Part One : Chapter 4 : Food and Kitchen Safety

I'm hoping that this chapter was taught separately, in a classroom rather than a kitchen, and involving no food whatsoever. It's not the most appetizing of chapters, and for the readers' sakes, I'll gloss over some of the details layed out here. I learned about food-borne illnesses and food contamination, as well as pathogens, and danger zones. However, the most important rule I took away from this part of the chapter is that foods must be kept, heated and cooled at the correct temperatures in order to prevent unsavory things from occurring. Ingredients cooked in advance should be cooled slowly, but within a 4-hour period of time, and when reheating foods, they must be reheated in the shortest amount of time possible without compromising the doneness. What I didn't know before I read this chapter is that food CAN actually be reheated more than once, as long as they are handled properly during the process. Here I was thinking, once I heat something up, I can't use it again after that!

Another lesson that I've touched upon in the past is the proper way to thaw something from your freezer. My method of choice is in refrigeration...it's a slow process, but someone's gotta do it! That just means transferring your frozen item to the refrigerator and allowing it to thaw over the next 24-48 hours. If you are in a hurry, you can certainly thaw it under running water, but it's best if the water is under 70 degrees, allowing the item to thaw without shocking it with heat. It's possible to cooking something while it's still frozen, but be sure that it is a small piece - otherwise, it will be overcooked on the outside, and still frozen on the inside. No one wants to cut into a frozen chicken breast!

The final part of this chapter touches on the subject of kitchen safety, including health and hygiene. As we all know, we should wash our hands after working with raw meats, use separate cutting boards for meats, and other ingredients, and keep a generally clean working environment in the kitchen. However, did you know that the chef's jacket is double-breasted, creating a double layer of cloth as protection against steam burns, splashes and spills? That also means that the coat can be rebuttoned on the other side, in order to hide massive spills that could occur. The chef hats are meant to contain hair, but also absorb sweat, something no diner wants dripping into their entree!

My biggest takeaway from this chapter is the way I will organize my refrigerator from now on. The chapter talks about storing things appropriately, meat going on lower shelves to avoid drippage onto innocent vegetables, and keeping things that must be the coldest in the back of the fridge, while leafy greens and herbs can stay towards the front, where they'll be kept cool, but not freezing. I will definitely be taking these ideas to heart as I unpack the next load of groceries that I bring home. A cool veggie is a crisp veggie!