This has been a fascinating discussion. I’ve never given this much thought and while, of course, we clean our kitchen, I’ve never been particularly fastidious about the counter/sink etc. when/after using preparing chicken in the ways I’ve read on this thread. Nor have we ever gotten sick. I’m sure I’d think differently if we were sensitive or had a history of becoming ill.
I do try to wash my fruits and vegetables well because I worry that leftover pesticides are likely to be cancer causing. I also hold my breath when I pass plumes of exhaust from a truck or older car which, I’m sure, does very little good since there’s so much I can’t see that I do breathe in…appears we all pick and choose and do what makes us feel most at ease.
A good bit of my world revolves around science including knowing plenty in the research world and how it works. It’s not for giggles. It’s recommendations for the “common” person who doesn’t know much about germs and such things. A can be better than B because C might be best, but most folks won’t do it.
Most home kitchens would never pass a restaurant inspection including mine because there are some things I don’t care about and I note plenty of studies that show “too clean” seems to be a greater problem. Most bacteria are good for humans - either overall or keeping the immune system on top of its game. Immunocompromised folks need to live differently than the rest of us. (Very little raw meat/fruit/veggies enter my mom’s house, esp when her blood numbers are off due to chemo.)
It really is possible to get too concerned and miss out on a lot of life. We get into our car pretty much every day and take greater chances with our lives - esp if we’re sleep deprived, distracted by being on the phone or similar - or the other driver is and thinks they’re such a good driver it doesn’t matter.
DW and I never wash chicken, but take care to never let the chicken or packaging touch our bare skin. All raw trimmings and packaging go directly into a used ziplock bag and into the trash.
"Most bacteria are good for humans - either overall or keeping the immune system on top of its game. "
Oh, I totally agree with this. I’m not hyper vigilant at all. I think anti-bacterial soap, for example, is not a good thing for common usage. Of course, salmonella is not good at all.
But that is what I find interesting about the chicken washing. Not washing is actually easier and less vigilant - plus has the CDC’s backing. Plus, as someone previously mentioned, most don’t choose to wash other meat (although we found a few who do).
I still think a lot of it is conditioning. Those that get grossed out by not washing are not necessarily doing so based on scientific research but on some other factor that might not make rational sense.
We don’t eat raw eggs, or any dough that has raw eggs in it. I carefully wash even bagged veggies (salads, etc.) and mushrooms also.
I know as kids we ate the cake and brownie batter with raw eggs in it. We also enjoyed eating the leftover breading/egg coating mix after breading the chicken. Today that would be a double whammy - raw eggs that touched uncooked chicken.
Unlike others, I have had food poisoning a few times. I seem to be rather sensitive. I will be with a large group at a restaurant and I am the only one sickened by the bad piece of seafood. It is no fun. However, I can’t think of a time I got it after eating something I had cooked.
“Unlike others, I have had food poisoning a few times. I seem to be rather sensitive. I will be with a large group at a restaurant and I am the only one sickened by the bad piece of seafood. It is no fun. However, I can’t think of a time I got it after eating something I had cooked.”
Ditto. Decades ago I got very sick traveling abroad. It took many months to get back to somewhat normal but I’ve been more sensitive ever since and it’s not fun. A bad case of food borne illness can cause lasting damage. Never had problems at home.
The only time I ever had major food poisoning that I can recall (at home, out, or traveling) was after a clam bake my aunt/uncle had in my young youth. I haven’t touched a clam or any other shellfish (except shrimp and some scallops) since. No oysters, no clams, no conch, no crabs - only had lobster once and didn’t like it at all - and don’t care for sushi except for some cooked varieties (often shrimp).
I’ve often wondered if getting sick that day as a youngster burned that great of an impression on my brain or if it’s coincidence that I really don’t like those “foods.”
Overall, my immune system is quite strong. I give a lot of credit to that due to working in the petrie dish known as a public school and getting exposed to essentially everything. The bugs we likely pick up here on the farm seem to help according to some studies. No allergies or anything else here. I feel incredibly fortunate.
You asked about raw eggs in meringue and batter. Salmonella is a concern for me, so this is what I do with eggs.
