Heating Things Up: The Meat and Poultry Hotline’s Popular Summer Questions

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Summer is filled with tons of activities, festivals, concerts and most importantly, food! The hotline wants to make sure your summer is free of foodborne illness. Explore all the ways you can reach us to ask your food safety questions!

When it comes to questions, we’ve probably heard them all. Here are a few of the most popular questions answered during summer time:

• I want to marinate my meat before I grill. I can just leave it on the counter while it’s marinating, right? No, marinating should be done in the refrigerator for safety.

• Is it true that my hamburger is done when it turns mostly brown on the inside and the juices run clear? Your burger is only safe when it has reached an internal temperature of 160°F as measured by a food thermometer.

• I’m going to a park to grill and won’t have access to running water. What should I use to clean my hands and utensils? Bring water and soap for preparation and cleaning or, pack clean cloths/moist towelettes.

• I’m going to a friend’s for a barbeque. I want to bring something to grill there. Is it safe to partially cook meat or poultry to finish grilling later? Never brown or partially cook meat or poultry to refrigerate and finish later because any bacteria present would not have been destroyed.

• Is it OK to refrigerate or freeze leftover cooked hamburgers? If it is refrigerated promptly after cooking (within 2 hours; 1 hour if the temperature outside is above 90°F (32.2°C)), it can be safely refrigerated or frozen.

Byline: Janell Goodwin, Technical Information Specialist, Food Safety and Inspection Service, USDA

Need more food safety information? Call the USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline at (1-888-674-6854) Monday through Friday, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. ET, or email or chat at AskKaren.gov.

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I’m finding that the digital meat thermometer is often one of the lesser-used tools in the kitchen. Cooking instructions often list typical cooking times for meat or a formula of so many minutes per pound. And I see various instructions for touch tests to relate firmness of the meat to how rare or well-done the meat is supposed to be. Perhaps a trained chef using professional cooking equipment can come close. But for me, I go with the thermometer!

Thermoworks has a series of useful videos on properly using meat thermometers for various cooking situations. The temperature difference between unsafe, under-cooked meat and a dry, overcooked result is not great. Having the right tools is important. I have no financial connection with the company — just a satisfied user.

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A: No, when it is brown in the middle it is overdone. A good hamburger (or for that matter a nice steak) should be no more than pink in the middle. Ask any Michelin Star chef!

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Actually, color isn’t always a good guide. Meat turns brown when temperatures rise above about 140 deg F. But if you cook the burger “slowly” it actually may turn brown before it reaches a safe temperature. Here is a guide from the USDA on the matter. A good kitchen thermometer is more reliable.

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