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A really boring thread about food temperatures...
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Apologies in advance should anyone lose some time in a moment and slip into the following day...
I used to work in a catering role and was told that under Health and Safety rules food needs to be cooked to a temperature of 75 degrees Celsius in order for bacteria to be killed.
However, when cooking at home I find anything above 60 degrees dries out the food and impairs the taste. Particularly chicken. So is this a case of Health and Safety going OTT and 75 degrees is overkill? I reckon it's all balls like 'use by' dates, and 'best befores'?
I used to work in a catering role and was told that under Health and Safety rules food needs to be cooked to a temperature of 75 degrees Celsius in order for bacteria to be killed.
However, when cooking at home I find anything above 60 degrees dries out the food and impairs the taste. Particularly chicken. So is this a case of Health and Safety going OTT and 75 degrees is overkill? I reckon it's all balls like 'use by' dates, and 'best befores'?
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Whats that in gas marks and farenheight?
If Im cooking something at 180 for example on my oven, is that centigrade or farenheight?
I mean the internal temperature of the food if you put one of those pokey thermometers in. I really need to get out more!
Oh. I wouldnt have a clue.
What about when they serve beef dripping with red juice still? Cant imagine that is very hot inside.
Who uses one of those things in-doors?
Can't help you but I'll wait and see what the answers are, out of curiosity.
Well, I have no idea what that is. Sounds lovely though.
When I say catering establishment where I worked was actually a canteen in a Tesco.
Well, I do. I think it's really useful for cooking. In my defense, this did first start accidentally as I need to measure temperatures for feather dyeing at home so the thermometer was knocking around anyway.
What... Beef?
I meant when you see on these chef shows that you cook a joint and get it out and its 'rare', or in my words raw.
LOL, I know what beef is. I'm not quite that dense! I meant the whole red juice thing.
I love beef rare. As in, barely dead.
Well I was going to say blood but I suppose in reality its not actually blood although Im not sure what it is, just juice.
You should be applauded.
Ahh, I can see why you'd find one of these useful then.
Well you'd probably consider any meat I cooked seriously over cooked then.
A bloke was getting into this 'discussion' at the works canteen a few weeks back.
Chicken was red and 'juicy' at the bone, undercooked for him and me, but staff were getting the thermometer out.
What I call 'technically cooked, but not cooked'
Staff didn't take it too well but changed his meal, he wasn't going to eat it.
Still around,.
I think it's protein of some description. Definitely not blood.
In answer to the OP, there's no way you could get anything other than a well-done steak if it was cooked to an internal temperature of 75C, so it's certainly not the case for all food, but there are certain foods that have to be heated thoroughly to ensure that they are safe.
Thanks. Ah, but is 60 or so degrees thorough enough to be classed as thorough enough cooking to be safe? As in, what is the actual temperature in which bacteria is destroyed? Is it 75 degrees or, as I suspect, much lower?
You missed meat eating as opposed to vegetarianism which this thread wanders close to
however the problem with threads like these is that they can mostly be resolved with a quick google
http://www.foodsafety.gov/keep/charts/mintemp.html
63 degrees for red meat, 74 for leftovers, reheats etc ;-)
Well someone who works in catering should know that, to use or sell anything that has gone past the USE by date, is 1 dangerous to other people, and illegal and would very likely be prosicuted for that offence. selling or useing things that say, best before date, or sell by, are not committing a offence.
Best before, use by, display until... what all the date labels on your food actually mean
Most food packaging will have one or more of three date labels: best before, use by and display until. The 'use by' and 'best before' labels are required by law – Directive 2000/13/EC of the European Parliament, implemented in Britain by the Food Labelling Regulations 1996. The 'display until' label is added by retailers to help with stock control.
Best before
'Best before' dates relate to the quality of the food, its taste, texture, aroma and appearance. If food is stored according to package guidelines, it should be at its best up to and including the 'best before' date.
Food should be safe to eat after the 'best before' date, but it might not be at its best quality.
Retailers can sell food after its 'best before' date provided it still complies with the Food Safety Act 1990 and the General Food Regulations 2004. These make it illegal for someone to sell or supply food that does not meet food-safety requirements or that does not meet the consumer's quality expectations. It is illegal to sell or give away food after its 'best before' date if the food has deteriorated so much that it does not meet these expectations.
If you believe a shop has sold unsafe food, you should report it to your local environmental health department, which may investigate.
Use by
'Use by' dates refer to safety and are the required form of date mark for foods considered to be highly perishable from a microbiological point of view. This largely means fresh and chilled foods, such as raw meat, poultry, fish, eggs, milk, fruit and vegetables.
The 'use by' date only applies to products kept in the state in which they were intended to be sold: for example, a product created to be sold chilled should not be sold frozen.
Legally, food with a 'use by' date cannot be sold after that date, and should not be used after midnight of that day, even if it looks and smells fine.
If you have food approaching its 'use by' date, you have two options: you can cook it on its 'use by' date then eat it straightaway, store it in the fridge for up to two days, or freeze it; or you can freeze it the day before its 'use by' date and then cook it within 24 hours of defrosting.
It is illegal to sell food after its 'use by' date.
Once opened, use within 10 seconds.
BIB It's not a 'problem', it's a discussion forum, sometimes (well I do) post this sort of thing for the discussion, range of opinions, random but interesting information, as well as the answer.
That protein thing posted by another FM in relation to blood/juices has piqued my interest.
Found it - it's Myoglobin
Lots of home cooks use them, they are pretty cheap and a great way to ensure your food is cooked just right.
That's not why most people do it though, I use a meat thermometer to check mostly joints of meat to make sure it's cooked nice and rare or in the case of poultry just cooked. I also use it when i slow cook a pork shoulder for 12 hours.