Watch where you're sticking it in
I've loved Chicken with Broccoli and Cheese (of various brands) since childhood. These prepared-
but-raw entrees mostly fell by the wayside when I started cooking like a grown-up. But just last week, the crunchy broccoli with melted cheese hidden inside tasty breaded chicken thingies called out to me and my inner child, and a box of them was soon in my home freezer.
A couple years ago (under the alias C. Wilkinson), I watched a bunch of people cooking products just like these in model kitchens. I was helping graduate researcher Sarah DeDonder, who was curious what could be contributing to the half-dozen Salmonella outbreaks associated with such products that occurred in the ten years before the study (and the two outbreaks after).
The raw, frozen chicken thingies I brought home last week were made by Antioch Farms (a Koch Foods brand). The box's front label proclaimed, in half-inch-high letters, that the products were indeed raw. The back label warned me not to cook them in the microwave. It also showed me how to stick a thermometer in to be sure each one reached a bacteria- and virus-killing 165 F.
I found each of these label features fairly helpful. However, when I baked them for dinner last night, I modified the depicted thermometer-sticking method a little to determine the internal temperature of the chicken, rather than the filling.
I'm happy to report that the chicken read 175 F before it reached the dinner table. And it was as delicious as I remembered.
Microwaving listeria out of potatoes
Minnesota-based food maker Northern Star is recalling several different refrigerated potato products after some samples were found to have Listeria monocytogenes.
According to WCCO-TV, a former employee had already reported concerns about listeria on plant equipment to the FDA.
I’m not sure what his role was in the company, but he told the news crew,
“…I like to protect the people who eat this product. I've seen mice all over the place. Cockroaches, black mold, listeria: I mean you name it, you can find it."
Sounds pretty gross, but—if necessary—most of the poop can be cooked out of food.
A report of the recall by kare11.com noted,
“Officials say properly cooking the food kills Listeria bacteria, but the Minnesota Department of Agriculture says often times people overlook the cooking instructions and simply heat these products in the microwave.”
It only takes a couple minutes to kill listeria if you can get the food up to 158F. A microwave can do this quickly, but unevenly. The cold spots that don’t get up to the right temp can still have listeria bacteria living in them.
Therefore, many manufacturers—such as Northern Star—don’t provide that option in the cooking instructions.
However, pretending people don’t use the microwave is not a realistic way to minimize the risk of someone getting sick.
Some have suggested acknowledging consumer use of microwave ovens by pasting DO NOT MICROWAVE on packages of foods that are likely to make people sick if they’re not cooked properly (like raw chicken thingies).
In the case of refrigerated hashbrowns, it’s probably reasonable to provide instructions for the microwave and include a little note on the dangers of uneven cooking.
This would give consumers the opportunity to make an informed decision on how they’ll cook their potatoes. Particularly when there’s poop in them.
So far, no illnesses have been reported in connection with this recall. Providing more information to consumers could help ensure that’s the case.
Food safety quick hits
KETV in Omaha is reporting that Girl Scout cookies are safe to eat -- the peanut butter products that are used to make them are not produced by Peanut Corp of America:
The peanut butter supplier associated with the recent salmonella outbreak does not supply peanut butter to Girl Scout Cookies, according to the Girl Scouts organization. 
The Girl Scout organization's supplier is Hampton Farms in North Carolina.
In the somewhat-related-to-food-safety category, a man who helped create the science behind the microwave oven has died. Robert Decareau of Amherst, NH passed away on Sunday at 82.
According to his family, Decareau was a Massachusetts native who went to work for Raytheon after earning his doctorate in chemistry. It was there that he started working on microwave energy food applications, and he was one of the first to call himself a food scientist.
Decareau's daughter, Karen Ross of Auburn, Maine, says she remembers her father experimenting with a refrigerator-sized prototype microwave oven in the family's basement in the 1960s.
Frozen, raw or partially cooked foods have been problematic for consumers -- especially when they contain pathogens. There have been at least eight outbreaks linked to, as Doug likes to call them, chicken thingies since 1998. Using a microwave has been reported as a factor in these outbreaks. Pot pies have also been linked to microwave problems. Uneven heat distribution makes microwaving a not-so-good method to cook raw foods especially if digital tip-sensitive thermometers aren't used. Sarah DeDonder presented some of our research at IAFP last year on microwave cooking practices in a model kitchen. A paper on the research will be published later this year.
Dedonder, S., Powell, D.A., Jacob, C., Surgeoner, B., Chapman, B., and Phebus, R. 2008. Beyond Intent -- Direct Observation Of Meal Preparation Procedures In A Home Kitchen Setting.
Abstract
Purpose – This study used a novel video capture system to observe the food preparation practices of 41 consumers – 21 primary meal preparers and 20 adolescents – in a mock domestic kitchen using uncooked, frozen, breaded chicken products, and to determine if differences exist between consumers’ reported safe food handling practices and actual food handling behavior as prescribed on current product labels.
