I used to cook. And then I met Doug. And all the food safety that I quickly learned scared me.

It’s no secret that Doug does all the cooking in our family. So now that Sorenne and I are in Australia patiently awaiting his arrival, I’ve cooked several frightening meals. I have no way of knowing if the chicken, sausage, or beef are going to kill us. I’ve looked for meat thermometers rather seriously at different major stores here and the only one I’ve seen was at Target – a ridiculously large round display on top of a probe. Think American turkey thermometer that comes out only at Thanksgiving and magnify the size by about 5. I tried again at Coles tonight… nada.

For dinner tonight I opted for pre-made raw meatballs to accompany the linguine because having a small child around is not conducive to getting up to your elbows in meat (especially when she’s screaming, “Mooooooom! Milk!”). I did my best to make a well-done meatball (I mean, who doesn’t love crispy meatballs), but how are mere mortals supposed to see if something’s cooked just by using our naked eyeballs?

Come on, Australia. Food safety is not just an American thing. I’m tired of worrying whether I’ll kill our 2 ½ year old over dinner. And I miss my favorite food safety expert’s voice in my ear reminding me to use a meat thermometer.

Sunday in Brisbane (that’s in Australia) was a perfect chance to discover the local wildlife: kangaroos and koalas at the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary. Emma and Sorenne were overly excited by the opportunity. When it was their turn to get their photo taken with the koala, however, I noticed the sign on the hand sanitizer station saying, “Out of Order. Sorry for any inconvenience.” As we exited the area into the food court, Emma grabbed some sanitizing wipes that were available (but unmarked and almost not noticeable) on a table and cleaned up Sorenne’s hands the best she could.

After our afternoon “tea” (that’s Australian for “snack”), we headed into the Kangaroo Rescue area. For $2 I bought a rather large bag of kangaroo feed, and we proceeded to shove our hands into the faces of every kangaroo who passed by. Emma was brave and lay down on the ground to pose with one of the big boys. For me the highlight was either seeing a pregnant mommy ‘roo whose joey was wiggling about in her pouch or watching Sorenne’s face light up when the baby kangaroos ate from her hands (right exactly as shown).

Upon exiting the area (which was filled with scrub turkeys, ducks, wombats, emus and feces in addition to the kangaroos), there was a handwashing station with ample running cold water and soap but no paper towel to dry hands. The park prides itself on reusing water, and there was clear signage indicating that all water in use was recycled except for handwashing, food preparation, and drinking water. I didn’t feel confident that they were able to separate distribution so well after realizing that handwashing wasn’t possible in the koala cuddling zone.

Handwashing really isn’t simple, especially when the proper tools are not available.
 

Gonzalo already blogged about the last episode of the Real Housewives of New Jersey in which the ladies were preparing for Thanksgiving. I, however, am a bit behind on my television viewing and just got to the episode today on the DVR.

Caroline’s family went to visit their daughter Lauren’s boyfriend’s family at their Italian food store, Little Italy Deli. One of the men behind the counter handed Caroline a bowl of soup with a gloved hand, and then Marco (or Vito Jr’s brother) struck this pose (right, exactly as pictured). What’s the point of wearing sanitary gloves if you’re going to rub them on your unprotected hand? Apparently there is some cultural confusion about whom the gloves protect, the food handler or the client. In food safety language this is referred to as magic glove syndrome.

As we all recover from the flu, our appetites are only mediocre. In the spirit of things, I cooked an Archer Farms spinach and goat cheese pizza for dinner tonight. I added olives because that's one of the few things Sorenne currently loves. When looking at the cooking time and temp I noticed detailed directions that seem straight from this blog:

"For food safety, cook to an internal temperature of 165F as measured with a food thermometer.

Ovens vary: adjust baking time accordingly. Refrigerate or discard leftovers immediately."

This prompted me to play 100 questions with Doug, which he enjoys.

Me: "There's no meat on this pizza. Is 165 the temperature for killing salmonella?" 

