Safe Food Preparation and Cooking
What you must understand
Cross-contamination is the transfer of pathogens from raw to ready-to-eat food, hands, or surfaces. Prevent it by using separate cutting boards (color-coded where used), separate utensils, and washing and sanitizing between tasks. Never reuse a cutting board for produce after raw meat without cleaning and sanitizing.
Cooking to the right internal temperature kills pathogens. Use the minimum internal temperatures: 165°F for poultry, stuffed foods, and reheated leftovers; 155°F for ground meat and egg dishes; 145°F for whole fish, pork, and whole cuts of beef; 135°F for vegetables and commercially processed ready-to-eat food. Hold each temperature for the required time, commonly 15 seconds. Check with a calibrated probe in the thickest part.
Preparation practices: wash produce under running water before cutting; do not wash raw poultry (splashing spreads bacteria). Marinate in the refrigerator, never reuse marinade as a sauce. Keep eggs and egg dishes cold. Avoid bare-hand contact with ready-to-eat food; use gloves, tongs, or deli paper. Taste food with a clean utensil each time, never the same spoon.
Traps to watch
Questions often test whether washing raw chicken is good practice; it is not. Do not assume a food is cooked because it is browned outside. Do not confuse the 145°F whole-muscle temperature with ground meat, which needs 155°F. Do not reuse marinade without boiling it.
Rule of thumb
Match the food to its minimum temperature: poultry 165, ground 155, whole cuts 145, vegetables 135. If a question describes raw and ready-to-eat food sharing a surface or utensil, the answer is cross-contamination.