frying a turkey requires constant monitoring of the heating oil, cooking bird, people in the vicinity and other things that could be considered hazardous. Oven baking a bird allows the cook to perform other tasks.

Always keep children and pets away from heating oil and cooking birds. A night in the emergency room is no way to spend Thanksgiving.

It is a good idea to minimize drinking when deep frying turkeys. Deep frying turkeys has inherent dangers that are more easily avoided if done with a clear mind.

Cooking is the leading cause of house fires in the United States, according to National Fire Protection Association. In 2006, the agency reported that 1,400 Thanksgiving house fires were nearly triple the daily average.

Tips for deep frying turkeys:These are general guidelines. Common sense should always apply.

• Never attempt to deep fry a frozen turkey! The heated oil will vaporize ice, creating an eruption of hot oils that can cause severe burns and fire.

• 8-10 pound turkeys work best for deep-fryers. Trying to deep fry large turkeys is difficult for several reasons, the primary being that larger turkeys are harder to handle. They also require deeper cooking vessels with more oil and greater potential for accidents.

• Peanut, canola and sunflower oils are recommended. Their flash points are much higher than olive or common vegetable oils, so there is a reduced chance of these types of oils catching fire while being heated.

• When the turkey is thawed, place it in the empty fryer pot and add water to test the minimum 3-5 inches the oil should be from the top of the pot. Remove the turkey and make sure it dries completely. Drain and dry the pot thoroughly.

• Makes sure the wrapper, innards, wire or plastic trusses and pop-up timer are removed from the bird. Cut off the wing tips up to the first joint and remove the tail.

• Stuffed turkeys will not work for deep-frying.

• Add oil to the fryer to the level you measured earlier. The correct amount will ensure no hot oil spills over the brim of the fryer pot. Hot oil spilling onto lit burners is the leading cause of fires and injuries related to deep frying turkeys.

• Heat the oil to 365-375 degrees, which usually takes one hour.

• Make sure the turkey is completely thawed and dried. Partially-frozen turkeys easily trigger spillovers and fires.

• Once the oil is heated, slowly lower the turkey into the pot. Take extra care to avoid tipping the fryer or spilling the oil.

• Whole turkeys take 3 minutes per pound to cook, so allow a half hour for a 10-pound bird.

• Keep an eye on the fryer the entire time, guarding against pets or children.

• Keep an all-purpose fire extinguisher nearby in case of flames. Never use water to extinguish a grease fire.

• Carefully remove the turkey to avoid spilling. The oil can be used for multiple birds. Allow it to cool before disposing.

Disposing of Used oils:Listed below are the options for properly disposing of the used oil.

Contact the municipal waste management services in your areas to find out how they recommend disposing of used cooking oils.

Some automotive parts stores will take used oil.

Another option is to dry the oil with cat litter, sawdust, or sand. Once dried, it can be disposed with your regular garbage.

Contact area restaurants to see if they will accept the oil in their oil container.

Remember, waste haulers cannot accept liquids!

Remember, when you buy a turkey, it is always a good idea to purchase a dial meat thermometer at the same time. They are an inexpensive way to make sure your food has been cooked to the proper temperature and doneness.

Preparation:Thaw meats in the refrigerator. Large meats like turkeys have long defrost times and provide ample time for bacteria to proliferate. Never refreeze thawed meats. Aside from making meats taste bad from the damage caused by ice crystals rupturing cells, the potential for the formation of bacterial spores that are not easily killed by normal cooking temperatures greatly increases.

Clean:Wash hands and food-contact surfaces often. Bacteria can spread throughout the kitchen and get onto cutting boards, knives, sponges, and counter tops. Separate:Don’t cross-contaminate–don’t let bacteria spread from one food product to another. This is especially true for raw meat, poultry and seafood. Keep these foods and their juices away from ready-to-eat foods. A good rule of thumbs is to use a separate cutting board for meats and vegetables. All surfaces that have been exposed to uncooked meat must be thoroughly cleaned with a disinfecting solution. Cook:Everybody loves a juicy turkey, but undercooking food because you are afraid of it becoming too dry is a recipe for disaster. Food can be well done and juicy at the same time. Using a dial thermometer to ensure proper food temperature will prevent you from overcooking and undercooking meals. Many times pop-up thermometers that come with whole, raw turkeys are inaccurate. Foods are properly cooked when they are heated for a long enough time and at a high enough temperature to kill the harmful bacteria that cause foodborne illness. Insert dial thermometers deep within the meaty part of the turkey, check both the thigh muscle and the breast muscle, making sure not to pass the tip of the thermometer through to empty cavities or simmering pan juices. Remember that every time you open the oven door, oven temperatures can drop significantly and add up to half an hour to cooking times. Relying on time for doneness is always a bad idea. Don’t guess. Know your meal is prepared right by cooking to the proper temperature and doneness. It will be better tasting and better for you.

Rest: Food hot from the oven will beveryhot. In fact, the temperature of a fresh from the oven Turkey can rise by almost ten degrees. Ten minutes is the maximum waiting time to ensure foods are hot and safe. Always remember hot foods are dangerous and can easily burn. Always use caution when handling hot foods and serve promptly. Chill:Refrigerate promptly. Refrigerate foods quickly keeps most harmful bacteria from growing and multiplying. Refrigerators should be set at 40 F and the freezer at 0 F. Leaving food lying around is never a good idea. It may be tempting to take that after turkey nap, but food sitting out for long times can provide the perfect environment from bacteria growth that causes foodborne illness. Always clean up cooking surfaces quickly and place leftovers in the fridge soon after finishing your meal.

Remember: Who you are serving. Family members who are elderly, young, have had transplants, or are immune compromised are more susceptible to the dangers of eating improperly cooked food.