Tag Archives: Bbq

Gratuitous food porn shot of the day, hockey edition

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Hockey in Raleigh is back. After a somewhat surprising playoff run in the spring, the Carolina Hurricanes took the ice last night at the RBC Center to open the 2009-10 season vs. the top-ranked Philadelphia Flyers.

The ‘Canes lost 2-0, in part because of a futile powerplay (0-for-8).

I took my dad to the game (right, self-pic, exactly as shown) and we debated getting a bbq sandwich after the first period but the price tag was a bit steep ($7).

My dad asked me "So, how do you think they are doing, food safety-wise".

I told him that it’s tough to say, anytime you eat you put trust in a food handler somewhere and hopefully they know somthing about risks and risk reduction. I watched for a couple of minutes and snapped the below pic of the bbq (below left, food porn shot, exactly as shown).

While sitting around today and watching some college football I started to think a bit more about my dad’s question and dug up some inspection reports. I couldn’t find the Carolina BBQ stand in question but was able to browse through 20 or so other RBC Center sites from the past couple of years. Temperature abuse, especially hot-holding seemed to be a common violation.

The bbq looked and smelled good, and judging by the lineups, was moved out of the pans to patrons’ sandwiches pretty fast. But who knows at what temperature, and how long it was held before we came by. I hope that someone did.

Living for, and hopefully not dying from, barbecue in Maryland

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Michelle Marcotte (bottom, exactly as shown), an ex-pat Canadian and regulatory affairs consultant based in Glenn Dale, Maryland, who has worked in 40 countries, eaten well, but carefully, and never been sick, writes:

My husband was born lacking the barbecue gene on his Y chromosome; so it is up to me to either cook or fetch barbecue. Here, in the steam bath that is Maryland in the summer, sensible people fetch barbecue from a roadside truck or trailer.

Barbecue is slow cooked pork ribs, chicken or brisket. It is cooked over a wood flame, on a grill. The grill is placed down the length of a converted home heating oil tank which has been turned on its side, cut open and hinged to form a lid. When the lid of the tank is down, the resulting oven is as hot as hell.

Since barbecue is a necessity of life, I watch for a smoking truck or van parked by the side of the road. A line of cars parked on the verge and the intoxicating smell of barbecue are evidence of other barbecue-addicted persons getting a hit.

So, this week, while waiting for my whole chicken to slowly cook, I thought to observe the food safety of these itinerant barbecue kings. It is a two-person operation: the cook and the boss. You give your order to the boss and he yells to the cook to start the selection process. You stand in line and wait, unable to speak because your mouth is watering.

The cook uses a very long-handled fork to move the dripping raw, marinated meat from the cooler to the grill and then, using exceptional genius, moves the meat around the flame, placing it in various positions sufficient to result in slow-cooked deliciousness. The raw meat and chicken juice drips on the almost done and finished cooked meat on the grill. But, after each addition of raw meat, that lid comes down for a few minutes, the smoke comes up, the heat waves distort the air for 4-5 feet above the tank. I pray it is enough to kill the bacteria spread from the raw chicken over the cooked meat.

The boss takes his long handled fork and spears the meat that the cook has placed on the front of the grill. He whacks it down on the cutting board that has been in use from early morning. He puts disposable gloves on, and chops the chicken into quarters, the ribs into halves and the brisket into slices. He places it all in a foil-lined Styrofoam take-out box. He slathers it with barbecue and hot sauce. He then takes the gloves off, takes your money, puts new gloves on and starts over with the next customer.

In this scenario there was no handwashing, not even a pretense of handwashing. There was no tub of water on the trailer. The nearest meat thermometer is 10 miles away. And that’s how it is when you have a barbecue addiction. You take risks.

You take the barbecue home and eat it promptly, praying to the foodsafety gods

Food Safety Infosheet: Salmonella linked to Memphis BBQ restaurant

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Moving to the South has resulted in a few changes in my eating habits — especially the introduction of BBQ. Megan wrote earlier today about different names for the cooking tool: BBQ vs grill.

In North Carolina BBQ is the product (and it isn’t actually cooked on a grill). BBQ restaurants are a big deal around here. The regional differences are somewhat crazy (Eastern NC vs Western NC vs mustard-based Low Country SC vs Memphis vs GA BBQ) but I’m trying them all. BBQ restaurants, like all foodservice sites, can be hit with outbreaks.

Like here, and here. 

And this week’s food safety infosheet — A Salmonella outbreak at a BBQ restaurant in Memphis.

Click here to download the infosheet.

