May 16, 2025
Culinary taste was not fickle. . . . and the way you swallow food, like the way you make babies, has not changed throughout the history of mankind.
Romesh Gunesekera, Reef
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Culinary taste was not fickle. . . . and the way you swallow food, like the way you make babies, has not changed throughout the history of mankind.
Romesh Gunesekera, Reef
My unsophisticated palate.
Why?
I’m almost embarrassed about how unsophisticated my palate is.
Tonight I ate a strange salad consisting of raw spinach, strawberries, Teriyaki sauce, plain yogurt, and grated romano cheese. I pretended to like it, but I actually hated it. It was just…weird tasting. I would have preferred a boring ol’ tossed salad with Italian or ranch dressing.
Mind you, I liked all the individual…
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Kitchen Portion Control
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5 Minute Dinners Nutritionists Eat
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Pork Handling, Nutrition & Preparation
It’s true! Pork really is the other white meat. Ounce for ounce, pork tenderloin has less fat than a chicken breast. And food scientists are finding ways to make it leaner and leaner every year. Lean cuts of pork are high in protein, low in fat and have more B-vitamins (thiamin, niacin, B6 and B12), selenium, zinc, and phosphorous than many other types of meat. These vitamins play a role in a variety of body functions, including metabolism and energy production. In addition, pork is also naturally low in sodium.
But like any other raw food item, are a number of necessary pork handling precautions you should take to maintain the freshness, quality and safety of your pork food items. With a few easy guidelines, it’s easy to stay food-safe.
Marinating
Always marinate in a covered container in the refrigerator, never in the sink or on the countertop.
Never reuse marinade.
Freshness
Use or freeze within 3 to 5 days of purchase.
Keeping Clean
Always wash your hands with hot, soapy water before handling food.
Thoroughly wash with hot, soapy water all surfaces that come in contact with raw pork before moving on to the next step in food preparation.
Freezing and Thawing
It is safe to freeze cooked pork dishes. Use within 3 months for best quality.
Use frozen fresh pork within 4 to 6 months for best quality.
It is best to plan ahead for slow, safe thawing in the refrigerator.
Refrigerator-defrosted pork will be safe in the refrigerator 3 to 5 days before cooking.
Microwave-defrosted pork should be cooked immediately after thawing.
Leftovers
Cooked pork is safe to eat, cold or reheated to 165 degrees F, within 3 to 4 days.
The following chart reflects nutritional information for cooked pork (by moist or dry heat with no added ingredients), edible weight portion.
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Cooking Pork
For safety, the USDA recommends cooking ground pork patties and ground pork mixtures, such as meatloaf, to a minimum internal temperature of 160 degrees F.
Cook all raw pork steaks, chops and roasts to a minimum internal temperature of 145 degrees F. For safety and quality, allow meat to rest for at least three minutes before carving or consuming.
For reasons of personal preference, consumers may choose to cook meat to higher temperatures.
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*Info provided by Publix Supermarkets, Lakeland, FL.
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Poultry Handling, Nutrition & Preparation
Chicken soup, chicken stew, chicken chili, chicken breast on salad, roast turkey… chicken in almost any form is great for your health – unless, of course, you’re the bird!
The health benefits of eating poultry are plenty. When the fowl comes in a lean breast, it’s low in fat and calories and high in protein, which makes it ideal for weight maintenance. Not to mention that chicken and turkey are jam-packed full of essential nutrients and vitamins. Plus, with so many ways to prepare this plucky protein, you’re family won’t tire of poultry as a frequent weekly menu staple.
Handling and Storing Poultry
These tips can help you keep poultry safe:
Refrigerate or freeze uncooked poultry as soon as possible after purchase. Fully cooked poultry should be refrigerated within two hours.
Pick up poultry at the end of your shopping trip.
Refer to the safe-handling label required on every poultry package.
Do not purchase poultry products past the “Sell By” or “Use By” dates.
Refrigerate chicken in its original store packaging and place on a plate so juices do not drip on other foods.
Uncooked chicken may be frozen in its original packaging, or it may be repackaged. If freezing chicken no longer than two months, over-wrap the porous store plastic packages with air-tight heavy-duty foil, plastic wrap, or freezer paper, or place the package inside a freezer bag. Use these same materials, or air-tight freezer containers, to repackage packs into smaller packages or individual pieces. Use the chart below to determine how long you can store in the freezer.
Thaw poultry in the refrigerator – never at room temperature. Since bacteria begin to multiply at room temperature, partially thawed poultry could grow potentially harmful bacteria.
To refrigerate leftover cooked poultry, wrap in aluminum foil, plastic wrap or a plastic bag to keep it from drying out. Use within three to four days. Reheat in the oven or microwave until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F.
To freeze cooked poultry, wrap in heavy-duty aluminum foil, plastic wrap or plastic freezer bags. To avoid frost and freezer burn, remove as much air from the packaging as possible. Use within four to six months for best quality.
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Make a Good Choice Even Better
Though poultry does contain fat, saturated fat and cholesterol, most of it is in the skin. You can easily reduce calories and fat by simply removing the skin after cooking. To lower the fat and calories even further, select only white-meat cuts.
