Chill Out: The Importance of Cold Temperatures in Food Safety

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How Long Does It Take toChill Food?

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Gravy at 197°F

Room temperature

Refrigerator

Ice Bath

Gravy Temperature Data

• Plot the data in the table on graph paper

3

Cooled at RoomTemperature (70°F)

Cooled in theRefrigerator (40°F)

Cooled in an Ice (33°F)

Time when temperature was taken*

Deepcontainer

Shallow container

Deepcontainer

Shallow container

Deepcontainer

Shallow container

Start (0 min) 197° 197° 197° 197° 197° 197°

15 minutes 168° 148° 169° 130° 140° 114°

30 minutes 150° 131° 144° 124° 115° 87°

45 minutes 137° 116° 131° 110° 97° 73°

1 hour 124° 104° 117° 97° 83° 62°

1:15 115° 96° 106° 89° 74° 57°

1:30 105° 89° 97° 81° 69° 52°

1:45 101° 83° 91° 74° 64° 51°

2:00 96° 82° 87° 72° 62° 49°

2:15 90° 78° 82° 67° 59° 47°

2:30 85° 75° 74° 62° 57° 44°

2:45 80° **69° 67° 55° 51° 41°

3:00 78° 65° 53° 45°

3:30 75° 62° 51° 41°

4:00 72° 59° 48°

4:30 **70° 58° 44°

5:00 56° 42°

5:30 53° 41°

6:00 51°

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Importance of Cold Temperatures

• Stops or severely limits pathogen growth • Bacteria do not grow at freezer

temperatures

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Importance of Cold Temperatures

Temperature of PHF is critical during:• Thawing• Holding• Preparation• Cooling hot foods• Transporting

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Importance of Cold Temperatures

• Improper cooling can cause foodborne illness outbreaks, particularly when cooling large quantities of food

• Linda’s account of botulism from a baked potato that was held at room temperature and not cooled

• Some pathogens form spores if food is not cooled properly

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Common Errors in Temperature Handling of Food

• Thawing of frozen food at room temperature

• Potentially hazardous food in the Danger Zone

• Slow cooling of hot foods

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Thawing PotentiallyHazardous Foods

• Refrigerator• Running potable

water• As part of the

cooking process

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Thawing in the Refrigerator

• Allow adequate time—think ahead

• Time depends on amount, shape, and water content

• A rule of thumb—5 hours per pound of meat

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Thawing Under PotableRunning Water

• 70°F or cooler• Takes less time• 3 pounds of meat—

3-4 hours

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Thawing as Part of theCooking Process

• Continuously cooking from a frozen state until reaches required temperature

• If thawed in microwave oven, must be cooked immediately

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Holding Potentially Hazardous Foods (PHFs)

• The Idaho Food Code requiresPHF be held:– above 135°F (hot holding)– below 41°F (cold holding)

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Holding Potentially Hazardous Foods (PHFs)

• If PHF are between 41°F and 135°F for more than 4 hours, they must be discarded

• PHF held refrigerated more than 24 hours must be date marked

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Cooling Requirements for PHF Foods

• The Idaho Food Code requires potentially hazardous be cooled from:– 135°F to 70°F within 2 hours– 70°F to 41°F within an additional 4 hours– 6 hours total (2-stage cooling)

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0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

0 1 2 3 4 5 6

135 to 70°F

70 to 41°F

°F

Hours

Techniques for Safe Cooling

• Ice bath or ice wand

• Cold water bath—if ice is not available• Shallow pans

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vs

Container Size AffectsCooling Time

• How long to cool water from 135°F to 41°F under refrigeration?

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Chilling and Thawing Review

18Source: Idaho Central District Health Department

Food Service Refrigeration• Items are too closely spaced

for air circulation• Items are spaced properly

for air circulation

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• Why do temperatures of potentially hazardous foods require careful control?

• Name three methods to properly thaw foods

Understanding Check!

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To reduce growth of pathogenic bacteria.

• In the refrigerator

• Under cold (<70°F) running water

• As part of the cooking process

• How long can PHF be held at room temperature?

• The temperature for cold holding of PHF is ___°F or below

• If PHF are held refrigerated for longer than 24 hours, they must be marked with ___

Understanding Check!

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4 hours

41°F

The date the PHF must be used by, within 7 days

Understanding Check!

• Describe the two stage cooling process

• How do you load a refrigerator or freezer?

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Cool from 135° to 70°F within 2 hours and

from 70° to 41°F within 4 more hours

Allow space around items so air can circulate.

Do not overload with hot foods

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Who Left the Food Out?Who left the food out?Who left the food out? Who left the food out? Who left the food out?

A friend came up to me and said we’ve got a safety problem

What should we do, I don’t know I guess we’ll go ahead and take a

chanceThe guests arrived and they

started eatin’

Who left the food out?Who left the food out? Who left the food out? Who left the food out?

On the day of the party the kitchen was jumpin’ (Yippie-I-O)

Lots of good food all over the place (Yippie-I-O)

Problem was we couldn’t keep it all chillin’ (Yippie-I-O)

After a while, the fridge had no spaceSo we used the counter

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Who Left the Food Out?(Yippie-I-O)

They’d eat a lot and then eat some more(Yippie-I-O)

But after a while they stomachs be hurtin’(Yippie-I-O)

And the line to the bathroom went out the front door

And the guests were screaming

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Who Left the Food Out?Who left the food out?Who left the food out? Who left the food out? Who left the food out?

A party host shouldn’t make his guests sick

(When in doubt just throw it out, when in doubt just throw it out)

A party host shouldn’t make his guests sick

(When in doubt just throw it out, when in doubt just throw it out)

Who left the food out?Who left the food out?Who left the food out?Who left the food out?

Don’t leave the food outDon’t leave the food outDon’t leave the food outDon’t leave the food out