Design/methodology/approach – A convenience sample was utilized and all participants were video-recorded preparing food in one-of-two model kitchens at Kansas State University. Participants were asked to complete a survey reporting food handling behaviors that would be typical of their own home kitchen.
Findings – Differences between self-reported and observed food safety behaviors were seen across both groups of consumers. Many participants reported owning a food thermometer (73 per cent) and indicated using one when cooking raw, breaded chicken entrées (19.5 per cent); however, only five participants were observed measuring the final internal temperature with a food thermometer despite instructions on the product packaging to do so; only three used the thermometer correctly.
Significance – Data collected through direct observation more accurately reflects consumer food handling behaviors than data collected through self-reported surveys, and label instructions are rarely followed.
Originality/value – This study contributes to the overall understanding of consumer behaviors associated with consumers’ intentions and actual behaviors while preparing meat and poultry products, such as frozen, uncooked, breaded chicken products.
How can you be sure microwaved frozen chicken is safe to eat?
Judy Foreman of The Boston Globe says the U.S. Department of Agriculture recommends no matter how frozen chicken is cooked, from whatever kind of meal or chicken thingies, use a thermometer to ensure the internal temperature has reached 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
Good advice.
So why at the end of the brief article is Roger Fielding, a professor of nutrition at Tufts University, quoted as saying, "Always cut it open and make sure it is white, not pink or translucent. You really have to be careful."
Bad advice.
What you really have to be careful about is taking food safety advice from nutrition professors at Tufts University.
Color is a lousy indicator. Use a digital, tip-sensitive thermometer.
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Cooking with a microwave
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For thick items that can’t be cut:∑ use medium power;
∑ microwave for a longer period of time;
∑ stir, turn, or flip food halfway through to limit cold spots;
∑ let food stand for a couple minutes when finished microwaving; and,
∑ be cautious of bones (they can act as heat shields.
There are many other variables that dictate how well food is cooked in the microwave, including:
∑ type of container;
∑ physical state of food (frozen or thawed);
∑ type of food;
∑ product geometry;
∑ moisture content;
∑ bone presence; and,
∑ microwave wattage.
The wattage of a microwave is located on the back or inside the door. Microwave power is grouped into high (1000 – 1300 W), medium (700-900 W) and low (500-600 W). Many labels on microwave foods give cook times for high, medium and low wattage microwaves, so it is handy to know the wattage being used.
There are hundreds of frozen, prepared products or meals, like pot pies, that may contain raw or fully cooked ingredients. The only way to know is to read labels carefully. Package labels may also contain instructions to cook to 165°F for poultry and 160°F for beef and other meats, and to verify doneness using a digital, tip-sensitive thermometer. To be on the safe side, leftovers should reach 145°F.
California high school girls microwave hamster, face charges
They also briefly put him a freezer.
An investigating police officer said the girls have admitting microwaving Bugsy because they were bored."These girls showed no remorse."
The Press Democrat reports that the hamster, Bugsy, survived, but three of his feet were severely burned. Lake County Animal Control Officer Morgan Hermann said the legs later turned black and the hamster chewed them off, adding,
“Now (Bugsy) has one leg."
The incident occurred in December, but it was not reported to Animal Control and police until the students had been released for Spring break.
Unlike the pic (right) this was not a happy hamster.
Raw, frozen chicken thingies -- do not cook in a microwave
Depends.
An outbreak of salmonella in Minnesota last week was once again linked to frozen, raw chicken thingies -- in this case breaded, pre-browned chicken cordon bleu and chicken Kiev produced by Milford Valley Farms.This is the fifth such outbreak the Minnesota disease detectives have traced to such products in the past decade. Similar outbreaks have been reported in British Columbia and Australia.
Kirk Smith of the Minnesota Department of Health said one of the victims in the current outbreak prepared the frozen entree in a microwave, even though that method of preparation is not recommended on the package.
Because of past outbreaks, the U.S. Department of Agriculture wrote to food processors in 2006, and said,
"While consumers may be directed to cook the products to an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit (F), if they are directed to use a cooking method that is not practical or not likely to achieve the necessary level of food safety (e.g., microwaving or cooking frozen product in a toaster oven), the cooking instructions may not be valid."
In response to the current outbreak, USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) issued a public health alert on March 29, 2008, and reminded consumers of the crucial importance of following package instructions for frozen, stuffed raw chicken products and general food safety guidelines when handling and preparing any raw meat or poultry. "It is especially important that these products be cooked in a conventional oven. All poultry products should be cooked to a safe minimum internal temperature of 165° Fahrenheit as determined by a food thermometer. Using a food thermometer is the only way to know that food has reached a high enough temperature to destroy foodborne bacteria."
That same Saturday in March, Koch Foods, a Fairfield, Ohio, establishment, recalled approximately 1,420 pounds of frozen chicken breast products because they were packaged with the incorrect label. The frozen, pre-browned, raw products were labeled as "precooked" and therefore do not provide proper preparation instructions. These raw products may appear fully cooked.
Labels may be changed, but do people read labels? It appears that consumers could think that raw, pre-browned products are pre-cooked, when they are raw.
