Food Safety News

BBQ’s

Common barbecue food can carry many Pathogenic (illness causing) bacteria such as Salmonella, Campylobacter and E.Coli. and remember we can not see, smell or taste these pathogenic organisms

A Few simple steps to take to help keep our food safe to eat during BBQ season

• Always make sure the food is thoroughly defrosted before cooking it
• ensure food is cooked properly by ensuring the BBq is hot enough to cook on (e.g the coals are glowing red rather than initial flames)
• Ensure the food is cooked evenly and the centre is piping hot (turn it over and move it around to ensure heat is distributed evenly)
• Keep food covered cool and until required for cooking
• Keep the raw food well away from the cooked food (don’t put cooked food back onto the plate that the raw food was on unless it has been properly washed)
• Don’t forget simple steps like hand washing before you start cooking and use separate utensils for raw and cooked meat
• Consider cooking some foods like chicken in the oven in advance then put on the BBQ to gain the smoky flavour at the end of cooking