How to Kill Salmonella with Over-the-Counter Products
Cook meats, poultry and fish to their proper temperatures to prevent a salmonella outbreak in your home. Also, prevent cross-contamination in your kitchen by using several over-the-counter products. If you accidentally expose your counter top to salmonella and then eat food that was sitting on the counter, you risk ingesting the salmonella bacteria. Exposure to low amounts of salmonella, however, is generally not harmful unless a person is already sick or has a weak immune system. Therefore, killing most of the salmonella is usually all sufficient, but to kill it all, you must do some extra sanitizing. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
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Wash dishes and utensils exposed to raw meat, fish and poultry in hot, soapy water using regular dish-washing soap and rinse them under hot water. To ensure you kill all the salmonella, soak the dishes and utensils for 15 seconds in a sanitizing solution made with 1 teaspoon of bleach and 1 gallon of water. Rinse afterward.
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Wipe up raw meat, poultry and fish spills with paper towels and discard them. This is easier than using a dish towel, which you will then have to wash in hot water.
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Spray the contaminated areas with a kitchen sanitizer labeled to kill salmonella. Use per label instructions. Alternatively, mix 1 tsp. of chlorine bleach for every quart of water in a spray bottle. Use that to spray your counters, sink and other surface areas. Let the cleaning solution sit for two to three minutes before rinsing it off with running water or moist paper towels. You can also sanitize your cutting board in this manner after washing it in hot soapy water.
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Wash your hands for 20 seconds after handling raw meat, fish and poultry. Wash using warm to hot water and soap -- either hand or dish soap will suffice.
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References
- Photo Credit Thomas Northcut/Digital Vision/Getty Images