Live ... From the Safe Food Café: Cooking the poop out of pot pies
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On Oct. 11, 2007, ConAgra announced it was recalling all of its frozen pot pies to fix some label discrepancies. This was two days after an outbreak of Salmonella was linked to Banquet pot pies and the company reassuringly told consumers that getting sick was their own fault and they should be more careful and cook pot pies thoroughly.In the end, at least 272 people in 35 states had trouble simply cooking the pot pies and got sick with salmonella.
As I documented before, the instructions on the pot pies weren't so great.
The old labels had statements about how easy it was to cook in the microwave. The new labels are much more explicit, saying the pot pies need to be cooked in at least a 1100 Watt microwave and that a meat thermometer should be used in several places to ensure that an endpoint temperature of 165 F has been reached.
I bought some of the new and improved pot pies and did the same cooking experiment, following what ConAgra called " redesigned easy-to-follow cooking instructions … to help eliminate any potential confusion regarding cooking times."
After four minutes in a 1150 Watt microwave, the interior of the pot pie registered at about 50F. After letting it sit for an additional three minutes -- as per label instructions - the temperature varied anywhere from 75 - 190 F.
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I decided to cook an additional two minutes.After six minutes of cooking, and the previous three minutes of resting, the pot pie had tremendous variation in temperature: anywhere from 200F down to 100F. 165 F is required to kill Salmonella.
I wouldn't want my kids popping these in the microwave after school.
ConAgra has never come clean on which various ingredients may have been the source of the Salmonella. Was it the poultry? How about the vegetables? The pie crust? ConAgra won't say.
Further, were the new labels tested with consumers? There is a lack of research examining whether safe food handling labels perceived as effective translate into actual safe food handling behavior, including the use of proper thawing and cooking techniques, the use of measures to minimize cross-contamination, and the use of meat thermometers to confirm doneness.
If I was a multi-million dollar corporation like ConAgra headed to a dance with food safety lawyer Bill Marler cause my product made people barf, I'd want some evidence that pot pie fans where actually following the instructions on the labels. I would have tested the new labels with at least 100 teenagers -- those afflicted with hormones and horniness -- before introducing it to the mass market.
Maybe they did. But that's up to ConAgra to prove.
And until they do, all products that claim to be safe in the microwave should contain nothing but fully cooked ingredients.
That's the only way to get the poop out.
Cooking a frozen pot pie in a microwave
This is a ConAgra Banquet turkey pot pie Amy and I purchased the evening of Oct. 9, 2007 and kept in the freezer. It had the P-9 code on the side -- the ones implicated in the Salmonella outbreak -- and on sale, 2-for-$1.This is me in our kitchen on Monday Oct. 8, preparing Thanksgiving (Canadian) chicken for guests. Note the white microwave in the back left corner.
This is our GE Turntable microwave oven cooking the turkey pot pie at 10:30 a.m. on Oct. 10, 2007. I have no idea what the wattage is.
The front of the pot pie package includes statements such as:
Ready in 4 minutes; microwavable
And
KEEP FROZEN
COOK THOROUGHLY
The microwave cooking instructions on the back state:
For food safety and quality, follow these cooking directions:
Microwave Oven
(fine print: Ovens vary; cooking time may need to be adjusted.)
1. Place tray on microwave-safe plate; slit top crust.
I could not slit the top crust. It was frozen solid.
2. Microwave on High.
(Med. OR High Wattage Microwave 4 mins.
Low Wattage Microwave 6 mins).
This is the turkey pot pie after 4 minutes on high in the microwave. I was able to slit the crust. The temperature stabilized around 48 F. I must have a low wattage microwave.
The is the turkey pot pie after 6 minutes on high in the microwave. Near the surface, the temperature registers at 204 F (left). However, the temperature lowered as I moved the probe to the center. Temperature approximately 127 F (right).
The microwave cooking instructions also state:
3. Let Stand 3 minutes. Carefully remove as Product will be hot.
After 3 standing for 3 minutes the interior of the pot pie reaches 148 F. The recommended safe end-point temperature for poultry is 165 F.
This is the pot pie after 6 minutes in the microwave on high, standing for 3 minutes, followed by an additional 2 minutes in the microwave on high; 194 F.
I eat the pot pie.This is completely anecdotal and in no way representative. However, as my research colleague Randy Phebus just posted on barfblog.com:
"Why any food product containing raw ingredients of any kind (actually, in this case the chicken cubes were fully cooked, but the veggies and dough were not) would have microwaving as a primary preparation procedure, particularly when starting from a completely frozen state. Microwave heating of this type of product would no doubt be variable, and particularly when you look at all the different types of microwave ovens out there. Perhaps the message that we should be spreading is that microwaves should only be used to heat pre-cooked products. Then, we also need to address the almost universal ambiguity in prep instructions on food packages. What do consumers really understand, or better what do they not understand, about these written label instructions? One other important bit...are the label instructions always properly validated for their food safety effectiveness in the first place?"
