Did you know that worldwide, 1 in 10 people will get a foodborne disease every year? Food safety and hygiene are vital parts of running any food-based business.
One of the most difficult food items to prepare and handle safely is raw seafood. It needs careful storage and hygiene procedures to keep everything clean and safe.
This article is here to give you tips on how to handle raw seafood in the correct way. We cover hygiene, preparation, and storage to help run your establishment without concern.
Personal Hygiene
With seafood handling, it's important that you maintain high levels of personal hygiene. There can be many bacteria found on our hands, and also on raw seafood. So make sure you take the necessary steps to avoid contamination.
Hand washing is a very important factor in preventing bacteria from spreading. Make sure that you use the proper technique by vigorously scrubbing your hands 10-15 seconds and washing for a total of at least 20 seconds. Use warm soapy water before and after fish handling.
Raw Seafood Storage
It is important that you store your seafood at the right temperature. If you buy it fresh from the vendor you must think about how it was transported properly to ensure there was no temperature abuse along the way. The good temperature to store raw seafood is below 41°F. Avoid temperature abuse at all costs as some fish naturally produce toxins you can not kill if temperature abuse occurs.
If you store your raw seafood in a fridge or freezer, make sure none of the juices drip down onto the other food in there. Keep the raw seafood separate from any cooked seafood in sealed containers.
This prevents foodborne diseases from spreading. It also prevents the fish from decaying, keeping it fresh for longer. In a refrigerator you have a short shelf-life so make sure you rotate it and do not over order.
Preparation and Cooking
It's very important to follow strict procedures when cooking your raw seafood. The most important thing is that your preparation area is clean and sanitized thoroughly before you start.
You should make sure that utensils used when handling seafood are well-cleaned. You should not use them for other food preparation.
When cooking raw seafood, the internal temperature should read 145°F. The flesh of the fish should be opaque and it will flake apart when it has been completely cooked. The shells of shellfish will open and the flesh will become plump and opaque once cooked. Use a clean, sanitized, and calibrated thermometer when taking the temperatures.
Master Raw Seafood Handling
If you work in an environment with raw seafood, then it is important that you know how to prepare and store it in a safe way. You also need to maintain high levels of both personal hygiene and a clean work area.
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