Chicken Question

[BerryBaby]

I always wash chicken, beef or pork before cooking it. Wash and pat it dry with paper towels.

[Bentley Green]

Every piece of meat I buy gets washed before it goes on the stove or in the oven.

I was watching Guy's Big Bite the other day, and Guy took some chicken out of the fridge and he didn't even take it to the sink to was it! He just opened the package as it came from the store, seasoned it and put it straight into the pot for whatever he was making with it!!

Try not to be too alarmed when I say this, but in the restaurant business, they may wash the chicken, but they certainly don't clean it! Because of its mass production and fast pace. They used to say to me when I worked in some of them, that there is no time to clean it.

But at home, I don't roll with that! I take cooking very seriously, and part of it is making sure that whatever meat I cooking is clean and fresh smelling.

Thanks, Food Network Fan for splitting the thread.

[BerryBaby]

I saw Guy do that once, but he said he had cleaned it previously. Maybe it was just one show that he said that. I know that all their stuff is prepped and re-wrapped beforehand. If they had to do all the steps, their shows would have to be longer than a half or hour.

[Bentley Green]

I suppose.

Yeah, in that 1/2 hour, they have to cook and present the completed dish.

All the prep work is done in the back, as in the case of Emeril Live. They may do a bit of perp on stage, like putting some meat in a marinade and putting it in the fridge (I've seen Giadia do that many times), but it also may take up to 2 or 3 hours just to reherse one part.

And because of time constraints, a dish is already prepped and cooked, but Guy and Ray-Ray seem to get them done and one the table just before the end of their shows.

[bakerman]

I wonder if rinsing off meat really does anything to clean it or if it just makes people feel better?

MAC

[Food Network Fan]

I have read that you shouldn't do it...
SUPERBUGS: Don't Wash Your Meat WARNING it's a rather gross read.

[bakerman]

I have read that you shouldn't do it...
SUPERBUGS: Don't Wash Your Meat WARNING it's a rather gross read.

I've often thought that it was a great way to spread that bacteria, think about everything you could be touching, like the faucet handles, and the water that could splash around.

[Bentley Green]

I was always taught at home by mom & pop to wash hands first, wash the meat before cooking and once handling of the meat was done, to wash hands again.

Washing your hands and everything else that the raw meat comes in contact with provides good sanitation purposes / practices and helps cut down drastically on the spread of germs and bacteria.

Liquid soap, hand sanitiser and Clorox Anywhere are very good tools to keep in the kitchen. Cutting boards of different colors also helps you in knowing which ones to use for the raw meat. Clorox Anywhere can be sprayed right on the cutting board before use. Quite similar to the sanitizer that we used in cooking class.
It's perfectly safe and harmless.

I would tend to think that any bacteria or pathogens like samomillo poisoning would be killed during cooking, which as we all know, raises the temp of the meat during the cooking process to destroy these "parasites" so that they are completely harmless - hence the reason why health officials were telling us to make sure that pork, seafood & poultry are well done before we eat it.

And BTW, here's the breakdown of what temp to safely cook meats to, to the best of my knowledge, give or take a few degrees;

1. Poutry: 160 degrees.

2. Pork: 145 degrees. Too high is too dry.

3. Beef: 120 to 145 degrees depending on rareness or doneness desired. Could dry out if cooked to long without liquid.

4. Fish or other seafoods: 145 degrees. Anything higher than that or for too long a cooking time, could produce a rubbery product.

These figures may or may not br totally accurate, but I believe it's what I've learned when I was in culinary arts training. And while studying ServeSafe recommendations.

Some would also say that pork and poultry should be cooked to 180, but I think that would be too high in the case of a turkey. The breast meat would be too dry, and once that happens, it's no longer tender, moist or palatable. Pork also.

[Pluff Mudder]

Before cooking I wash off chicken, pork and beef mainly to just give it a "clean up" from stuff that's still on the meat after it's been butchered. Then I give it a good drying with paper towels and do any trimming that's needed. If its something I'm going to put in the smoker, I let it get good and dry because dry items take the smoke better than wet.

After the meat has had it's bath and is out of the sink, I give the sink and faucet a cleaning with cleaner and paper towels.

[BerryBaby]

Many times chicken has that slimy stuff on the bottom of the package. I have to rinse it off. I even wash, with soap and hot water, the containers before tossing them. The plastic wrapper gets a good soapy bath as well.

I hate smelly trash. I've been known to freeze the containers until trash day. They are double wrapped and I have a special place for them in the bottom of the freezer, away from everything.

I know, I'm a bit compulsive about this. So?