Kitchen Hygiene & Safety
When cooking, the number one priority should be working safely and hygienically. If cooks do this, they will not only protect themselves but the people whom are consuming their food. Whether you are doing a practical in the School Kitchens, working in child care, in the hospitality industry, in a school canteen or you are simply cooking at home here, are some safety tips to protect yourself and those around you:
Personal Hygiene
-Rinse your hands with warm-to-hot water
-Use soap to clean your hands
-Don’t forget to wash underneath your fingernails and all the way up your wrists.
-Rinse with warm water
-Dry thoroughly
Personal Hygiene
- Wash hands, before cooking and after handling any raw meat
-Rinse your hands with warm-to-hot water
-Use soap to clean your hands
-Don’t forget to wash underneath your fingernails and all the way up your wrists.
-Rinse with warm water
-Dry thoroughly
- Cover any cuts with a waterproof Bandaid and a glove to prevent the spread of bacteria
- Wear an apron and enclosed shoes
- Tie hair back, if you have long hair
Food Hygiene
Food can be prone to poisonous bacteria that upon consumption can be harmful to humans.
-Old stuff to the front for use and new stuff to the back
Food can be prone to poisonous bacteria that upon consumption can be harmful to humans.
- Keep chilled food at 5°C or colder and hot foods at 60°C or hotter
- Remember that between 5°C and 60°C is the temperature danger zone (demonstrated below)
- Use food within the expiration date
- Wash fruit and vegetables thoroughly before use to remove any residue of herbicides / pesticides.
- Use separate chopping boards for meat, poultry and vegetables OR wash chopping board thoroughly in-between uses, e.g. cut meat, wash board, cut vegetables
- Clean dishes in hot soapy water or alternatively use the dish washer
- When freezing have a rotation system
-Old stuff to the front for use and new stuff to the back
- Raw food should never come in contact with cooking food
Safety Precautions
Click here to go on to Allergies and Contamination.
- Walk do not run
- Handle knifes with care
- Clean up spills straight away
- Ensure there is no food on the ground
- Wash and sterilise kitchen bench tops when finished cooking or messy tasks
- Use oven mitts when removing hot trays from the oven – never use a tea towel
- Don’t throw water on burning fat or oil ( a fat fire) – use a fire blanket or tea towel
- Place saucepan handle inwards from the edge of the stove, to prevent knocks
- Turn off equipment after use – not only on the appliance but at the power point
- Use a scrap bowl to prevent rubbish being present in your food and cluttering your kitchen
Click here to go on to Allergies and Contamination.