Food Safety Hints and Tips - Buffet and Party Safety

ALWAYS wash your hands before and after handling food.

Keep your kitchen, dishes, and utensils clean also. Always serve food on clean plates, not those previously holding raw meat and poultry. Don't cross-contaminate. Keep raw meat and poultry apart from cooked foods.

Arrange and serve food on several small platters rather than on one large platter. Always replace empty platters rather than adding fresh food to a dish that already had food on it. Remember - many people's hands may have taken food from the dish, which was also sitting at room temperature for awhile.

Keep the rest of the food hot in the oven or cold in the refrigerator until serving time. This way foods will be held at safe temperatures for a longer time.

Food should not sit at room temperature for more than two (2) hours. Keep track of how long the foods have been sitting on the buffet table and discard anything after two hours. If the buffet is held outside and the outside temperature is above 85 degrees F, then the holding time is reduced to one hour.

Leftovers from the buffet - discard any foods that sat for two (2) hours or more on the buffet table. Other leftovers can be refrigerated or frozen in containers.

 

What to do if your guests have been delayed at least one hour

Just remember the basic food safety rules - KEEP HOT FOOD HOT and COLD FOODS COLD.

Hot Foods - 140 degrees F. and above

Cold Foods - 40 degrees F. or below

If you have hot food/foods in the oven, put a meat thermometer in the thickest part of the meat or center of your casserole. Adjust the oven temperature so that the food stays at an internal temperature of 140 degrees F., or above. An oven temperature of 200 to 250 degrees F. should be sufficient to hold the food. Cover the dishes or wrap with aluminum foil to prevent dryness.

More Food Safety Pages - Check them out!

Buffet and Party Safety
Also includes what to do if your guests have been delayed at least an hour

Food Safety
IF IN DOUBT, THROW IT OUT! - If you have any question in your mind about the freshness or safety of eating a food product, throw it out. It is better to be safe than sorry!

Picnic Safety Tips
There is nothing more American than the picnic. Picnics can take on many forms, such as the community picnic, friends and neighbors, tailgate parties, or ball games. There is also one sure thing at every picnic-lots of good food. The important point is to have safe and healthy food, not food that can cause food borne illness. Always prepare and store food properly.

Summer Safety Tips
Summer is the time for barbecues and picnics. The biggest party crasher at summer picnic and buffets is food borne bacteria. You can't see them, you can't taste them - but you sure can feel them if illness occurs hours or days later.