Good hygiene in the kitchen reduces the risk of spreading nasty bacteria that can give you food poisoning. In addition, food lasts longer, which means less food waste! Perfect, let's go and wash our hands!
For many different reasons, bacteria, viruses and parasites can be present in our food. Some bacteria are added, such as in filmed milk and cheese. It can also be found naturally in food. Some bacteria do not affect food, some spoil it and some bacteria make us sick. The most common reason why we get sick from food is poor hygiene in the kitchen.
As we all know, far too much food and drink is thrown away that could actually be eaten or drunk. By handling food in a hygienic way, you can reduce the risk of illness and unnecessary food spoilage. Paying attention to hygiene in the kitchen therefore helps to reduce food waste, contribute to a better environment and keep you healthy.
The home chef!
Before you start showing off your awesome cooking skills in the kitchen, think about hygiene and how you handle your ingredients. When you come home from the grocery store and have bought all the tasty ingredients for today's meal, don't put the grocery bag on the kitchen counter. It may have been left on the floor in the store and in the car and is probably full of bacteria.
Make sure you wash the kitchen counter thoroughly before you start. Isn't it true that the kitchen worktop can become a dumping ground for keys, mail and all sorts of things? When you wash and wipe the surface, make sure you have a clean cloth! The dishcloth has the ability to turn into a really cozy bacterial hotbed very quickly. Instead of changing your dishcloth every day, you can boil it to get rid of the bacteria.
Wash your hands
We start with the most important thing of all, washing your hands! Washing your hands with soap and water is our best defense against the spread of diseases such as stomach flu. Make sure the towel you use to dry yourself is clean, otherwise use paper. Using hand sanitizer after washing hands with soap and water can further reduce the number of microorganisms. Also make sure to bandage up any wounds or eczema on your hands, disposable gloves can be useful to cover the damaged skin, but good hand hygiene is still important.
Take care of your tools
Wash and dry knives, kitchen utensils and cutting boards thoroughly after cutting or handling raw meat, fish and poultry before using them to prepare non-heated foods such as salads and vegetables. Even better is to actually have different cutting boards for different ingredients.
Different materials are differently easy to clean. Stainless steel knives and surfaces are easier to clean than plastic and wood. Glass and ceramics are thought to be in between stainless steel and plastic. Dishcloths are the most difficult to get completely clean unless they are boiled or machine washed.
Your raw materials
Vegetables can become contaminated through irrigation, soil, fertilizer, handling or contact with contaminated material. Always rinse vegetables under running water or a water bath. Although not all microorganisms are eliminated, the number of microorganisms is reduced and so is the risk of getting sick.
Refrigerated goods go in the fridge
When you get home from the store, make sure to put everything that needs to be cooled in the fridge at once. Storage temperature has a big impact on how quickly bacteria multiply. Storing refrigerated goods at four degrees allows microorganisms to multiply so slowly that food lasts longer and the risk of getting sick is low.
The obvious
Of course, if you have or have recently had a stomach bug, stay away from the kitchen counter!
When you are or have recently been sick with a stomach bug, you are more likely to have bacteria, viruses or parasites on your hands that can make others who eat the food sick. It can sometimes be enough for a small number of disease-causing bacteria, viruses or parasites to be transferred to ready-to-eat food to make another person sick.
Tasty meal!
So, we have made sure that our hands, workspace and utensils are clean and that our goods have been handled properly. All that remains is to wish you a delicious meal!
Source: National Food Agency
