Festive food safety: don't rinse your turkey!

With the festive season upon us, the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) has issued a timely food safety warning.

Many recipes advise to ‘rinse turkey thoroughly’, but this is a huge food safety problem according to Christine Bruhn, PhD, CFS, food science professor from UC-Davis and IFT member, who says that the water splashing distributes any Salmonella up to 60 cm around your sink and therefore increases the potential for cross-contamination.

Dr Bruhn says if the turkey is cooked to a minimum of 74°C, the bacteria won’t be an issue. She also advises preparing the stuffing outside the bird as it takes too long to get hot when cooked inside, which allows bacteria to grow.

If a cook feels compelled to rinse their turkey, Dr Buhn advises to use a low water flow to avoid splashing and to thoroughly clean the sink, counter and surrounding areas with detergent, followed by a sanitising solution.