Navigating the kitchen and cooking safely are new tasks to NC State students who are not on meal plans, live off-campus or are simply interested in making a home-cooked meal. Before new chefs get started in the kitchen, it’s important to understand the basics of food safety for a good meal and a healthy school year.

Hand washing

One of the most important steps for food safety is hand washing. 

Department Head of NC State’s Department of Agricultural and Human Sciences Ben Chapman said hand washing — especially after restroom use — prevents the spread of foodborne illnesses. Hand washing also prevents cross-contamination, which occurs when bacteria or other microorganisms are transferred from one surface to another. 

According to the CDC, one of the most prevalent foodborne illnesses, norovirus, is highly contagious and can spread when an infected person prepares or cooks food. The virus particles are spread through human fecal matter as well as vomit, so hand washing is extremely important in preventing the spread of the virus.

College students are particularly at risk for getting norovirus because of shared living spaces and close quarters. 

“Once someone gets [norovirus], it’s really easy to pass on to someone else, especially if they’ve been around where they vomited,” Chapman said. 

Lee-Ann Jaykus, William Neal Reynolds distinguished professor in the Department of Food, Bioprocessing and Nutrition Sciences, said other common foodborne illnesses can be caused by bacteria such as salmonella, E. coli and campylobacter.

Outbreaks of bacteria like salmonella and E. coli are often reported across multiple states, occurring when animal fecal matter contaminates a product during production or processing. This contaminated food is then distributed to grocery stores, restaurants and campuses, Jaykus said. 

However, foodborne pathogen-causing bacteria always has the potential to be present in raw meat, poultry and fresh produce. 

“There’s always a chance that bug could be present,” Jaykus said. “And then if you didn’t adequately wash your hands or you inadvertently touched a surface and didn’t decontaminate it, the bug would be present there and could pose a risk of making somebody sick. So that’s the major reason that one of the recommendations for USDA is always wash your hands and decontaminate surfaces like cutting boards when you’re handling raw meat.” 

Avoid the “Danger Zone”

Don’t leave perishable food in temperatures between 40 F and 140 F, known as the “Danger Zone.” Between these temperatures, bacteria grows rapidly and makes food unsafe to eat. 

For those who meal prep, Jaykus says students can portion their leftovers or future meals before putting them in the fridge to prevent food sitting in the Danger Zone. 

“What you’re better off doing is to piecemeal or to portion [the food] into smaller tupperware containers so it’ll cool down a little bit faster,” Jaykus said. 

Clean all kitchen items

While hand washing is one of the most important rules in preventing the spread of foodborne illness, the cleaning and sanitizing of kitchen items is necessary, too. 

“Our research team a couple years ago did some work where we asked people to prepare turkey burgers from ground turkey,” Chapman said. “As part of that recipe, it included using spices. And the most surprising and prevalent place that we found the pathogen surrogate afterwards was on a spice container.” 

To avoid cross-contamination, one solution is to prepare your spice mixture ahead of time. The same rule applies to produce: Preparing fruits and vegetables prior to handling any raw meat products can prevent cross-contamination. 

It’s also important to clean and sanitize any other surfaces that might have been touched after handling raw meat products with a single-use paper towel followed by a commercial disinfectant. Disinfectants become less effective when they have been exposed to filth or dirt, Jaykus said. 

“It’s about the surfaces of my hands, and what else did I touch — the faucet of the sink, the trash container, the refrigerator door, thinking about all the things that I might touch after I’ve handled raw meat can be sources of cross-contamination,” Chapman said.  

Purchase a meat thermometer

Just because a food looks cooked, doesn’t mean it is safe to eat. To ensure food safety, Chapman recommends students invest in a digital thermometer.

“You can still have meat that looks like it is fully cooked that has not reached 165 degrees or meat that looks pink that has [reached 165 degrees],” Chapman said. “So the only way to really know is to measure with a thermometer. To me, if I was to provide advice to students on the most important tool that I would have for food safety in my kitchen, it would be a thermometer.”  

For additional food safety questions, check out the podcasts “Risky or Not,” and “Food Safety Talk,” hosted by Chapman and Donald Schaffner, Department Chair of the Rutgers Department of Food Science.