Summertime is approaching, the school season is ending, and it is time to prepare for the fun! Days out on the beach, swimming in a lake, whatever activity that’s fun in the sun, it is time to have a good time and relax. When going on any trip this summer, there is one necessity that you always have to consider: what are you going to have to eat? While we love the summer for the sunny days and warm weather, bacteria actually love these kinds of days as well. That is why more people get sick from spoiled food in the summer months. On top of this fact, people are cooking in settings away from a typical kitchen, which can mean a lot more room for something to go wrong with the meal. When handling food while outdoors, there are a few things to consider.
Store food safely
When taking your friends and family out on a nice day outdoors, you want to consider not only how to move your food from point A to point B, but how you are going to store it once you arrive at the destination. There is certainly a lot of time between leaving for the perfect spot and firing up the grill.
- Coolers should always have ice or food-safe frozen gel packs. Cold food should always be kept at 40 degrees F or lower to prevent the chance of bacterial growth.
- Another thing you might want to consider is how you organize your food and drink. For instance, if you have an additional cooler, it might be worth bringing it for your drinks; it would lower the constant opening and closing of the cooler that has food, which would mean less risk of food going bad. The cooler should always be closed as much as possible, just like you wouldn’t want to leave the fridge open at home.
- Lastly, you might want to bring a gallon of water to rinse any fruits and veggies at the picnic site. In most vacation/outdoor eating scenarios, there is not a sink with clean water readily available, so having a gallon of water to rinse produce will be helpful.
Clean, Separate, Cook, Chill
When it comes to handling food, especially when you aren’t in a traditional kitchen, it is always good to consider these 4 major steps: Clean, Separate, Cook, Chill. You can apply these steps to any summer outing.
- Pack wet wipes and other materials to keep your hands clean.
- Separate the raw meat, poultry, and seafood from the rest of the items to ensure that all the other perishable food is safely stored.
- When you cook, you want to make sure you are cooking the food thoroughly; 160F for ground meats, 165F for poultry, and 145F for steaks. Pack a food thermometer for any time you cook.
- Remember, leftover food in your cooler is only safe if the cooler is still cold, otherwise, it is no good!
It is important to consider all of the important steps in keeping yourself and your family safe when having a meal, no matter what setting you find yourself in. There are always precautions to make sure everyone is eating as healthy and as safely as they can while still having fun in the sun.
