Kitchen and Food Safety
Preventing Kitchen Accidents
- Keep knives sharp so that they will not slip very easily while cutting something. otherwise if you use dull knives, they are more likely to slip.
- If you spill something on the floor, wipe it off immediately to prevent slips and falls.
- Anytime you take something out of the oven, always use oven mitts or pot holder to prevent burns.
- Don't leave cooking as if you didn't notice it.
- Dry your hands before you start touching electrical equipment because touching these equipment with wet hands will cause electrocution.
- If someone is suffering food poisoning, call 416-813-5900
What to do in an emergency
- When there is a pan fire, get rid of the fire with baking soda. The main idea is to stop the oxygen that helps the fire to extinguish.
- When there is an oven fire, leave the door closed to trap the fire inside.
- If you cut yourself, use running water to get rid of debris.
- If you burn yourself, use cold water on the affected area burning for 10-20 minutes.
All about Foodborne Illness
Foodborne illness is a sickness from food that is unsafe to eat. It is caused by microorganisms.
Conditions that promote growth:
Common Foodborne Illness:
Conditions that promote growth:
- Food, acidity, warm temperature, oxygen, and moisture combined with time promote bacterial growth.
- Food - Food is needed for bacteria to grow, especially when it's moist.
- Acidity - Microorganism like living in a PH between a 6.6 and 7.5 range.
- Time - Bacteria grow as it's traveling through cell division.
- Temperature - Bacteria always like a warm environment.
- Oxygen - This is needed for some microorganisms to grow.
- Moisture - Microorganisms like a damp environment and grows best in the climate
- Leaving food out for more than 2 hours make bacteria multiply.
Common Foodborne Illness:
- Sickness is caused by Salmonella, Campylobacter, Ecoli, Listeria, and Botulism.
- Campylobacter causes diarrhea, abdominal pain, fever, nausea, and vomiting.
- Botulism starts within 12 to 36 hours after eating or drinking food with bacteria and it lasts from 2 to 14 days.
- Ecoli causes stomach cramps, diarrhea, vomiting, nausea and headache.
- Listeria causes persistent fever, muscle aches, constipation, sometimes nausea and vomiting, and if infection surrounds the nervous system, it causes headache if off-balance, stiff neck and confusion.
- Salmonella starts within 6 to 72 hours after eating or drinking food that has bacteria. It remains for 4 to 7 days. Sometimes they would remain up to 8 weeks.
Preventing Foodborne Illness
1. Clean
- Wash hands before and after you handle food.
- Toss towel
- Prepare the kitchen
- Use water
- Scrub thoroughly
- Keep different foods separate.
- Don't cross-contaminate
- Close it when finished
- Food must be cooked safely by reaching high temperature internally
- When serving hot food buffet style, always remember to keep them hot.
- When cooking something in a microwave, be sure that none of the spots are cold because bacteria can survive there.
- Refrigerating or freezing prepared food will keep it safe.
- The safer way to defrost food is to use cold water.
- Don't overstuff the refrigerator.