Helpful Hints For Food Preparation & Food Storage
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When it comes to preparing, storing and eating food we may not think too much about it all, but bacteria is all around us and loves certain types of foods, especially food that may not be cooked well and food that is not stored at the right temperature. According to the Australian Health Department it is estimated that more than 4 million Australians get sick annually from eating contaminated food, so is definitely worth gaining more information about and making a difference to your health and wellbeing.
1. Food Preparation
- Always wash your hands thoroughly before and after touching food to reduce germ sharing.
- If you have a cold or other illness, it’s best to cover your mouth with a mask and wear gloves when preparing and cooking food, or take a night off and let a family member or friend cook.
- Use separate hand towels for drying your hands and for drying the dishes.
- Clean all cooking benches before preparing food.
- When chopping up food use a different chopping board for raw food and for cooked food.
- Always wash all fruit and vegetables thoroughly before using them.
2. Food Storage
- Cold food must be stored in temperatures of 5 degrees celsius or less, whereas hot food must be kept above 60 degrees celsius.
- Separate raw and cooked food when storing in your refrigerator.
- Store food in containers securely with lids, or cover with glad wrap or aluminium foil.
- Allow hot food to slightly cool before storing in your refrigerator.
- Do not refreeze already defrosted food.
- Add a label and date all food that is stored in containers in your fridge and freezer.
- Take insulated bags shopping so your cold items remain cold on your car trip home.
- Buy a fridge thermometer to check your fridge always remains at the correct setting.
3. Food Storage Guide
Every food item has a different recommended storage time, if in doubt always check the product’s use by date, or best before date. Here is a guide to some of the more common storage recommendations for storing items in your refrigerator;
- Fresh Raw Eggs 3 – 6 weeks
- Meat/Poultry/Seafood 2 – 3 days
- Cooked Fruit/Vegetables 2 – 3 days
- Milk 5 – 7 days
- Whole Fresh Chicken 1 – 2 days
- Cooked Fish 3 days
- Raw Mince/Sausage 1 – 2 days
For more food storage information please see the Australian Institute of Food Safety
We hope you find this information helpful, it is also important that your refrigerator is working at it’s optimum level to keep your food at the right temperatures. MakoAir are experts in refrigerator installation, repairs and maintenance, so please call us on 0490 333 461, we are always happy to help!