Doug: "Yes."

Me: "How do I put a thermometer in a pizza?"

Doug: "Do you think mere mortals know where to put it? Why don't you try it?"

So I did (exactly as pictured). After cooking the pizza at 400F for about 18 minutes, I took it out and tried to eye the thickest part. Then I tried to put the thermometer in somewhat sideways being careful not to poke through the other side. To take the picture, I had to prop the thermometer on my spatula. The process made a big gash in my pizza toppings and the cheese stuck like glue on the thermometer, but it was easy to see the pizza was well above 165F.

The pizza was tasty but the outside crust overly crunchy and the inner crust still a bit soggy. Sorenne picked off the olives and ate them all, and I enjoyed a Boulevard Nutrcracker Seasonal Ale with mine. 

One of my great laments about Manhattan (Kansas) has been the lack of sushi. In the past few years, however, sushi has appeared on campus, in grocery stores and a Japanese restaurant is expected to open in Aggieville. Today during our regular pilgrimage to a Dillon's grocery store (owned by Kroger), the "Sushi" sign was prominently displayed out front. While thinking to myself, "that might make a nice lunch today,"once inside the store I changed my mind. I snapped this picture (right) of an unattended rice container and decided not to buy sushi there because of the potential risk.

While most people presume that the greatest risk for foodborne illness in sushi comes from the raw fish, I've learned from living with Doug that rice is too often the culprit. When held at improper temperatures or temperature abused, Bacillus cereus, a soil dwelling bacterium, can germinate in the rice and create toxins. Although only responsible for 2-5% of foodborne illness, B. cereus can result in nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. Diarrhea onset usually occurs between 8 and 16 hours after consumption but nausea and vomiting can occur from 1 to 5 hours after consumption. This is one of the few foodborne illnesses with symptom onset soon after consumption.

Last year when one of my students told me he got sick from eating sushi on campus, he blamed himself for eating raw fish. He was rather surprised when I told him the rice was more likely to blame.

When I was a student at Truman State University (then Northeast Missouri State) in Kirksville, Missouri, I would have loved to have access to a store like the planned “Near and Far, the Downtown Grocery Store. Locally Grown, International, and Bulk Foods.” I was a French major who loved to make French and Senegalese dishes with my friends, but I was limited to Walmart and Hyvee ingredients, as well as a strict budget.

Now, many years later, and married to a food safety expert, I have to giggle at the subtitle of this new shop. I know locally grown food is all the rage. We attempt to grow our own vegetables, although we are admittedly pathetic gardeners (Sorenne popped off two of my baby eggplants on Sunday and said, “Baby crying. Baby happy”). The problem with buying into the myth of farmers markets is that while it is sold locally, it is not necessarily produced locally. When the farmers market opens here in late spring, it’s rather unlikely those huge tomatoes were grown outdoors in Manhattan, Kansas. Near and Far … that is how you get the best of produce, the best variety, the best quality, and who knows about food safety. Near or far – food safety has to be taken into account on the farm, wherever that farm may be.

While the store’s name clearly represents what it is, the owner, Steve Salt (there aren’t many better names or beards for this line of business) reported to local Heartland news, “We’re going to try to stress locally produced foods. That will include fruits, vegetables, herbs, dairy products, meats, from the area surrounding Kirksville about a 50-mile-radius. Condiments, jams, jellies, baked goods.” Salt is apparently planning to use his own farm, year round, to provide produce.

Kirksville is surrounded by farming communities and there will undoubtedly be a decent supply of many locally grown items. It’s also great that they will be sold so close to campus, on the Square at 111 South Franklin. But Steve, please don’t make the students and faculty at Truman sick. Take into account the on-the-farm food safety practices, at your own farm and at neighboring farms. Be able to tell your clients not only where their food comes from, but how it was produced in a microbiologically safe environment.

