EXPERIMENT:  Proper Patties

Question

How can you tell when a hamburger patty is cooked to a safe temperature?

My Hypothesis:

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Materials Needed:

• 1 / 4 lb. of fresh, lean hamburger meat
• Food thermometer
• Access to toaster oven with a broiler and broiler tray (or an electric fry pan)
• Pot holder

Procuedure

1. Form a round, thick (1") hamburger patty. Measure and record the temperature of the patty 1 / 4" from the edge. (See chart below.)

2. Now, take the meat's temperature in the very center of the patty.

3. Place the patty on the toaster oven broiling tray.

4. Place the tray in the toaster oven and turn the dial to broil.

5. When the burger looks cooked on one side, have your teacher turn over to brown the other side. Remove it from the toaster oven.

6. Now take the patty's temperature 1 / 4" from the outside edge, and again in the center of the patty. This must be done quickly so the patty doesn't lose its heat! Record your temperature readings on the chart below.

7. If the temperature reading is not 160°F, place the patty back in the oven and then take the meat's temperature every two to three minutes until the temperature is 160°F in the center.

Thermometer Tips:

• Make sure the thermometer goes straight into the meat and does not come out the other side to touch the pan!
• Thermometers should be washed each time you take the temperature of the meat.

Did You Know?

When a piece of meat is "ground up" to make hamburger, the bacteria that was on the surface of the meat can end up on the inside of the burger! That's why it's so important to cook the whole burger to a safe temperature of 160°F!

My Observations

When I measured the meat temperature 1 / 4" from the edge and in the center the first time, the outside of the patty looked: ____________________________________________________________

When the thermometer read 160°F in the center,

• The outside of the patty looked: ____________________________________________________________
• The inside of the patty looked: ____________________________________________________________

My Conclusions

The best way to tell if the hamburger is done and safe to eat is to:

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It's important to wash the thermometer after each use because:

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When meat is cooked to 160°F,

If hamburger is not cooked to 160°F, this is what could happen:

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What do you think? Does the color of meat tell you whether it is cooked enough to be safe to eat?

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Tell Your Family ...

Check to see if your family has a food thermometer and uses it!
Let them know what you learned about making meat safe to eat!
Wash your hands after handling raw meat or poultry!

^TM/SM International Food Safety Council

* Distributed May 2002 for use in September 2002 as part of the International Food Safety Council's National Food Safety Education Month.

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