Powell to Times – stick it in

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The following letter appeared in the Dining and Wine section of this morning’s N.Y. Times:

Re “The Perfect Burger and All Its Parts” July 1:

The only thin piece of metal that should be stuck into the side of a hamburger is a tip-sensitive digital thermometer. Chef Seamus Mullen’s recommendation to put any thin piece of metal into the side of a burger, and “If it’s barely warm to the lips, it’s rare. If it’s like bath water, it’s medium rare,” only demonstrates the divide between food safety and food pornography.

Color is a lousy indicator of burger safety, as is the taste of metal sticks. Rather than putting E. coli O157:H7 on precious testing lips, use a thermometer.

Dr. Douglas Powell
Manhattan, Kan.

The writer is an associate professor of food safety at Kansas State University.

Andrew Stormer: stick it in for safety (a thermometer)

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Andrew Stormer (right, exactly as shown), a Kansas State food science grad who used to work with me writes from Topeka:

Food is my career and a passion, so I often find myself in conversations with people regarding trendy food topics (organic, healthy, safe etc.).  Today I found myself in the midst of a debate about the doneness of burgers with a plant employee.

The other dude was talking about the burgers he had grilled on July 4th. I asked him if he used a tip sensitive digital thermometer to determine if it had been cooked to 160°F, and the debate ensued.  He proudly proclaimed that he could tell if they are cooked “just right” by looking at the color and pushing on them with his finger.  I countered, stating that both of his methods were terrible indicators of doneness and that temperature is the only way to tell for sure.  I mentioned premature browning and that 160°F was the necessary temperature to reach to ensure the death of the common patty-pathogen E. coli O157:H7.

He persisted, saying I was wrong, and that his method had always worked and he had never made anyone sick.  How did he know that for sure, I wondered, explaining that the incubation period for E. coli was usually anywhere from about 18 to 72 hours, and that a person won’t exhibit symptoms of the infection until well after leaving the BBQ. 

He didn’t have much of a response. 

I then offered to find and show him studies, books, articles etc. that supported my claim.  He wanted none of it, and wrapped up the debate nicely with, “I just know.”  I was left frustrated and dismayed. 

This is a dangerous and arrogant attitude to have towards food safety, but unfortunately I have come across countless others that share the same “I just know” train of thought.  That said; his method is still a step above the “put-a-thin-piece-of-metal-in-the-burger-and-taste” method.

Source food from safe sources – the missing component in food safety communications

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Tomorrow is Canada Day, the celebration of the July 1, 1867 enactment of the British North America Act, which united Canada as a single country of four provinces. Saturday is Independence Day in the U.S., commonly known as the Fourth of July, a federal holiday commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain.

Both occasions have turned into annual orgies of bad food safety advice on both sides of the 49th parallel.

OK, bad is a strong word. But the advice is certainly incomplete; and puts the blame for any outbreaks of foodborne illness squarely on the shoulders of consumers.

For example, “The government of Canada reminds Canadians about the importance of food safety during the summer months.” Compelling reading. And then a $5.5 billion-a-year company, Maple Leaf, can do no better than parrot  government advice, which is convenient, since it says nothing about buying cold-cuts that won’t make people barf.

Maple Leaf’s so-called blog, which is updated about once-a-week, is entitled, Our Journey to Food Safety Leadership. What PR genius thought up this blog name? Shouldn’t they already be food safety leaders? I don’t want to be on a journey with them (and Journey is a terrible band) while Maple Leaf figures out food safety.

The U.S. is no better with its “Independence Day: Drills for the grill.” Seriously, who comes up with this stuf? Oh, and the U.S. Partnership for Consumer Food Safety Education has a new leader, but the same incomplete messages (and same terrible title).

But change may yet happen. Given all the outbreaks – produce, pet food, peanut butter, that have nothing to do with consumers, it’s time any food safety messaging campaign included what the World Heath Organization has been advocating since 2002 – source food from safe sources (an evaluation of message effectiveness should also be a bare minimum and rarely happens).

The U.S. National Restaurant Association encourages restaurant and foodservice operators to begin planning for the 15th annual National Food Safety Education Month, held every September and focuses on the importance of food safety education for the restaurant and foodservice industry.

This year’s theme is "Food Safety Thrives When You Focus on Five."

Each week will focus on one of the five barriers:

Purchasing food from unsafe sources
Failing to cook food adequately
Holding food at incorrect temperatures
Using contaminated equipment
Practicing poor personal hygiene

Finally, a group starts to get it right. Now, about that evaluation …

Meat served at firefighter’s fundraiser source of E. coli O157:H7; sickens 27

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Pamela Sage told California’s Contra Costa Times that it’s hard to believe tri-tip served at a Sept. 6 benefit barbecue to support volunteer firefighters made at least 27 people sick with E. coli O157:H7.

Sage said if the bacteria really did come from the meat or other food served at the event, she and the other firefighters would be glad to take responsibility for it, but the meat was handled with great care, meat thermometers were used to ensure it was done, and it was served with tongs. Sage also said the Public Health Department had acted irresponsibly in identifying the tri-tip as the source of the bacteria when officials still weren’t sure.

That was two weeks ago.

On Monday, Butte County Public Health confirmed that E. coli O157:H7 grown form leftover samples of the tri-tip meat were a genetic match with samples from sick people.

Epidemiology remains a powerful tool.

Dr. Mark Lundberg, Butte County health officer said it’s still not known how the cooked meat became contaminated, and it may never be known.

Food preparers at the event had the right equipment and, according to interviews, seemed to do everything right, he said, but obviously something went wrong.

When large amounts of food are prepared there is the potential for contamination, he said. It’s possible the cooked meat came into contact with juices from the raw meat. Or possibly, he said, someone who helped prepare the food was sick and didn’t wash his or her hands properly.

Bill Marler says an intact cut like tri-tip could became contaminated during the tenderizing process.
 

Tega Cay, S.C. fire department barbecue food contaminated; throw it away

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The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control is urging anyone who purchased barbecue at a March 30 fundraiser for the Tega Cay Volunteer Fire Department to throw the food away.

Firefighters sold approximately 3,000 servings of food and the York County Public Health Department has identified more than 40 people who became ill. Many people bought barbecue in bulk for freezing and later use.

Tests are under way to identify the cause of the illness.

How to properly cook hamburgers

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The best way to make a hamburger is debatable. In my opinion adding Swiss cheese, pickles, onions, and mustard to a burger nearly perfects it. The one other ingredient? Temperature.
Cooking burgers to 160°F is the only sure way to tell that it is fully cooked. Cooking hamburgers to 160°F kills unwanted microorganisms such as E. coli O157:H7, a deadly ingredient. The U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention estimates 61 deaths a year from E. coli, and thousands more ill. Ground beef was recalled 19 different times in 2007 for E. coli contamination.
E. coli O157:H7 loves hiding in the intestines of animals, such as cows. During slaughter, if workers do not follow safe practices it can get onto the cuts of meat. Steaks can be cooked to varying degrees of doneness because any potential for microorganisms exists only on the surface. However, with ground beef the muscle is mixed up and the organisms are spread throughout the meat.
When cooking, don’t rely on the burger’s appearance to tell if it is done. Many people think a burger that is no longer pink is a done burger. This is not the case as pointed out in many studies (here, here, and here). Sometimes burgers look done well before they hit 160°F.
To measure the temperature of a burger, go out and buy a tip sensitive digital thermometer. Remove the burger from the grill or stove and insert the thermometer into the side of the meat all the way to the center. Wait until the thermometer reads 160°F before serving. Add the toppings of your choice, and enjoy!

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References
Hunt, M.C., O. Sørheim, E. Slinde. Color and Heat Denaturation of Myoglobin Forms in Ground Beef. Journal of Food Science Volume 64 Issue 5 Page 847-851, September 1999.
http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1365-2621.1999.tb15925.x?prevSearch=authorsfield%3A%28M.C.+Hunt%29

Ryan, Suzanne M., Mark Seyfert, Melvin C. Hunt, Richard A. Mancini. Influence of Cooking Rate, Endpoint Temperature, Post-cook Hold Time, and Myoglobin Redox State on Internal Color Development of Cooked Ground Beef Patties. Journal of Food Science. Volume 71 Issue 3 Page C216-C221, April 2006
http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1365-2621.2006.tb15620.x?prevSearch=authorsfield%3A%28M.C.+Hunt%29

Seyfert, M., R.A. Mancini, M.C. Hunt. Internal Premature Browning in Cooked Ground Beef Patties from High-Oxygen Modified-Atmosphere Packaging. Journal of Food Science. Volume 69 Issue 9 Page C721-C725, December 2004
http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1365-2621.2004.tb09923.x?prevSearch=authorsfield%3A%28M.C.+Hunt%29

Safe Food Cafe – Tailgating Tips

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This video comes from November when the iFSN checked out the food practices performed at a K-State tailgate. Our team didn’t win, but it was great to discuss food safety topics with serious grillers and sometimes, serious drinkers.

Best wishes to the University of Kansas — not Kansas State — which is playing in the Orange Bowl tonight in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, against Virginia Tech. It was a magical season for the Kansas Jayhawks until they met that other Big 12 powerhouse, Missouri.

And for you crazy, KU kids frolicking in the Florida sun, use a digital, tip-sensitive thermometer when sticking it in. Always.