Preventing foodborne illnesses and ensuring food safety hinge on maintaining excellent hygiene and safety practices in the kitchen. Although many people complete Food Hygiene and Safety Training, they often forget the basic principles during daily cooking. Whether you’re running a professional kitchen or cooking at home, steering clear of these usual mistakes will create a safer and healthier food environment.
1. Proper Hand Hygiene
Washing your hands properly is one of the simplest yet often overlooked practices in food safety. It’s not just about quickly rinsing under water; you need to scrub with soap for at least 20 seconds. This is especially important before you start cooking and after handling raw foods like meat, poultry, or seafood. Without proper handwashing, harmful pathogens like Salmonella and E. coli can easily spread, causing serious illnesses.
To avoid this mistake, wash your hands with soap for 20 seconds, particularly after handling raw meat or using the restroom. Ensure you dry your hands with a clean towel or air dryer since damp hands can spread germs.
2. Cross Contamination
Cross contamination happens when bacteria from raw food are transferred to cooked or ready-to-eat items, often because the same tools or cutting boards are used without proper cleaning.
To prevent this, use separate cutting boards for raw meat and other foods and always clean and disinfect surfaces, knives, and utensils after handling raw food.
3. Watching Expiry Dates
It’s easy to overlook expiry dates, but eating food past its expiration can be risky to your health. Expiry dates inform you when food is no longer safe to consume.
To prevent this, always check the expiry date before using any product and rotate stock in your fridge and pantry to use older items first.
4. Storing Food at the Right Temperatures
Storing food at incorrect temperatures is a common mistake that lets bacteria grow. The “danger zone” for bacterial growth is between 5°C and 63°C, so perishable food should be refrigerated quickly and kept below 5°C.
To avoid this, ensure your fridge is set below 5°C, and refrigerate leftovers within two hours of cooking.
5. Thawing Food Properly
Leaving frozen food to thaw at room temperature can cause bacteria to multiply fast. The outer layers warm while the center stays frozen, creating a perfect environment for bacteria.
To avoid this mistake, thaw food in the fridge overnight, use cold water, or a microwave. Never leave perishable foods out for more than two hours.
6. Personal Hygiene Importance
Focusing only on the food, we sometimes forget about the handler’s hygiene, which is equally crucial. Contaminants can be introduced if food is handled while ill, wearing dirty clothes, or with untied long hair.
To prevent issues, wear clean clothing and tie back hair when cooking, and avoid cooking if you’re feeling sick.
7. Cooking at Right Temperatures
Cooking food at inappropriate temperatures fails to kill harmful bacteria. Quite often, due to rushing, meals are undercooked, resulting in foodborne illnesses.
To avoid this, use a food thermometer to ensure food has reached the correct internal temperature, checking the thickest part of the meat.
8. Cleaning Utensils After Use
Using the same utensils for raw and cooked food can lead to quick cross contamination. This mistake is common, especially when multitasking.
To avoid this, use different utensils for raw and cooked foods, and always clean cutting boards, utensils, and surfaces immediately after use.
9. Washing Fruits and Vegetables
Fruits and vegetables might look clean, but they can still carry harmful bacteria or pesticides. Many people skip washing produce thoroughly, raising the risk of illness.
To avoid this, wash fruits and vegetables under running water before eating, and use a clean brush to scrub firm produce like cucumbers or melons.
10. Regularly Cleaning Kitchen Surfaces
Kitchen surfaces, especially worktops and cutting boards, can harbor bacteria from raw foods. Ignoring cleaning them can contaminate food prepared later on.
To avoid this, clean and disinfect all surfaces after prepping food, mainly after dealing with raw meat, using kitchen disinfectant or a hot water and soap solution.
In conclusion, food safety isn’t just about preventing foodborne illnesses; it’s about protecting your health and others. By being mindful of these common mistakes and actively avoiding them, you can ensure that the food you prepare is both safe and nutritious. Keep these top 10 mistakes in mind to master safe cooking techniques!
