What You Need to Know to Keep Food Safe

[scubastevee]

Hi,

I've been on the forums today and reading up on refrigerator problems and keeping temps cold.

these are some good guidelines in terms of temps:

Meat and Poultry – 33-36ºF
Fish – 32-33ºF (that's why it should always be sitting directly on a bed of ice)
Shellfish: Mollusks (clams, oysters, scallops) – 32-33ºF
Shellfish: Crustaceans (live lobsters & crabs) – 45ºF
Eggs – 38-40ºF
Dairy (butter, hard & soft cheese, milk) – 38-40ºF
Fruit and Vegetables – 38-40ºF

These comments were from this site:

Thermometrics Corporation- Thermocouples and RTDs

Wireless thermometers are relatively inexpensive and prevent the need to open the door to look at a digital or traditional thermometer - you should always know your fridge's inside temp.

Now, why am I getting hungry? Wonder what's in the fridge .....

[nosticks]

That is a good post, thank you for that.

I use a wireless indoor/outdoor thermometer with a min/max feature in the freezer and refrigerator. Having experienced food poisoning once, I'm very cautious about food and temperature.

There is also a table based on food type recommending how long you should keep different food types. It is at foodsafety.gov