Temperature Control, Cooking, Cooling and Storage
Temperature control is the backbone of food safety. Learn the key numbers: chilled storage 1–4°C (must be ≤8°C), freezer −18°C or colder, danger zone 5–63°C, hot holding at or above 63°C, cooking to at least 75°C core (or equivalent time/temperature), and reheating to at least 82°C. Cooling should take food from 63°C to 8°C within 90 minutes, and ideally to 5°C or below.
Candidates must understand probe use: clean and disinfect the probe between uses, check with a calibrated thermometer, and record readings. Calibration (ice-point or boiling-point check) is a common question - a thermometer reading 2°C in ice water is out of tolerance and must be adjusted or replaced.
Storage principles: raw food below ready-to-eat food, covered, labelled and date-coded, with stock rotation (first in, first out). Defrosting should happen in the fridge or a designated area, never at room temperature.
Traps: confusing 75°C (cooking) with 82°C (reheating); forgetting the 90-minute cooling window; assuming a probe only needs cleaning once a shift; and missing that hot holding must be at or above 63°C, not merely 'warm'.
Worked rule: if you cook a chicken to 75°C, then cool it, you must get it from 63°C to 8°C within 90 minutes and reheat to 82°C before serving.