At the risk of concern trolling the Independence Day holiday here in the States, it’s worth repeating why I love tip sensitive digital thermometers (and why I have a reputation as a food safety tyrant at the Root Simple compound). Here’s some advice from the aptly named Barfblog:
Always use a meat thermometer, Powell says. With practice, people can learn to stick them in burgers without slicing the patties in half. “Pick the meat up with tongs and insert the thermometer sideways, or through the top,” Powell suggests. Beef hamburgers should reach 160 degrees to kill germs, says Benjamin Chapman, assistant professor of food safety at North Carolina State University and a food safety specialist at the North Carolina Cooperative Extension. Temperature matters far more than color when it comes to meat, Chapman says; even thoroughly browned burgers can harbor bugs. “I was not a popular person at a family cookout a few years back when I insisted we ‘temp’ the chicken as we grilled in the rain,” says Donald Schaffner, a professor and extension specialist at Rutgers University in New Jersey. “But nobody got sick.”
See the rest of the article for more summertime food safety fun.
Pingback: » Grillin’ and Tempin’ | Root Simple
The temp Nazi I am not, but I will boldly go to the grill as the meat is being put on the grill and sweetly ask which pan/dish will the griller put the finished meat onto. Sometimes the griller will smile and show me a new pan/dish. I volunteer to take the pan/dish to the kitchen and put it in the sink. Actually, I wash it carefully in order to not get poisoned by someone splashing it on the salad or cut watermelon later.
I have also been known to cruise the food table for dishes that need a bowl of ice underneath them and offer to “help” the busy host by putting ice bowls underneath dishes that might spoil.
When I explained to my host that knew of my dumpster diving for food I had not brought any dumpster-gotten food, she laughed and said that if I would eat it, they all would. Sorry, but there are times I am the only person not drinking and preparing food.
Now, I will have to carry my own meat thermometer in case the host does not own one.
Love those folks at NCSU. I attend many of their Extension programs, including a recent lecture on rainwater conservation for homeowners, and I always learn a new way to grow it, preserve it, or construct it.
Ten years ago a large church used a local caterer to provide barbecue for its annual picnic. The food stayed tepid too long, resulting in over 200 cases of vivid GI distress. A temp guru is always a good idea. Best wishes.