Sanitation and Personal Hygiene!
Personal Hygiene
Bacteria needs three things to grow; food, warmth and moisture which makes our body a perfect target for bacteria. To make sure we keep ourselves clean from the bacteria and from spreading it, we need to do the following daily.
- Take a shower daily and make sure clean clothes and aprons are worn
- Keep your hair up and in a hairnet to prevent hair from falling in the food
- Wash your hands with warm water (warm water kills bacteria) and soap before and after touching food
- Keep your finger nails short so it will be easier to clean them properly
- In the case, if you cut yourself, make sure you clean the wound properly, put a band aid and wear gloves before touching any food or equipment.
- Don't wear jewellery in the kitchen because there might be bacteria on it. If you do wear it, make sure you wash that piece of jewellery with warm water and soap before you touch food
- After you have washed you hands with soap and warm water, don't touch anyone other person to avoid cross contamination
- Don't touch your hair after you have washed your hands
- Taste food in the following way
- Place small amount of food in a separate container.
- Step away from exposed food and food contact surfaces.
- Use a teaspoon to taste the food.
- After using the spoon put it away for wash. Never reuse the spoon that has been used for tasting .
- Wash hands immediately
10. Eat, drink or chew gum only in break designated areas where food or food contact surfaces may become contaminated.
Sanitation
To follow the Sanitation technique of our kitchen, we need to follow rules needed to keep our kitchen sanitized. These rules include:
- Prevent contaminating food with pathogens (fungus, bacteria) spreading to people.
- Separate raw and cooked foods to prevent contaminating the cooked foods.
- Cook foods for the appropriate length of time and at the appropriate temperature to kill bacteria.
- Store food at the proper temperature.
- Do use safe water and proper equipment
- Do not cough or sneeze over food
- Have a Fire Extinguisher ready in your kitchen, in case of a fire
- Wash all fruits and vegetables before you use them or cut them
- Tables that are being used by students, must be immediately cleaned and sanitized after they are done
These are some of the proper sanitation techniques that must always be used by students in order to prevent the contamination of food and keeping it safe to eat.
- Stop it from growing
- Stop it from spreading
- Kill it
Stop it from Growing- to stop bacteria from growing, hazardous foods must be kept out of the danger zone . Keep hot foods hot (above 60 degrees C) and cold foods cold (below 4 degrees C). Freezing food makes bacteria go to sleep which slows it down and sometimes stops it's growth. Never thaw food on the counter or under hot water. Foods should only be thawed in the fridge, under cold running water or in a microwave. Also it is important to keep your fridge odour free and you can do that by putting an open box of baking soda to absorb odours.
Stop it from Spreading- if the bacteria grows in the kitchen, you can stop it from spreading. Most efficient way to stop bacteria from spreading is to avoid cross contamination. Keep raw foods away from cooked foods and on appropriate shelves meaning raw foods below cooked foods so any water from the raw food doesn't drip on the cooked food and spreads bacteria. Make sure to keep your food wrapped and label it with the date so you know how old the food is. The rule of FIFO should be applied while preparing food. FIFO stands for First In First Out meaning the food products you bought first, should be used first.
Kill It- there are many ways to kill bacteria. One of them would be to watch your equipment with soap and hot water and make sure to sanitize it to make sure that all the bacteria is dead. Another way to kill bacteria would be to cook foods to the proper internal temperature and by ensuring that foods are cooked all the way.
Running a big kitchen comes with big responsibilities. As chefs, it's our job to make sure our costumes get served food that is clean, cooked properly and bacteria free. To ensure we reach our goal, we have to keep ourselves and and our kitchen clean from any bacterias.