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HealthKick: Safe, Healthy, & Delicious Barbecues, By Jennifer Galea
Healthkick: Martial Arts Fitness Newsletter Articles © 2001 Professional Payment Systems
Barbecuing is the preferred method of cooking for many families on hot sunny days. Good weather and social events bring dining to the outdoors, making the grill a handy place to cook. But that isn't all: barbecuing is a great way to easily cook healthy meals. Grills are not only easy to clean, but grilling is a great way to cook meats while draining off their fat, and to cook vegetables without adding fat. Grilling adds taste, not unneeded calories. However, the "healthiness" of a grilled meal depends not only on your food choices, but also on proper food (and grill) handling.
When grilling, you must first consider safe grilling practices. The most important of these is to adjust the grill flame, and distance from grill to flame, appropriately. If meat or poultry are too close to a high flame, they will burn on the outside and remain uncooked in the inside, which is extremely unsafe.
To be safe, cook foods to the following internal temperatures: Ground products (such as hamburgers). 160 degrees F, or until no longer pink and juices run clear. The danger from e. coli poisoning in ground products is scary, so this is a very real recommendation! If you want to have rare red meat, have a steak instead of a hamburger. (The increased risk from hamburger is not only due to the quality of meat used, but also from the fact that the ground meat contains grindings from both the outside of the meat and inside, mixed together, so cooking just the outside of your hamburger isn't actually cooking the entire outside of the meat used.)
Steaks. Medium rare 145 degrees, medium 160 degrees, well done 170 degrees. Fish. 145 degrees. Poultry. 170 degrees or until juices run clear. To measure these target temperatures, a meat thermometer is essential. There are even "quick read" ones available now that are particularly good for barbecuing because they give you an instant reading when inserted into the center of the food. (For burgers, insert the thermometer from the side.
Be sure to clean the thermometer if it is inserted into an underdone piece of meat, so that you will not contaminate the next item. "Cross-contamination" is the second issue that deserves your close attention. Cross-contamination is when germs are transferred from one food or surface to another. This can be avoided if you follow a few basic precautions.
1. Use a separate cutting boards and utensils for meats and vegetables.
2. Keep foods separate. Don't let the uncooked juices of meats touch other foods, such as cooked meats or any foods that will not be cooked.
3. Wash hands frequently. Your hands can transfer germs from one food to another, or from one surface to another and eventually to your food.
4. Discard or boil excess marinades. After marinating meat, do not baste the meat with the same marinade...it will contain meat juice that will contaminate your cooked meat. Instead, use "fresh" marinade to baste with, from a clean bowl and clean brush. If you wish to use the same marinade, boil it for at least one minute.
5. Clean the grill after each use. A grill brush works well to remove charred food debris. An easy method is to pre-heat the grill, incinerating all food particles, then clean with a grill brush (metal bristles), cook, then allow the grill to continue to burn to again incinerate food particles.
Now you are ready to grill, but what if you are not grilling at home? Then
you must be sure to pack your foods appropriately, both before and after
your meal.
1. Use an insulated cooler and pack it with 25% of the room used for ice. Surround your perishables with ice. Pack your non-perishables separately. Then store your cooler in the shade.
2. Repack any uneaten food immediately (or throw it out). Only bring out the food that is going to be eaten immediately; you can always bring out more later.
3. Wash everything. Your hands, cooking utensils, even the grill if it isn 't your own.
To make your barbecue even better, try treating your family to some healthy
foods, not just hotdogs and potato chips! Try grilled marinated chicken
breasts or fish. You can still put them on a roll for easy eating on the
go. And for a side, try a mayonnaise-less salad, such as a pasta salad made
with vegetables and a bit of oil and vinegar, or a traditional green salad.
Try some new recipes, as well as old favorites. Barbecues can be a great
opportunity to have a healthy meal, as well as a great time.