TAILGATE October 15, 2003 Susan Noble Family and Consumer Science Extension Agent

Fall, football, and tailgating -- a perfect union. There's nothing more American than tailgating and football under autumn skies. The connection has even found its way into our language. "Gridiron," the nickname for the football field, comes from the grate used for grilling food. So if you'll be grilling your "pigskin" this fall, plan a good defense to keep your tailgate foods safe.

In many parts of our country, fall weather is cool -- perfect for tailgating. Even with cool temps, tailgating requires the same safe food handling practices as summer picnicing. But here in the South, temperatures can stay warm all the way through Thanksgiving. Thus, tailgaters need to take extra care. You don't want to send guests to the locker room.

The United States Department of Agriculture urges consumers to follow four food safety steps to sideline bacteria. Throughout food preparation and serving, the Partnership for Food Safety Education's Fight BAC!® campaign advises to:

• Clean -- Clean the food thermometer after each use. Use clean serving plates, utensils, etc.

• Separate -- Separate raw meat and poultry from cooked foods to avoid cross-contamination.

• Cook -- Raw meat and poultry need to be cooked thoroughly.

• Chill -- Store leftovers in a cooler within two hours of taking food off the grill. When the temperature is above 90°F, store food in the cooler within one hour.

The first step of a safe food game plan starts at home. Because there probably will not be a refrigerator, stove, or running water at the stadium, pack plenty of clean utensils for cooking and serving. Along with the grill and its fuel, pack a food thermometer, so you can be sure that meat, poultry, and casseroles reach a high enough temperature to destroy harmful bacteria that may be present.

Keep hot foods hot. If your tailgate party includes hot take-out food, eat it within two hours of purchase. (Or plan ahead and chill the food in your refrigerator before packing for your tailgate.)

To keep foods like soup and chili hot, use an insulated container. Fill the container with boiling water, let it stand for a few minutes, empty, and then put in your piping hot food. Keep the insulated container closed to keep the food hot (140°F or above) for several hours.

Carry your cold perishables, such as raw burgers, sausages, and chicken, in an insulated cooler packed with several inches of ice, frozen gel packs, or containers of frozen water.

Cooked perishable foods, including lunch meat, cooked chicken, and potato/pasta salads, must also be kept refrigerator cold. When packing the cooler, be sure raw meats are securely wrapped so their juices do not touch other foods causing cross-contamination.

If there is no drinkable water at the site, take water for cleaning.

At the party, continue to keep hot foods hot and cold foods cold. Bacteria multiply like crazy between 40°F and 140°F. Never leave food in this "danger zone" for more than two hours (only one hour when outside temperature is above 90°). Temperature abuse will earn you a penalty on that play.

Be sure to use a food thermometer to check that meats are thoroughly cooked. When grilled, meat and poultry often brown quickly on the outside. Cook hamburgers, sausage, and other ground meats to an internal temperature of 160° and ground poultry to 165°. Beef steaks should be cooked to 145° for medium rare. Poultry breast meat should be cooked to 170° and dark meat to 180°. All cuts of pork should reach 160°.

Sometimes people will partially cook meat ahead of time to reduce the grilling time at the party. This is not a safe technique. Partial cooking ahead of time puts the food into the temperature danger zone. This allows bacteria to multiply to the point that subsequent cooking cannot kill them.

Finally, wrap up your party safely. Return food to the cooler. Cook only the amount of food that will be eaten to avoid the challenge of keeping leftovers at a safe temperature. Discard any leftovers that are not ice cold after the game. Remember, food should not be left out of the cooler or off the grill more than two hours (one hour when outside temperature is above 90°F). Holding food at an unsafe temperature is a major cause of food-borne illness.

Now, score a touchdown with food safety and these recipes.

This recipe comes from Mike's restaurant in Chicago.

In mixing bowl, combine orange juice, soy sauce, garlic, mustard, honey, and cayenne pepper. Mix together with a whisk. Place chops in two large resealable plastic bags; pour about half the marinade in each bag and seal bags. Refrigerate for 12-24 hours. Remove chops from marinade and discard marinade. Season chops with salt and pepper. Grill 10-12 minutes, turning once.

Serves 8.

Recipe from the Pork Information Bureau.

Spray baking sheet (12- x 8- x 2-inch) with vegetable cooking spray. In plastic bag, mix crumbs, cheese, parsley, and pepper. Place milk in shallow bowl. Dip each drumstick into milk and then shake in bag to coat well. Place drumsticks on baking sheet; bake at 350°F for about one hour or till tender. Serve hot or refrigerate and serve cold.

Serves 6.

The use of brand names in this column does not imply endorsement by the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service of the products or services named or criticism of similar ones not mentioned.

E-mail address: Susan_Noble@ncsu.edu

Mailing Address:
P. O. Box 2280
Lumberton, NC 28359-2280

Phone: 910-671-3276
Fax: 910-671-6278

Date Created 11/10/03