Chapter 8 Flashcards
Slacking
Slacking is the gradual thawing of frozen food to prep it for deep-frying. This allows even heating during cooking. For example, you might slack frozen breaded chicken breasts by having them warm from -10f to 25F. If your regulatory authority allows slacking at room temperature, have a system that ensures the item does not exceed 41*F.
Pooled Eggs
Pooled eggs are eggs that are cracked open and combined in a common container. Handle them with special care because bacteria in one egg can be spread to the rest. Cook pooled eggs promptly after mixing or store them at 41*F or lower. Clean and sanitize containers used to hold pooled eggs before using them for a new batch.
Variance (2 examples)
A variance is a document issued by your regulatory authority that allows a regulatory requirement to be waived or changed. When applying a variance, your regulatory authority may require you to submit a HACCP plan. The plan must account for any food safety risks related to the way you plan to prep the food item. Two examples are offering live shellfish from a display tank or smoking food as a way of preserving it (but not to enhance flavor).
Minimum Internal Temperature
Cooking foods to these minimum temperatures is the only way to reduce pathogens in food to safe levels. The temperature is different for each food. Once reached, you must hold the food at this temperature for a specific amount of time.
Partial Cooking
Some operations partially cook food during prep and then finish cooking it just before service. The steps for this are as follows: 1) Do not cook the food for longer than 60 minutes during initial cooking. 2) Cool the food immediately after initial cooking. 3) Freeze or refrigerate the food after cooling it. If refrigerating the food, make sure it is held at 41*F oor lower. If the food will be refrigerated, store it away from ready-to-eat food.
When serving a high-risk population, never serve:
Never serve: 1) Raw see sprouts. 2) Raw or under cooked eggs (unpasteurized), meat, or seafood. 3) Unpasteurized milk or juice.
Customer advisory
You must cook TCS food to required minimum internal temperatures listed in this chapter unliess a customer requests otherwise. Discloures are asterisks placed next to TCS foods on the menu, they indicate that their is a footnote stating important information regarding food safety below the item. A reminder is placed below the disclosure notice, it provides information to the guest about what might happen if they ignore the disclosure notice.
Partial cooking guidelines
Your regulatory authority will require you to have written procedures that explain how the food cooked by this process will be prepped and stored. These procedures must be approved by the regulatory authority and describe the following: how the requirements will be monitored and documented; which corrective actions will be take if requirements are not met; how these food items will be marked after initial cooking to indicate they need further cooking; how these food items will be separated from ready-to-eat food during storage, once initial cooking is complete.
Temperature Requirements for Cooling Food
Pathogens grow faster between 125F and 70F than they do in the temperature danger zone. Food must pass through this temperature range quickly to reduce this growth. Cool TCS foods from 135F to 41F or lower within 6 hours.
Temperature Requirements for Reheating Food (TCS and commercially processed)
You must rehear TCS food for hot holding to an internal temperature of 165F for 15 seconds. Make sure the food reaches this temperature within two hours from start to finish. Reheat commercially processed and packaged ready-to-eat food to an internal temperature of at least 135F.
Thawing TCS Foods: Running Water
Submerge food under running, drinkable water at 70
Thawing TCS Foods: Running Water
Submerge food under running, drinkable water at 70F or lower. The flow of the water must be strong enough to wash loose food bits into the drain. Always use a clean and sanitized food-prep sink when thawing food this way. Never let the temperature of the food go above 41F for longer than 4 hours. This includes the time it takes to thaw the food plus the time it takes to prep or cool it.
Thawing TCS Foods: Microwave
Thaw food in a microwave oven if it will be cooked immediately after thawing. The food must be cooked in conventional cooking equipment, such as an oven, once it is thawed.
Thawing TCS Foods: Cooking
Thaw food as part of the cooking process. These items cook quickly enough from the frozen state to pass through the temperature danger zone without harm. However, always verify the final internal cooking temperature with a thermometer.