I have 3 batches of eggs in my fridge at any one time:
Raw eggs for baking or cooking. I don't eat these in any form until they are cooked. No raw batter etc. (which doesn't appeal to me anyway.) I used to make Italian meringue but avoid it these days due to the high carb content.
Hard boiled eggs. For easy peeling, I boil them for 7 minutes, then remove the pot from the heat and let them sit covered for 5 more minutes, and finally I immerse them in cold water to chill briefly before putting them in fridge.
There is a fun thread somewhere in here to be found. You know, those questions that people feel passionately about, some even to the point of assigning character flaws to those who respond differently. There was the aforementioned one about whether or not people wash their veggies before cooking. It seems there was a pretty contentious one about which is the proper way to hang the toilet paper. Then there was the one where people were appalled at the number of folks who confessed they don’t use washcloths in the shower. Many years ago, there was practically a war over the question of how many TVs one has in their home.
I am amending my “I don’t wash my chicken” statement - I do wash it if it is whole chicken; I wash it to clean out the interior, not because I think has dust or feathers. I confess, it has never occureed to me to sanitize the washing area afterwards - it just gets rinsed of any debris, and then cleaned as usual at the end of the meal.
Don’t forget the peeing in the shower thread, @Nrdsb4.
And yes, I do eat the rind on Brie.
For eggs, if I was in Europe I wouldn’t refrigerate them but here in the US, I do. It also keeps them fresh longer as we don’t typically eat a whole dozen in a just a few days.
Yes, I eat it. But I only like Brie when it’s relatively fresh. When it starts to smell and taste of ammonia, I leave the rest of it for my H, who likes it regardless.
I love pungent blue cheeses. Just not the ammonia taste of Brie.
(Creekland happily munching on two eggs - not washed - over easy with mushrooms, green/red pepper, onion, Chinese cabbage - all these washed - and spinach - not washed (came ready to eat) - all sauteed in avocado oil on the side… if I get food poisoning either check the spinach or mushooms (both old) or the fact that we rarely wash frying pans and I’m not quite sure who used it last - when - or for what…but I was too lazy to wash it.)
I’ll play.
Folks eat Brie? I like a lot of various cheeses, but Brie isn’t one of them…
Yes, we wash most veggies - the exception being salads ready to eat or fruits with skins/rinds on them. He still likes to wash cantaloupe and watermelon - hence - he now has the job of washing and cutting them. All of this can change when we travel. We’ve been known to pick dates up off the ground and eat them when with local folks doing the same. Never got sick.
Toilet paper gets hung by whoever used the last bit (ideally). If it’s wrong, I change it. (Over is correct, of course.) I never change it at someone else’s house.
I don’t use a washcloth. H does.
Only one TV in our house. Never needed more. Two of our three lads have none.
I recall those threads.
Wasn’t there one about returning shopping carts too? We always return them - and strays we come across.
Then house cleaning… we welcome dust bunnies. Life is too short to spend too much time cleaning things that will only get dirty again (see above about the frying pan I just cooked lunch in). Laundry and dishes we eat on stay clean. Everything else depends on how Type A → C- I am at any particular time.
It’s a good thing humans were designed to survive a lot of things I suppose.
But I still rinse off chicken and most meats at home if I’m cooking them. H does too.
So… there are people who don’t? That kind of makes me think of wetsuits (diver suits) and a quote we heard back when we were getting certified. “There are those who pee in their suits and those who lie about it.” (I know there are probably some who don’t, but I suspect they’re really uncommon.)
US eggs tend to need refrigeration because they’re washed before sale taking off a protective coating. In other countries they usually don’t do this.
We have our own chickens, but still usually put the eggs in the fridge as they keep longer with the texture we like. We don’t wash them though - unless really dirty - then they get used quickly or get hard boiled.
@doschicos, I did a search and found that thread. I don’t know HOW I missed it. Other threads were mentioned in that one, apparently a passionate one about bidets and another on whether or not people wear shoes in their homes (some were DISGUSTED that anyone would wear their shoes inside the house).
All of this can change when we travel. We’ve been known to pick dates up off the ground and eat them when with local folks doing the same. Never got sick.
