Andrew Buxton from East Riding of Yorkshire Council is urging residents to take care when preparing Christmas dinner family and friends.
Mr .Buxton, food services manager at the council, said: “Indulging in fine food during the festive period is something we all like to do, but we need to take great care to ensure a happy and healthy Christmas.”
East Riding of Yorkshire Council is keen to remind residents importance following some simple steps when preparing their Christmas dinners.
For many cooking the Christmas turkey is the largest piece of meat they will cook and the risk of food poisoning is heightened if the turkey is not cooked properly.
In order to help people ensure that they cook their turkey properly on Christmas Day and their Christmas dinner is a success some useful tips have been put together.
Top tips for cooking Christmas dinner
•Frozen birds must be thoroughly defrosted, ideally in a refrigerator or cool area in the kitchen.A 15lb (7.0 Kg) turkey can take up to 48 hours to defrost, which is completed when the body cavity is free of ice crystals and the legs are pliable.
•The raw bird should not come into contact and contaminate other foods and work surfaces; also take care that defrosted water from the bird does not contaminate other foods or work surfaces.
•Any spillages should be mopped up using a disposable kitchen towel and the spillage area disinfected to kill off any food poisoning bacteria.
•Do not wash the bird prior to cooking; it does nothing for the bird, but does risk spreading contamination around the kitchen and on to ready-to-eat foods. However, after handling a raw bird, wash your hands thoroughly with soap and hot water.
•Prior to cooking, the oven should be pre-heated to 180ºC /355 ºF Gas Mark 4.Ovens vary but as a guide the following weights of bird will need cooking for these amounts of times:
5lb (2.3kg) – 2 hours
10lb (4.5kg) – 2¾ hours
15lb (6.8kg) – 4¾ hours
20lb (9.0kg) – 5½ hours.
•Test to see if the bird is thoroughly cooked by checking to see that the juices run clear, or , if you prefer to use a temperature probe or food thermometer, ensure that the thickest part of the bird (between the breast and the thigh) reaches at least 70°C for two minutes.
•Storage is important.Poultry to be served cold should be placed in a refrigerator as soon as it reaches room temperature or preferably within 1½ hours of the end of the cooking time.The fridge temperature needs to be below 8ºC, but ideally it should be below 5ºC.
•Poultry should only ever be reheated if it is used in a well heated dish such as a curry, casserole or a stew. These dishes allow for sufficient heating to destroy food poisoning organisms.However, do not further reheat such dishes.
Cooking your main meat or bird can take a lot of care and attention, and can sometimes lead to other parts of your meal being neglected. On top of the fantastic tips above, if you’re worried about cooking your meat fully, whilst also guaranteeing that you time the rest of your meal to perfection. AO.com have created a really helpful step by step Christmas dinner guide to ensure that, if the steps are followed correctly, that your Christmas day meal goes off without a hitch.
The guide not only deals with cooking times to guarantee all your meats and veg are cooked to perfection, and not a danger to your guests. But also gives you an easy to follow itinerary that starts at 9:30am and has you eating by 2pm. With all dishes reaching the table simultaneously to give your guests maximum opportunity to enjoy you’re perfectly cooked show stopping meat and/or poultry.
Image Source:Ao.com
