Safety and Sanitation

Chef Steve Dugan taught this class. He is quite serious but an excellent teacher. He had his moments though. When we were piping shells or beads he said to pipe them close together, "like dogs in the park". He talked about everything from metal shavings when opening a can to why not to eat seafood in a restaurant on Sunday. He also taught Piping and Knife Skills and Food Science. Organic chemistry must have been his favorite subject in college because he drew carb, fat, and protein molecules like mad on the board. Below are some bullets of information from his class. We learned all about the chemistry of gelatin, leavening agents, eggs, and the proper temperatures for cooking, storing and holding food, inspecting a professional kitchen and much more. It makes my head spin just remembering it.

To peak your interest in Safety and Sanitation here is a question with an answer that will surprise you. Which of the following are safe to eat when left out at room temperature for an extended period of time?
Alfalfa sprouts Baked potato Watermelon slices Sandwich w/ pasteurized process cheese food slices and mayonnaise from your local store. The short answer is the sandwich. Store bought Mayo is not a potentially hazardous food any longer due to the processing now used. It is pasteurized and acidified with a pH level of 4.6 or less which makes it safe at room temp. Check out http://www.homefoodsafety.com/ for more information on this subject. This question is # 4 of a food safety test you can take on the web site.

• The first rule of cooking is: Don't kill anyone.


• The white stringy stuff inside the egg white, connected to the yolk is called chalaze. Its purpose is to keep the yolk from breaking when the egg gets bounced around.


• Splenda is created by replacing the hydrogen atoms in sugar with chlorine atoms. Dioxins are produced during the production of chlorine. Chorine itself is toxic.


• Stevia a natural sweetener made from the leaves of the Stevia plant and has been used for 400 years as a sweetener. It must be sold as a "supplement" so it is not in direct competition with the sugar industry.


• Cherries with the stem on indicate the pit is still inside


• Knox gelatin is made from pig bones. Strict vegetarians do not eat this.


• Ever since the introduction of high fructose corn syrup the rate of diabetes has increased dramatically. High fructose corn syrup is manufactured. It does not occur naturally.


• Rhubarb leaves are poisonous. You can boil them to make a natural pest control spray.


• Raw kidney beans and fava beans are poisonous.


• Apple seeds, pear seeds, and apricot pits have cyanide in them.


• Honey from bees that make honey from Rhododendron or Mountain Laurel flowers contains a poison that could kill you. Don’t give honey to children under the age of 3. Honey should be pasteurized.


• The CCA uses 12,000 tasting spoons per week


• You get electrocuted in the bathtub when an electrical appliance falls in because the salt (NaCl) in the water conducts electricity.


• Wash your hands as needed or at least every 4 hours in the kitchen. Wash for 20 seconds (Sing Row Row Row Your Boat or Happy Birthday twice) while you lather and then rinse in the hottest water you can stand.


• If there is enough sugar or salt in water it will bind the water and kill bacteria. In Russia they used to take sick people into the salt mines.


• Clean a wooden cutting board with salt. The salt will draw the contaminants out. Best not to cut meat on a wooden cutting board. Use different boards for meats and vegetables.


• Sanitize your kitchen counters by spraying with a very weak solution of bleach – 1 tsp bleach to a gallon of water. Let this air dry on the counter.


• If you make lasagna in an aluminum pan and then cover it with aluminum foil for storage you have just made a battery.


• Don't store acid food in cans in the refrigerator.


• If you forget a Teflon pan on the stove and the temperature reaches 400 degrees you have created toxic smoke.


• Never use galvanized metal or pewter to cook in. In the past pewter was dangerous to use because it had a high lead content, which would be leached out by certain foods and could cause lead poisoning.


• Sugar will pull copper ions off a copper pot, so don't use copper directly with food.


• Cast iron gives off iron when used which is a good thing, but clean all rust off before using.


• Always run cold water in a kitchen with old pipes, even if you want hot water. Older buildings have some lead pipes. Hot water leaches more lead from the pipes than cold.


• Don't mix bleach and ammonia. You generate chlorine gas which is toxic.


• Puffer fish have no natural enemies and are so toxic that the chefs who are taught to prepare them must be Japanese or Thai. They go through many months of training on how to prepare the fish. Even then, the fist contains some toxin so you must eat only small amounts. The organs are so toxic you cannot touch them. All refuse is destroyed.


• Watch for metal shavings when opening a can. Be sure to clean them out. For the same reason, don't use steel wool in the kitchen.


• Don't rub stainless steel pots with an aluminum whisk – you will get aluminum in the food.


• Most restaurants get fresh fish in the morning. Fish served Sunday evening was most likely delivered Friday morning and won't be at it's best and has the potential of being spoiled.


• When you de-pan a cake, check the bottom for eggshells. If you dropped any in, they will be on the bottom.


• Adding baking soda to a recipe and not adding acid will make the product bitter. Baking powder is baking soda with an added acid, usually cream of tartar, and a chemical agent that reacts to heat to make the cake rise.