How do I safely handle food?

• Thaw meats on the counter
• Marinate at room temperature
• Use the same plate to bring raw meats to the grill and cooked meats from the grill
• Stir and taste with the same spoon
• Use the same knife on produce and raw meats
• Undercook high-risk foods like eggs, meat, poultry and fish

• Promptly refrigerate leftovers
• Clean cutting boards between uses (and use separate cutting boards for meat and other foods)
• Refrigerate groceries right away
• The same goes for restaurant leftovers
• Cook all foods to proper temperatures (use a meat thermometer)

Remember these four steps to handle food safely:

• CLEAN: Wash hands and surfaces often - before and after handling food, after touching your face or other surfaces and after handling raw meat.
• SEPARATE: Don't cross-contaminate. Avoid transfer of dangerous bacteria by keeping meat and poultry away from ready to eat foods.
• COOK: Cook food to proper temperature and reheat leftovers to at least 165 degrees.  
• CHILL: Refrigerate food promptly to 40 degrees or less.

Get more information on handling food safely at www.homefoodsafety.org.

The tips below may help you get the health benefits of eating fresh foods while avoiding foodborne illnesses.

• Wash hands with warm water and soap for 20 seconds before preparing food.
• Refrigerate or freeze leftovers within 2 hours of cooking.
• Eat refrigerated leftovers within 4 days or throw them out.
• Reheat foods to 165º F and reheat soup until boiling.
• Heat food to 160º F to kill E. coli.
• Remove outer leaves of lettuce and cabbage before preparing.
• Don't eat raw sprouts (bean or alfalfa)
• Wash produce even if you are going to just peel it or slice it. The knife can transfer bacteria from the outside to the inside as it slices through.
• Wash fruits and vegetables under running water just before eating, cutting or cooking. (Washing fruits and vegetables with soap, detergent or commercial produce washes is not recommended.)
• Remove the outer leaves of leafy vegetables. Processing plants wash leafy greens three times in chlorinated water before bagging them. But bacteria are sticky, so even thorough washing may not remove all contamination.
• Organically grown produce is not necessarily safer than conventionally grown produce.
• Canned and frozen spinach are safe to eat.