Make It a Food Safe Reunion
Family reunions and picnics are great for the heart and soul but sometimes not for the body. Many foodborne illness outbreaks have been traced to food served at large family gatherings, for a number of different reasons:
- Lots of cooks in the kitchen: From eccentric aunts to teenage trainees, cooks of varying food-handling skills have prepared the foods for the buffet or gathering. As a result, food may not have been cooked to a hot enough temperature to destroy bacteria, or it may have been left out in the temperature “Danger Zone” (40 to 140 ºF) where bacteria thrive.
- Warm summer days: Making the problem worse is that reunions and big family gatherings are often held in the summer. Bacteria grow and multiply faster in warm, summer months, including the harmful bacteria that can make you sick.
- The Great Outdoors: Another reason for the upswing in foodborne illnesses is reunions and gatherings are held outside when the weather is nice. The safety controls that a kitchen provides (such as thermostat-controlled cooking, refrigeration, and washing facilities) are usually not available.
Given these challenges, what’s the best way to ensure a food safe reunion? My advice is to get back to the basics: Clean, Separate, Cook and Chill.
Clean: Always wash your hands before and after handling food. If you’re outdoors and the site doesn’t have running water, bring water for preparation and cleaning; or pack clean, wet, disposable cloths or moist towelettes and paper towels for cleaning hands and surfaces.
Separate: Be smart and keep foods apart. Cross-contamination during preparation, grilling, and serving food is a prime cause of foodborne illness. Plan ahead and bring extra platters and utensils. Don’t let your favorite uncle take the raw burgers off a plate, grill them, and put them back on the same (unwashed) plate.
Cook: If you are cooking or bringing hot takeout foods, keep hot foods hot (140 ºF or above). Eat hot takeout food within 2 hours of pickup (that includes fried chicken!). Use a grill, campfire or portable stove to heat foods, and bring a food thermometer to make sure the food reaches safe temperatures. Check our Minimum Cooking Temperatures chart for details.
Chill: When you are enjoying food in the great outdoors, always keep cold foods cold (40 ºF or below). If you are traveling with cold foods, bring a cooler with a cold source.
Questions and Answers
Updated August 2, 2010
Q. If you get sick after eating food at a family reunion on a hot day, what is the sickness called besides "food poisoning"?
A. There are a number of different illnesses that result from eating contaminated food. Our Food Poisoning page provides links to details on the most common causes, including potential food sources.
Keep in mind that it's hard to know exactly which food caused the illness. As we discussed in our Complex Mystery blog, “When people get sick from food, they often assume the cause was the last thing they ate before they started feeling sick. That’s often not the case…. The cause could have been something they ate several days ago, something they might not even remember eating.”
Homemade Ice Cream – Make it Safely
Homemade ice cream is a treat many of us look forward to in summer. But each year that same treat causes many cases of Salmonella. The ingredient responsible? Usually raw or undercooked eggs.
Eggs are a standard ingredient in most homemade ice cream recipes. They add flavor and color, prevent ice crystallization, and make for that smooth and creamy texture. To prevent this ingredient from causing harmful infections, just follow these guidelines for safe cooking and handling.
Cooking the Egg Base
At the FDA, we advise consumers to start with a cooked egg base for ice cream. This is especially important if you’re serving people at high risk for foodborne infections: infants, older adults, pregnant women, and those with weakened immune systems.
To make a cooked egg base (also known as a custard base):
- Combine eggs and milk as indicated in the recipe. (Other ingredients, such as sugar, may be added at this step.)
- Cook the mixture gently to an internal temperature of 160 degrees F, stirring constantly. The cooking will destroy Salmonella, if present. Use a food thermometer to check the temperature of the mixture. At this temperature, the mixture will firmly coat a metal spoon (but please don’t lick the spoon if the custard is not fully cooked!).
- After cooking, chill the mixture before adding other ingredients and freezing.
Other Options
You can also use egg substitute products or pasteurized eggs in your ice cream, or you can find a recipe without eggs.
- With the egg substitute products, you might have to experiment a bit with the recipe to figure out the right amount to add for the best flavor.
- Pasteurized eggs can be substituted in recipes that call for uncooked eggs. Commercial pasteurization of eggs is a heat process at low temperatures that destroys any Salmonella that might be present, without having a noticeable effect on flavor or nutritional content. These are available at some supermarkets for a slightly higher cost per dozen. Even if you’re using pasteurized eggs for your ice cream, both the FDA and the USDA recommend starting with a cooked egg base for optimal safety.
So, by following these safe handling and proper cooking practices, you can enjoy refreshing, tasty homemade ice cream without worrying about making anyone sick!
Have a Happy, Food Safe Father’s Day!
Father’s Day is just around the corner. Many of us will celebrate with a day of outdoor activities and tasty meats from the grill. The chef of your household might have the skills to cook the perfect burger, but do they know how to cook a delicious and safe burger? It’s easy if you follow these simple steps.
Step 1: Safe Thawing
If meat and poultry is frozen, be sure to thaw it before grilling so that it will cook more evenly. Never thaw food at room temperature; you need to keep food out of the Danger Zone (between 40 °F - 140 °F) to keep bacteria from growing to dangerous levels.
The safe ways to thaw food are:
- In the refrigerator
- In cold water
- In the microwave. Plan to grill the meat immediately because some areas may begin to cook during the defrosting.
For more details, see The Big Thaw: Safe Defrosting Methods for Consumers or listen to our podcast on thawing.
Step 2: Safe Marinating
For many chefs, a great marinade is the secret ingredient that turns a tough piece of meat into one that’s moist, tender, and tasty. Here’s how to do it safely:
- Always marinate food in the refrigerator to keep it out of the Danger Zone.
- If you’re planning ahead, you can marinate chicken up to 2 days and beef up to 5 days in the refrigerator.
- Never use the leftover marinade as a sauce unless you bring it to a boil first for one minute.
Listen to our podcast on marinating for tips on containers for marinating, amounts to use, and more.
Step 3: Safe Grilling
The secret to safe grilling is to use a food thermometer. It’s the only way to be sure that the food is safely cooked. Check out our Using a Food Thermometer blog post for details.
Step 4: Safe Serving
What’s one of the most common mistakes that people make when they’re grilling? They put the safely cooked food on the same platter that held the raw meat or poultry. Don’t ever do this! When taking food off the grill, always use a clean platter. Otherwise, any harmful bacteria present in the raw meat juices could contaminate your cooked food.
Step 5: Safe Storing
If you have any leftovers, chill them promptly in shallow containers in a cooler or refrigerator. Discard any food left out for more than 2 hours. If it’s hot (over 90 °F), discard food left out for more than 1 hour.
If you have questions about grilling, feel free to submit them here. But, if you need an answer quickly, one of the following is your best bet:
- Phone: Call USDA's toll-free Meat and Poultry Hotline at 1-888-MPHotline (1-888-674-6854).
- Online: Use our automated system, Ask Karen, to search our knowledgebase, submit a question, or participate in live chat.
- Email: Send your question to mphotline.fsis@usda.gov.