Grilling Outdoors Safely

With Graduation, Father’s Day, and many other summer activities approaching many of you are sure to fire up the outdoor grill to help with food preparation for the celebrations.

Outdoor grilling is a popular way to prepare food during warmer weather while enjoying the company of family and friends.  However, grilling does “open the door” to food borne illness if proper cleanliness and preparation measures are not followed. 

To make your cookout a fond memory rather than a regretful experience, follow these simple steps:

Food Preparation:

•           Select fresh meat, poultry, or seafood that is high quality for best cooking results.

•           Keep these perishable products at 40° F or colder, until immediately before grilling.

•           Thaw frozen food in the refrigerator and discard leftover marinade.

•           Wash your hands before and after working with raw meat, poultry, or seafood.

•           Wash your work surfaces and cutting boards with hot, soapy water before and after preparing food.  To sanitize, use 1 tsp. bleach per quart of warm water.  If possible, use a separate cutting board for fresh produce and raw meat, poultry, or seafood.

•          When away from home, keep your meat and poultry away from other food in a separate cooler with ice.  This prevents cross contamination.

•         After placing raw meat on the grill, wash utensils and platters with hot, soapy water before using them to serve cooked food.

•          Cook foods to an internal temperature that destroys harmful bacteria.  Check the temperature by placing a thermometer in the center-most part of the meat, not touching the bone.

Internal temperature for thorough cooking to prevent food borne illness are:

•           Whole poultry - 165° F

•           Poultry breasts - 165° F

•           Ground beef patties - 160° F

•           Ground poultry - 165° F

•           Beef, veal, lamb steaks, roasts, or chops - 145° F (yields medium rare doneness)

•           All cuts of pork - 160° F (yields medium doneness)

Safe handling of cooked food:

•           Serve food immediately after grilling, or keep at 135° F or above until served.

•           Place on a clean platter.

•           Refrigerate on a clean platter.

•           Refrigerate all leftovers immediately at 40° F or below.

Discard any food left out longer than 2 hours, or 1 hour if temperature is above 90° F.  Note: These temperatures are recommended for consumer cooking. They are not intended for processing, institutional, or food service preparation. Food Service Workers should consult their state or local food code, or health department.

And finally, if you are looking for a recipe to ensure that your chicken is moist and tender, try this marinade recipe featured at our Path to the Plate Grilling Workshop last month. 

Grilled Chicken Marinade
 

Ingredients:

¼ cup red wine vinegar                                  ½ teaspoon dried oregano

¼ cup reduced-sodium soy sauce                   ¼ teaspoon garlic powder

¼ cup olive oil                                                ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes                     5 skinless, boneless chicken breasts

½ teaspoon dried basil

Directions:

Whisk vinegar, soy sauce, olive oil, parsley, basil, oregano, garlic powder, and black pepper together in a bowl and pour into a resealable plastic bag. Add chicken, coat with the marinade, squeeze out excess air and seal the bag. Marinate in the refrigerator, at least 4 hours.

Preheat grill for medium-low heat and lightly oil the grate. Drain and discard marinade.

Grill chicken on the preheated grill until no long pink in the center, 4 to 5 minutes per side.

An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 165 ° F.

 1 Serving
Servings Per Recipe: 5
Amount Per Serving

Calories: 233

Calories from Fat: 122

% Daily Value *

• Total Fat: 13.6
• Saturated Fat: 2.3
• Cholesterol: 65
• Sodium: 482
• Total Carbohydrates: 2.4
• Sugars: 0.3
• Dietary Fiber: 0.3
• Protein: 24.3
• Potassium: 246

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

 For more information about safe outdoor grilling or food safety call Texas A&M AgriLife Extension, Wise County office at 940.627.3341.