Countdown to Thanksgivng; Prepare the Feast Safely

It's almost Thanksgiving so I turn to Margaret Viebrock, County Director with WSU Extension in Chelan and Douglas County to share important food safety during the holiday.

Let's start with defrosting the turkey. It's important to be aware how far out from Thanksgiving Day you may have to start to defrost that bird safely. Viebrock explains a simple formula, if you've got a frozen bird.

"If you're buying frozen bird, it takes five pounds every 24 hours to thaw if you're throwing it in the refrigerator" says Viebrock who is a 50+veteran of consumer sciences with WSU.

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Safely Defrosting the Turkey

A 20 pound bird would need to defrost 5 days in the refrigerator, so plan accordingly.   If you're running short of time, you can defrost the packaged turkey in a sink filled with cold water. However, Viebrock stresses to safely defrost the turkey in the sink, you must change the water every 30 minutes and keep it cold. The risk of defrosting a turkey in the sink is keeping the water bath chilled to around 40 degrees. Any warmer temperature will allow for bacteria to start to grow. If you are able to thaw your frozen turkey in time for Thanksgiving Day preparation, it can safely remain thawed in your refrigerator for two to three days before roasting.

If you are out of time, consider buying a fresh bird. A fresh turkey should be safe to consume if properly refrigerated for up to seven days before serving.

Temperature is Vital for Food Safety

Make sure your refrigerator is cooling to 40 degrees or less. Viebrock suggests a good refrigerator thermometer to indicate what temperature your refrigerator is operating at.

• During roasting, checking the temperature on the turkey breast or the dark meat will show different readings. Poultry is safely cooked to 165 degrees so check the roasted bird in multiple places.

"Poultry has been bred to grow quickly and the se of hormones is not permitted. Sometimes the meat close to the bone, it's kind of pink due to the collagen in the bones". As long as you've reached the temperature in the thickest portion of the of the meat to 165 year you're safe, according to Viebrock.

Many cooks use the guideline of about 15 to 20 minutes of roasting time per pound, but that will give you an estimate on when to start roasting the bird but the thermometer is the safest practice for ensuring the meat is fully cooked.

Safe Brining

Consider if the brining container is food grade safe. Don't use one of those orange or blue buckets from the big box warehouse store.

"Stores sell food grade buckets, you can go to a bakery, and they have containers that they've gotten other product in that's considered food grade and safe to use".

Safe Leftovers

When it comes to food safety, Thanksgiving leftovers present one of the most critical areas of food danger.

• Don't leave the food out longer than two hours.
• Take the turkey apart into smaller pieces, remove the stuffing out of the inside and put it in shallow containers in the refrigerator and let it cool.

After the two hour window, bacteria will start to grow. "You can see mold, but you can't see bacteria, or smell it or taste it" Viebrock cautions.  A good rule of thumb for leftovers is three or four days in the refrigerator or consider freezing it.

Keep it on Ice

Fresh dips and dressings for chips and veggie trays should also be limited to about two hours at room temperature, or be moved into to the refrigerator. If that is not feasible, serve them on ice.

The bottom line on holiday food safety is to avoid illness. According to Viebrock,  when someone gets sick after a holiday gathering like Thanksgiving with all the trappings like trays of Hors d'oeuvres or a Thanksgiving buffet, it may be attributed to food poisoning due to poor food safety practices.