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 Domestic
consumption fact
Health
tips for chicken consumers
What
should I look for when I shop for chicken?
Whatever city you are in, whether it's on the East Coast,
or Puerto Rico, or even London or Moscow or Tokyo, you are
supposed to visit supermarkets the way other people visit
museums or monuments. You should notice the following kinds
of things yourselves and these are recommendations you should
care about when selecting chicken.
• Give the package a
little squeeze. Are there signs of ice along wings, backs,
or edges? Some chicken producers blast their birds with air
as cold as 40F. Freezing causes a breakdown in protein, loss
of natural juices, and could reduce tenderness. Also, when
you cook a frozen chicken, the bones and nearby, meat may
turn an unappetizing dark color.
• Look at the thickness
of the meat in proportion to the bone. If, for example, the
breast looks scrawny, you're paying a lot for bone rather
than meat.
• Read the labels so
you know what you are getting. Many different parts and combinations
are available, and some look surprisingly alike even to an
expert's eyes. The label tells exactly what is inside.
• Ask questions. If any
meat or poultry product doesn't look, feel, or smell just
right, check it with the professionals behind the counter.
• Notice the pull date.
Most stores are scrupulous about removing chicken before the
pull date expires but sometimes there's a slip-up.
• Was the chicken well-cleaned?
Or are there little traces of feathers or hairs? These can
look really unattractive when the chicken is cooked.
• Is the chicken stored
correctly on the chilling shelf, or are the trays of chicken
stacked so high that the top ones aren't kept cold? When that
happens, the shelf life of the top ones is seriously shortened.
• Is the meat case kept
so cold that the fresh chicken is frozen and ends up with
ice crystals on the tray? If so, complain to the manager.
• Look at the ends of
the bones. Are they pink or turning gray? Generally, the more
pink the bone ends are, the fresher the chicken meat is.
How
should I store chicken at home?
Chicken, like all meat, is perishable. It should be stored
in the coldest part of the refrigerator (4OF or below), kept
sealed as it comes from the market, and used within two or
three days of purchase.
Should
I freeze chickens?
It's not recommended to freeze poultry. However, if a chicken
must be held beyond two days, freezing will keep it wholesome.
How
do I freeze poultry?
When freezing is necessary, seal chicken or other poultry
in an airtight container, heavy plastic bag, plastic wrap,
foil, or freezer paper. Try to have the wrapping tight against
the chicken because any place where it isn't, small ice crystals
will form. That means moisture has been drawn from the meat,
and where that's happened, the meat will be tough and breading
won't stick. Frozen uncooked chicken can be stored up to six
months; frozen cooked chicken should be used within three
months. Personally, somebody tries to avoid freezing chicken
since they know that freezing makes the chicken less tender
and less juicy. Still, in spite of good intentions, they sometimes
end up doing it. They make it a point to have a wax marking
pencil and freezer tape handy, so they can label the package
with the date and contents. It's unbelievably easy to lose
track of how long things have been in there. Do not stuff
poultry before freezing, and freeze cooked birds and stuffing
separately.
Can
frozen chicken be thawed and frozen again?
Each time you freeze chicken, you sacrifice quality. If carefully
handled, however, it is safe to defrost uncooked chicken and
to freeze it again after cooking. If frozen after cooking,
do not thaw and freeze chicken again.
Why
is chicken sometimes implicated in illness?
In a warm, moist environment,
illness-causing bacteria can grow in high-protein, low -acid
foods such as meat, fish, poultry, eggs, and milk. But there
is no reason to become ill from eating or serving these foods,
if they are cooked thoroughly and served or refrigerated immediately.
To prevent transferring bacteria from one food to another,
use warm water and soap to wash hands, utensils, and work
surfaces before and after use.
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