What is the cardinal rule regarding everyday food safety?
CleanlinessSeptember is National Food Safety Month and this is a great time to highlight and recap some common food safety practices. Here are some general tips and suggestions to help keep it clean and safe.
Buying Fresh Fruits and Vegetables
Buy fresh looking fruits and vegetables, avoiding any that are bruised, shriveled, and obviously stay away from anything that appears moldy or slimy. Reject anything that smells bad or looks old.
Have you ever got home from produce shopping to find something was rotten or moldy? It has happened to me. I thoroughly check the produce before I buy it, but every now and then one might slight through. While shopping if I find any fruits or vegetables that look questionable or is clearly on its way out, I find someone from the produce department and point it out. I do the same a farmer’s markets. They get rid of it immediately and this way someone out there might have been spared an unintentioned surprise.
Storing Your Fresh Produce
Once you bring all the lovely fresh produce home, be sure to put it away promptly and stored properly in the refrigerator and elsewhere until ready to serve.
Fresh produce doesn’t stay around for long in our house. We go through it quickly. Still there are occasions when one or two things might not get used as quickly. Check your fruits and veggies often, and discard any old produce [try composting what you discard].
Keep It Clean :: Wash, Wash, Wash
I know I am stating the obvious here but these are practices that should be habit to help us prevent foodborne illness.
Thoroughly wash your hands and ask others who will handle food to do the same before preparing food.
Always wash fresh fruits and vegetables thoroughly before eating or preparing them. This way you are less likely to ingest harmful bacteria or contaminates that may have come from any number of places - the soil, water, storage, etc.
Make sure countertops and utensils are clean before use, and thoroughly wash them after handling food.
CO-EXISTING IN THE KITCHENFor those of us raw vegans who share a kitchen with meat eaters, like I do, here are some things to seriously consider when uncooked meat is involved.
Keep Fruits and Vegetables Separate From Meats
My husband and I love to shop together. I spend most of my time in the produce section as does he, but he also spends some time in the meat section. We are both careful to separate the meat from the fruits and vegetables in the shopping cart.
When I took a food handlers class, avoiding the possibility of cross-contamination was stressed in a big way. One very important rule of thumb, never let meat leak onto other food. Peter keeps any meat items separate from the produce in the refrigerator, and even when stored in the freezer.
Also keep utensils and cutting boards separate for meats and vegetables. The best thing to do is have two separate cutting boards, one designated for produce; the other for meat.
Thoroughly clean any surface that has come in contact with raw meat before any other item is placed on that surface.
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What is the cardinal rule regarding everyday food safety?
September is National Food Safety Month and this is a great time to highlight and recap some common food safety practices. Here are some general tips and suggestions to help keep it clean and safe.
Buying Fresh Fruits and Vegetables
Buy fresh looking fruits and vegetables, avoiding any that are bruised, shriveled, and obviously stay away from anything that appears moldy or slimy. Reject anything that smells bad or looks old.
Have you ever got home from produce shopping to find something was rotten or moldy? It has happened to me. I thoroughly check the produce before I buy it, but every now and then one might slight through. While shopping if I find any fruits or vegetables that look questionable or is clearly on its way out, I find someone from the produce department and point it out. I do the same a farmer’s markets. They get rid of it immediately and this way someone out there might have been spared an unintentioned surprise.
Storing Your Fresh Produce
Once you bring all the lovely fresh produce home, be sure to put it away promptly and stored properly in the refrigerator and elsewhere until ready to serve.
Fresh produce doesn’t stay around for long in our house. We go through it quickly. Still there are occasions when one or two things might not get used as quickly. Check your fruits and veggies often, and discard any old produce [try composting what you discard].
Keep It Clean :: Wash, Wash, Wash
I know I am stating the obvious here but these are practices that should be habit to help us prevent foodborne illness.
Thoroughly wash your hands and ask others who will handle food to do the same before preparing food.
Always wash fresh fruits and vegetables thoroughly before eating or preparing them. This way you are less likely to ingest harmful bacteria or contaminates that may have come from any number of places - the soil, water, storage, etc.
Make sure countertops and utensils are clean before use, and thoroughly wash them after handling food.
For those of us raw vegans who share a kitchen with meat eaters, like I do, here are some things to seriously consider when uncooked meat is involved.
Keep Fruits and Vegetables Separate From Meats
My husband and I love to shop together. I spend most of my time in the produce section as does he, but he also spends some time in the meat section. We are both careful to separate the meat from the fruits and vegetables in the shopping cart.
When I took a food handlers class, avoiding the possibility of cross-contamination was stressed in a big way. One very important rule of thumb, never let meat leak onto other food. Peter keeps any meat items separate from the produce in the refrigerator, and even when stored in the freezer.
Also keep utensils and cutting boards separate for meats and vegetables. The best thing to do is have two separate cutting boards, one designated for produce; the other for meat.
Thoroughly clean any surface that has come in contact with raw meat before any other item is placed on that surface.
Back to Top ⇑
Related posts: