Warm Up with a Safely Slow-Cooked Meal

Warm-up your food in this cold weather with some slow-cooked comfort food! Using a slow cooker or the slow-cook function of your electric pressure cooker is an easy way to make your favorite seasonal meals. After you prep the ingredients, you can put them in the cooker, start it, and forget it. After a few hours, you have a warm, flavorful meal ready to enjoy. Safely prepare slow-cooked food by following these steps:

  1. If you plan to use frozen meat, poultry (such as chicken or turkey), or seafood in the dish, give yourself enough time to thaw it safely before adding it to the slow cooker. Do not thaw frozen food on the counter. Instead thaw it in the refrigerator, in cold water, or in the microwave. Begin to cook your meal immediately after thawing the meat if you thawed it in cold water or the microwave.
  2. Wash your hands for 20 seconds with soap and water before preparing your slow-cooked meal.
  3. Rinse fresh fruits or vegetables in your recipe under running water before cutting or peeling them..
  4. Large cuts of meat and poultry may be cooked safely in a slow cooker. However, since slow cookers are available in several sizes, check the instruction booklet for suggested sizes of meat and poultry to cook in your slow cooker.
  5. Vegetables cook slower than meat and poultry in a slow cooker, so put the vegetables in first, for the best quality.
  6. Add meat, poultry, or seafood to the slow cooker. Make sure your slow cooker is between half and two-thirds full. If it’s too full, the food may be undercooked and unsafe. If it’s not full enough, the food may be overcooked.
  7. Start your cooker right after you finish prepping. Do not set a timer to start cooking later in the day. Bacteria can multiply quickly in the parts of the food that reach room temperature before cooking begins.

The National Food Safety Summit aims to facilitate knowledge, foster cooperation among concerned organizations, and provide an opportunity for the food industry, food safety professionals, academia, and consumers to converge and discuss a wide range of food safety issues and challenges. By attending the Summit, you will be equipped with the latest industry standards, best practices, trends, and knowledge that you can take back and apply to your workplace. Food safety doesn’t just affect customers but also it affects your company and bottom line.

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