Whole pieces of meat

Steaks, chops and whole pieces of meat should be cooked to 63 °C (medium rare) using a meat thermometer and left to stand for 3 minutes to kill any bacteria and parasites such as Toxoplasma gonddii. As a guide: well done is 77°C, medium 71°C and medium rare 63 °C (leave to rest for 3 minutes).

Mince, hamburgers, sausages and rolled/stuffed meat

When meat is minced or a bone is removed or it is rolled or the muscle is slit for stuffing, bacteria can penetrate into the centre of the meat. Use a meat thermometer to make sure you always cook minced or boned meat, hamburger, stuffed meat and sausages until 75°C to make sure all the bacteria are killed.

Stews, sauces and gravies

Clostridium perfingens likes the sort of conditions you get in casseroles, stews, gravies, pie fillings and any other bulk cooked foods when they cool. In the warm conditions of cooling food, the spores germinate and grow. Whenever you cool food, make sure you cool it quickly by transferring it into a shallow container and refrigerating it when the steam stops rising. A large stockpot, even in a commercial fridge can take several days for the centre temperature in the pot to reach 5° C. Use or freeze leftovers within two to three days.

Defrosting and leftovers

Defrost rolled and stuffed meat completely before cooking or else they may not cook right through. Always follow cooking instructions on packaged food. Don’t forget to reheat leftovers to steaming hot before eating.

Cross contamination

Never put cooked meat onto the same plate on which you had the raw meat. Don’t let raw meat drip on or touch other foods, especially if that food won’t be cooked further such as a salad or dessert.

See more on cross contamination

See more on how to cook pork