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Use a protective coating, such as breadcrumbs, to keep chicken from drying out when baking.
Cook poultry to a safe minimum internal temperature of 165 degrees F. Use a meat thermometer to check for doneness (take temperature directly after cooking – continue cooking if necessary).
Oven-roast turkeys under a foil tent at 325 degrees F. Use the following table as a guide for how long to roast an unstuffed turkey. Stuffing a turkey is not recommended by the USDA. It is recommended you cook your stuffing outside the bird in a baking dish to an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.
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*Info provided by Publix Supermarkets, Lakeland, FL.
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Handling Raw Food Items
Many cases of food-borne illness occur each year due to people improperly handling raw food items in the home. Microorganisms multiply rapidly at temperatures between 40 and 140 degrees F. Unfortunately, the harmful bacteria that cause most cases of food-borne illness cannot be seen, smelled or tasted. Therefore, it’s important to:
Keep cold foods cold (40 degrees F or below) and hot foods hot (140 degrees F or above),
and follow these additional rules below.
Frozen Foods
Because foods frozen at peak quality will taste better than foods frozen near the end of their useful life, quickly freeze items you don’t plan to use within a day or two. Use a freezer thermometer to keep the freezer temperature at 0 degrees F or below. Frozen food quality deteriorates more rapidly above 0 degrees F.
Remember, freezing to 0 degrees F inactivates, but does not destroy, microbes such as bacteria, yeasts and molds that can be present in food. Once a frozen food item is thawed, these microbes can become active, multiplying under the right conditions to levels that can lead to food-borne illness.
Defrosting
Never defrost food outdoors, in a cold room in the house, such as the basement, or on the kitchen counter. These methods encourage growth of harmful bacteria.
There are three ways to defrost food – in the refrigerator, in a sealed package in cold water, and in the microwave oven.
Food thawed in the refrigerator can be refrozen without cooking. Plan ahead because food may take several hours to thaw in the refrigerator (or even days for turkeys).
Food defrosted in cold water or in the microwave should be cooked immediately.
Deli Foods
As soon as you get home, immediately place cold perishables in the refrigerator or the freezer.
Hot perishable foods from the Deli need to be kept at 140 degrees F or above, or consumed within two hours.
If you have hot Deli foods to be eaten at a later time (such as leftovers, etc.), place them in shallow, covered containers and refrigerate or freeze within two hours.
Reheat Deli foods to 165 degrees F.
Fresh Produce
Raw fruit and vegetables can be held at room temperature, stored in the refrigerator, or frozen. For most produce, refrigeration is the best way to maintain quality and delay ripening.
Wash produce under running water before preparation.
Once fruits and vegetables are cut, chopped or cooked, they should be placed in the refrigerator within two hours, or frozen in plastic freezer containers.
Refrigerated Foods
Leave meat, poultry and seafood in the store packaging before using. Repeated handling can introduce bacteria into food products.
Store opened food in foil, plastic wrap, leak-proof plastic bags, or air-tight food storage containers to keep these food items from drying out.
Place meat, poultry and seafood in the coldest part of the refrigerator. Store eggs in their original carton on a shelf – not in the door.
Defrost or marinate meat in the refrigerator – never on the kitchen counter.
Place meat, poultry and seafood items on the lowest shelf to minimize leakage onto other stored food items.
Clean the refrigerator regularly to remove spoiled food, odors and bacteria. Do not overload the refrigerator. Air must be allowed to circulate freely to cool all foods evenly.
*Info provided by Publix Supermarkets, Lakeland, FL.
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Pantry Storage
Shelf-stable foods such as canned goods, cereal, baking mixes, pasta, dry beans, mustard, ketchup, and peanut butter can be kept safely in pantry storage at room temperature.
To keep these foods at their best quality, store them in clean, dry, cool (below 85 degrees F) cabinets away from the stove, the refrigerator’s exhaust or other overly warm areas. Extremely hot (over 100 degrees F) and freezing temperatures are harmful to canned goods.
Never use food from cans that are leaking, rusting, bulging, or badly dented, or that have a foul odor. Also stay away from foods in cracked jars, jars with loose or bulging lids, or any container that spurts liquid when you open it.
Never taste such foods!
Throw out any food you suspect is spoiled. In general, most canned foods have a long shelf life, and when stored properly, may last for several years.
Low-Acid Canned Goods
Two to five years (canned meat and poultry, stews, pasta products, potatoes, corn, carrots, spinach, beans, beets, peas, pumpkin and soups – except tomato).
High-Acid Canned Goods
12 to 18 months (tomato products, fruits, sauerkraut and foods in vinegar-based sauces or dressings).
Some Canned Hams Are Shelf-Stable
Never store ham or any foods labeled “Keep Refrigerated” in the pantry. These foods must be stored in the refrigerator.
Many shelf-stable foods remain edible for several weeks, or even months, after opening. However, be sure to read package labels. Some items must be refrigerated after opening.
And of course, products that become contaminated (for example, bugs in flour) should be immediately discarded.
*In provided by Publix Supermarkets, Lakeland, FL.