Be a Top Chef at Home With These Safety Tips

Want to be a Top Chef in your own kitchen? It’s easy with these top five cooking hacks from our consumer guru.

Two women cooking in kitchen making healthy food-Top 5 Cooking Safety Tips for Home Kitchen | NSF

We talk about comfort food, but sometimes it’s stressful keeping track of all the dos and don’ts of cooking safely. Like keeping your fingers out of the dip, hair out of the noodles and pets out of the snacks. Ever wonder how seasoned chefs do it?

First, remember they’ve been trained by the pros in all things culinary, including food safety and sanitation. As the consumer go-to for all things about safety in the kitchen, I’ve put together some tips to help you recognize where there’s room for improvement in the kitchen.

Here are my top cooking hacks so you can impress your friends as the next Top Chef - at least when it comes to safety:

1

Wash, Wash, Wash

You’ve heard it many times before: Handwashing is the number one way to keep from spreading germs. If you use gloves for raw meat (I do), you still need to wash your hands properly.
2

Keep the Meat Separate

Not a fan of raw meat juice on your veggies or fruit? Keep the meat on the bottom shelf in its own container or in a separate drawer in your fridge.
3

Check the Temperature

There are many online resources to remind you about cooking temperatures for meat and pre-cooked food. Print them out, put them on your fridge or ask your home virtual assistant device to remind you while you are cooking.
4

Give Germs the Slip

It’s smart to use separate knives and cutting boards for prepping raw meat and for cutting fruit or veggies that are ready to eat. Cut the germs off at the source.
5

Store Leftovers Safely

The right temperature for cooling down is just as important as for cooking. Leftovers go into the fridge. And don’t forget to vent the containers or leave them uncovered until they are cooled.