Make Sure Your Holiday Meal Is Safe

With Thanksgiving just around the corner, we thought we’d share with you some holiday Turkey dinner “no nos”.  And Meredith Carothers with USDA's Meat and Poultry Hotline  has a gravy boat load of ways to ruin our holiday dinner and perhaps experience such wondrous holiday effects as. 

“Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, fever, chills,” Carruthers noted. She said one of the first problems come when we have a frozen turkey. 

“Thawing at room temperature is definitely a big no no.  The longer that a product, especially raw turkey, is out at room temperature, the more opportunity bacteria have to grow, and those then could create heat resistant toxins that won't be killed by the cooking process. And then if you eat those, it could essentially make you sick so big no no is thawing at room temperature.” 

So, you say. Instead thaw that bird in the fridge so it stays below 40°, thus not allowing any bacteria. And the next no no, which is actually a big no no, is, 

“Not sanitizing and cleaning your surfaces after that raw turkey might have been there.” 

Carothers noted there could be bacteria on the turkey and in the juices, and if they touched anything else, like the sink, countertop, utensils, hands,  bacteria could end up all over the kitchen and in salads and everything else.  

She added there's more we can do to up the risk of causing a food poisoning problem this holiday. 

“Not using a food thermometer and only relying on the pop-up timer. Or the way that the turkey looks is another big no no.” 

That pop up thing might let you know that the bird's up to the safe bacteria killing temperature of 165° in the spot where the pop up is located. But turkeys are big and Carothers says other parts of that turkey could still be below 165°. 

“And we really recommend to check the temperature in the thickest part of the breast, the innermost part of the wing and the innermost part of the thighs.” 

And another no no to avoid this holiday season is, 

“Not putting your leftovers away soon enough after you eat,” she added. 

Bacteria is in the air. It's on our hands everywhere, and if it lands on that turkey or the sliced meat while it's out on the table, it won't be too long before the bacteria start to multiply or divide or whatever they do. And so with perishable foods. 

“Two hours is that maximum time frame that they should be allowed to stay out for.” 

So those are a few of the holiday meal no nos which every year cause thousands of illnesses that could be prevented.  If you have questions about preparing that holiday meal, contact the meat and poultry hotline at 888-MPHOTLINE (1-888-674-6854).  Or you can E-mail Hotline staff.

If you have a story idea for the PNW Ag Network, call (509) 547-1618, or e-mail glenn.vaagen@townsquaremedia.com