Keeping Your Poultry Safe
More and more Americans are becoming concerned about ensuring
the food they eat is safe. What can you do to make sure
your chicken is safe to eat? How can you prevent food
poisoning? Below are tips from the American Dietetic Association
that will help you get your poultry safely from the grocery
aisle to the kitchen table.
Buying
- Choose packaged chicken that looks pink, not gray or
yellow.
- Make sure packaging is tightly sealed and is very cold
to the touch.
- Pick up the poultry last and ask to have it bagged separately
from other groceries.
- Check the "sell-by" date and if it has passed, don't
buy it.
Storing
- Make sure the refrigerator temperature is set to 40° F
or below
- Always use poultry by the "sell-by" date unless you are
freezing it
- Wrap poultry in freezer wrap or tightly sealed freezer
bags and date it
- Frozen poultry can be kept for nine months to a year
in a freezer set below 0° F
- Cooked chicken or turkey should be eaten or frozen within
3 to 4 days
Preparing
- Wash hands thoroughly for 20 seconds before, during and after handling raw poultry
- Use two cutting boards to avoid cross-contamination
- Use one for raw meats and the other for fruits and vegetables
- Color-coded cutting boards can help you remember which is which
- Refer to the Safe Food Handling label on the package
- The label gives proper cooking and storage procedures
- Defrost poultry in the refrigerator or in the microwave--never on the counter
- Use a meat thermometer to ensure doneness of your poultry
- Cook poultry breasts to 170° F
- Cook whole turkey, chicken to 180° F
- Cook ground chicken, turkey to 165° F
- Don't leave chicken unrefrigerated for more than two hours
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