A BARBECUE over the long weekend and during the AFL Grand Final is a great tradition but can quickly turn sour with food poisoning.
To avoid cases of Salmonella and Campylobacter food poisoning, the Food Safety Information Council recommends using a meat thermometer.
Former council chair Rachelle Williams discussed how to avoid food poisoning when using your barbecue.
"These infections are often linked to undercooking high–risk foods like sausages, hamburgers and poultry all of which should be cooked to 75C," she said.
"The only way you know these foods are cooked correctly is to use a meat thermometer.
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"So before you fire up your barbie make sure you have a meat thermometer handy, you can pick them up from wherever they sell barbecues or any homeware shop."
It is advised to follow these barbecue food safety tips:
1. Use a meat thermometer to check high risk foods like sausages, hamburgers and poultry are safely cooked to 75C in the thickest part.
2. You can cook the centre of whole pieces of beef, lamb and other red meats to your taste as long as the surface is well browned.
3. Whole pieces of pork taste best if cooked between 70C and 75C then left to rest for 3 to 5 minutes.
4. You can cook fish to around 69C or when flesh flakes easily.
5. Don't put cooked meat back on the same plate that the raw meat was on as it will get re–contaminated by bacteria.
6. Keep raw meat away from other foods that won't be cooked like salads and desserts.
"Finally make sure you wash your hands with soap and dry thoroughly before handling food and after handling raw meat," Ms Williams said.
"If you want to keep any barbecue leftovers make sure they are refrigerated within 2 hours."
More barbecue food safety tips can be found at https://foodsafety.asn.au/picnics–and–bbqs/.
