Turkey Food Safety Tips - Transcript

Turkey Dinner

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Turkey dinner is always a favourite meal. But food contaminated by harmful bacteria can make you sick, and that’s something you don’t want.

Make sure that dripping liquid from raw meat doesn’t contaminate other foods in the fridge. Keep raw meat on the bottom shelf. Food that’s to be cooked or cleaned can go above that, and ready-to-eat foods can go on top shelves.

Never thaw a turkey at room temperature!

Frozen whole poultry should be thawed, breast side up, while still sealed in its original packaging to prevent cross-contamination. Thaw either in the fridge or under cold drinkable water.

If thawing turkey in the fridge, allow one day of defrosting per 1.8 kilograms of turkey.

Make sure that the temperature of the fridge does not come above 4 degrees Celsius.

For more information on defrosting a turkey under cold drinkable water visit foodsafety.gc.ca.

Poultry bought fresh can usually be refrigerated for up to two days before cooking. However, it’s always best to check the "best-before" or "durable-life" date on the label.
Cooking poultry to a safe temperature is the only way to ensure that it’s safe to eat.

Near the end of the cooking time, remove the poultry from the oven and insert a food thermometer into the thickest part of the breast or thigh meat. Don’t let the thermometer probe touch any bone.

Whole poultry is safely cooked when the internal temperature reaches eighty-five degrees Celsius.

To be even safer, cook your stuffing separately. This will prevent cross-contamination and undercooking. It will also speed up cooking time.

Don’t leave food outside of the fridge for longer than two hours.

Refrigerate your leftovers in shallow containers once steaming stops. Don’t overcrowd your fridge. Leave lots of space around containers to allow cold air to circulate.

Use leftovers within four days or freeze them for later use.

When serving leftovers, meat and stuffing must be reheated to at least seventy-four degrees Celsius. Don’t forget to wash the thermometer with warm soapy water between temperature readings whether food is cooked to proper temperature or not.

Gravy should come to a rolling boil.

Have a safe turkey dinner, and please share the leftovers...

And remember these four food safety practices: "Clean", "Separate", "Cook", and "Chill".

For more information, visit foodsafety.gc.ca

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