Difficulty: Moderately Easy
Step1
Clean: Wash hands and surfaces often. Bacteria can spread throughout the kitchen and get onto cutting boards, utensils, sponges and counter tops. Wash your hands with hot soapy water before handling food. Wash your cutting boards, dishes, utensils and counter tops with hot soapy water after preparing each food item and before you go on to the next food.
Step2
Separate: Don't cross-contaminate. Cross-contamination is the scientific word for how bacteria can be spread from one food product to another. This is especially true when handling raw meat, poultry and seafood, so keep these foods and their juices away from ready-to-eat foods. Separate raw meat, poultry and seafood from other foods in your grocery shopping cart and in your refrigerator. If possible, use a different cutting board for raw meat products.
Step3
Cooking: Cook to proper temperatures. Food safety experts agree that foods are properly cooked when they are heated for a long enough time and at a high enough temperature to kill the harmful bacteria that cause foodborne illness. A cooking thermometer is very helpful in insuring food safety. Cook roasts and steaks to at least 145°F and ground beef to 160°F. Whole poultry should be cooked to 165°F. Cook eggs until the yolk and white are firm. Fish should be opaque and flake easily with a fork. When cooking in a microwave oven, make sure there are no cold spots in food where bacteria can survive. Bring sauces, soups and gravy to a boil when reheating. Heat other leftovers thoroughly to 165°F.
Step4
Chill: Refrigerate promptly. Refrigerate foods quickly because cold temperatures keep harmful bacteria from growing and multiplying. So, set your refrigerator no higher than 40°F and the freezer unit at 0°F. See the resource links directly below for more food safety tips.
.
Authority 