Sorenne’s first birthday was fun but her 1-year doctor’s visit was not. She got 5 shots and a blood draw which left her in tears and a bit leery of nurses for future visits. All I could think about was how thankful I am that she is not a sick child and that this kind of torture is preventative and not curative treatment. I do not know how parents of sick children cope with watching their children suffer. Doug said, “Now imagine watching your child in the hospital with HUS.”

One of Sorenne’s jabs was for Hepatitis A. I got that shot and follow up in 2003-2004 because I was visiting risky countries like Iraq and Senegal. Sorenne will be immunized as a baby and we should never have to worry about at least that illness in the future. Now if only there were a vaccine for dangerous strains of E. coli, Salmonella, and other foodborne illnesses.

I want a llama. Or so I’ve been telling Doug ever since I saw Tina the lasagna-eating llama in one of my favorite films, Napoleon Dynamite. Now we have a baby and our lifestyle is not compatible with llama tending.

This morning when Sorenne and I got up, we turned on the Disney channel to watch Special Agent Oso. The episode, “A Zoo to a Thrill” showed Oso helping June Kim feed a llama at the petting zoo. Special Agent Oso always has to accomplish “three special steps” in each of his missions. This time it was:

• step one: get the llama food
• step two: wait your turn in line
• step three: feed the llama.

Not included in the steps, but clearly shown in the episode were washing hands before getting the llama food and after feeding the llama. Our veterinary friend Kate Stenske told us that washing your hands before handling the animals is a question of not transmitting whatever you have to the animals and washing them afterwards is about not transmitting what the animal has to you.

I was especially pleased in this episode to see that June Kim’s father stayed outside of the petting zoo area while he fed his baby a bottle. Bottles and pacifiers are at high risk for cross-contamination in such areas because some of the pathogens can be aerosolized.

If Sorenne wants to meet a llama, I may take her to a petting zoo someday, or to our friend and contractor Russell’s house. We’ll try to make sure she washes her hands so her first visit to a zoo does not give her a bad thrill.

It seems everyone in the media is bent on cross-contaminating and undercooking their food this summer. On Monday night’s “Great American Road Trip” (a poor replacement for the Amazing Race), the first challenge was for the men to cook hamburgers on a charcoal grill in 30 minutes for all the families to judge. The challenge took place in Sedan, Kansas at the Red Buffalo Ranch.

First, host Reno Collier made a cooking demonstration. No handwashing stations are present anywhere in sight (see right). After Collier explained how he likes to talk to his meat as he formed a raw patty, he threw it on the grill and wiped his hands on a towel. The condiment station was well stocked, but there were no meat thermometers and no safety instructions. The DiSalvatore dad said he’d never cooked anything in his life. Silvio quickly asked for tips from his wife Amy who said, “Just don’t overcook it.”

Silvio: “How do I know when it’s cooked?”

Amy: “A little bit of pink inside. Good luck.”

The father of the Rico family made the decision to cook his entire 5 lbs of meat and he commented, “I really misjudged how long it would take to cook those things.” Ricardo’s giant burgers were far from being done when it was time to serve. Host Collier yelled out, “Feel free to check these things out before you go sticking them in your mouth.” [Katie, that was for you.] One of the kids commented, “I was more nervous about barfing than about winning the challenge.”

It’s mindboggling how much cross-contamination took place in this highly edited clip (see approximately minutes 11 to 20). I think I threw up a little bit in my mouth while watching. In the end, the Ricos went home, but surprisingly they did not receive the lowest score for their burger.

Raw burger is not safe to eat. Hamburger is done when it reaches an internal temperature of 160F as measured by a tip sensitive meat thermometer. (See Doug’s videos on youtube.) Color is an unsafe indicator of doneness. Wash your hands after touching raw meat and before touching ready to eat products like buns. I personally find it challenging to grill and avoid cross-contamination … so why does everyone keep saying how simple it is to make a burger?

If you want to risk your own stomach or life, that’s your business; but please do not try to kill your neighbors or your children with undercooked meat or cross-contaminated condiments.