Small World Foods

If not properly handled, leftovers and foods stored long-term can harbor many different organisms that can cause food borne illness. Bacteria grow most rapidly between the temperatures of 40 °F and 140 °F so foods should be cooled promptly and properly handled to decrease risk and preserve freshness.
The temperature of foods should be reduced rapidly to discourage bacterial growth. For this reason, your refrigerator should be set at 40 °F. Use a refrigerator thermometer inside your refrigerator to monitor its temperature. Key in storing food safely is ensuring it is stored at the proper temperature. Foods such as meat, poultry, seafood, dairy, eggs, fruits and vegetables should be stored at or below 40°F.
Perishable foods, including leftovers, should be refrigerated within two hours of when they were purchased or prepared. During hot weather in excess of 90 °F, food should be refrigerated within one hour.
When storing leftovers, wash your hands with soap and water first, before handling. Hot food can be placed directly in the refrigerator but smaller portions in small, shallow containers will cool more quickly. Leftover roasts and poultry should be wrapped tightly in aluminum foil or plastic wrap and eaten within four days. Leftover fish or seafood should be wrapped tightly in aluminum foil or plastic wrap and used within a day or two. Refrigerated vegetables, stored in airtight plastic containers, can be safely eaten for up to five days.
Botulism can grow in canned and vacuum-packed foods so it’s important that if cans or packages are swollen, or if one end of a can pops when the other end is pushed, that these items not be open but instead, thrown away. Dry foods like flour, cereal and sugar should be stored a minimum of six inches off the floor and in a clean, cool, dry area. Never purchase damaged packages with rips, tears or punctures.
Frozen food and food that is purchased frozen should be stored at 0°F to avoid bacteria growth. When you’re ready to prepare frozen food, it should be carefully thawed in the refrigerator or as part of the cooking process to avoid spoilage or contamination. You can also defrost food in the microwave that you intend to cook immediately. Never thaw frozen food at room temperature. Because freezing keeps food safe indefinitely, sell-by dates on packages may be months old by the time the food is actually used. Therefore, use a marker or print a label with the date to indicate when the food was frozen.
When properly stored and refrigerated, leftover foods from a delicious meal can be enjoyed for several days afterward. Foods stored long term offer many benefits including being able to taste the bounty of summer in the cold winter months or extending the shelf life and freshness of your favorite foods long after the purchase date. Precautions like keeping food cold enough and storing in a cool, dry place can keep food fresher, longer and increase your eating enjoyment.

Author: Pablo Maiorino

FreeCookingVideos.com

It is vital to keep professional kitchen knives in optimum condition to protect what can often be a significant financial investment. Overall care of knives includes proper cleaning, attention to safety, regular sharpening and correct storage.

To clean knives after use, wipe them with a nonabrasive cloth or hand wash them with a sponge. Never put professional quality knives in the dishwasher. Don’t soak stamped knives in the sink because their wood handles can become warped. Knives that are left on a drying rack can dull or become damaged if something heavy is dropped on them. Always dry knives by hand.
Keeping knives sharp keeps them safe. A dull knife requires more pressure and increases the likelihood that your hand will slip while using it. Have knives professionally ground and sharpened once a year to smooth and hone the blade. You can also learn to sharpen your knives yourself.
To sharpen and hone your knives you will need a whetstone and a honing steel. Whetstones are made of carborundum in three densities – coarse, medium and fine. A coarse stone is all-purpose and works well for Chef’s Knives. A fine stone is used for slicing or boning knives. Whetstones are lubricated with either oil or water depending on the type of stone. A few drops of oil are smoothed to a light film across an oil stone while a water stone should be soaked (in water) for 10 to 15 minutes to absorb moisture.
To use a whetstone, place the blade at a 20° angle, laying the heel of the blade on the stone. Steady the tip of the knife and sweep the blade across the stone in an arc toward you. Always go in one direction; never back and forth. Repeat 10 to 20 times on each side.
A honing steel is a steel stick with grooves. It’s used to smooth the blade and remove nicks. Hold the knife at a 20° angle and draw it across the steel in a sweeping motion five or six times on both sides. Always hone your knives before each use.
There are several ways to properly store knives. Knife blocks, which usually sit on countertops, allow for convenient access to knives as you work. The slots are hard to clean, however, so the blade should be washed and dried before its put away in the block. Magnetic bars are strong, wall-mounted magnets designed to hold knives securely in place and keep them readily accessible.
Rigid plastic sleeves called knife sleeves fully encase the blades and allow them to be safely stored in a drawer with other utensils. Most professionals use knife cases to carry their knives with them. Knife cases have mesh pockets, padding and elastic loops to firmly hold each knife in place. 
With proper care, professional knives will remain well-honed precision instruments that can last many decades, providing years of good use and enjoyment for the cooking enthusiast.

Author: Pablo Maiorino

FreeCookingVideos.com

Cooking with children is a special way for parents and children to connect. Even very young children can participate in cooking in age-appropriate ways. Time spent in the kitchen offers an ideal learning environment and creates cherished, enduring memories that last a lifetime. 

When cooking with children, however, the first thing that should be taught is kitchen safety.
Particularly in this era of children with two working parents, many kids are home by themselves several hours a day and the kitchen is often the first place they go for a meal or snack after school. It’s a time when many accidents, including cuts and burns, can occur. That’s why, when you’re in the kitchen together, it’s vitally important to teach children kitchen safety and what they should do in case of an emergency.
The first thing to teach children is that they should always wash their hands with soap and warm water, making sure to get between fingers and under fingernails, before they touch any food. They should wash again any time they cough, sneeze or use the bathroom.
Parents should demonstrate the proper use of utensils, especially knives. Remember to keep your kitchen knives sharp – more cuts occur from dull knives than from sharp ones. Teach children to always cut food away from themselves.
Give specific directions for using the microwave oven. Microwave cooking is easy and convenient but because the food coming out is very hot, it can cause severe burns. Food should be allowed to cool for several minutes before eating. Make sure your child knows how to program the microwave oven (so that 20 seconds is not programmed as 20 minutes). Identify microwave-safe cookware they can use. Instruct them how to cover foods in the microwave so they don’t splatter and to always use potholders to remove hot dishes.
Hot liquids, not fire, are the most common cause of burns to children. Instruct children that if they are burned, they should hold the burn under cool, running water for several minutes. If the burn begins to blister, it should be loosely covered with a clean cloth or sterile gauze. They should immediately tell a grown-up the burn has occurred as it may require medical attention.

Children should only use a stove if they have been trained by an adult. Pan handles should be turned into the middle of the stove at all times and the stove should be immediately turned off when finished. If something on the stove catches fire, it should be smothered with a lid and the burner should be turned off. If the fire has leaping flames, the child should immediately leave the house and call 911. Emphasize that baking soda, flour or water should never be thrown on a kitchen fire.

You can encourage your children to have fun in the kitchen as you follow recipes and prepare meals and holiday treats together. Kitchen safety, however, should always be paramount and constantly reinforced. When the right precautions are in place, children and parents can relax and truly enjoy the art of cooking.

Author: Pablo Maiorino

FreeCookingVideos.com