Germs don't move on their own; we move them: on hands, boards, knives, towels, and drips from one food onto another.
Key idea
Separate raw from ready-to-eat. Use separate boards and knives (or clean and sanitize between), wash hands after touching raw meat, and store food in the refrigerator top to bottom by the temperature it must be cooked to: ready-to-eat food at the top, then fish, then whole cuts of beef and pork, then ground meats, with raw poultry at the bottom.
Why it works
The order works because anything that drips only drips onto food that will be cooked hotter. Chicken juice on the floor of the walk-in can't reach the salad above it; salad juice on chicken does no harm, because the chicken will be cooked to 165°F.
Worked example: Which shelf?
Where do you store raw ground beef relative to raw salmon?
- Ground beef must reach 155°F (Food Code) or 160°F (USDA); fish 145°F.
- The higher temperature goes lower.
Answer: Ground beef below the salmon.
Common mistake
Using the same tongs for raw chicken going onto the grill and cooked chicken coming off. Use clean tongs, or wash them between.
Practice at home
- Rearrange your own refrigerator in the safe order. Put raw meat in a container or on a tray so it can't drip.
In Meal Prep
- Cutting boards and cross-contamination: how to clean boards
- Clean, separate, cook, chill: the four habits