Chapter 6

Chapter 6: The Flow of Food:

Preparation
Main Ideas
1. Preparation
2. Prepping Specific Food
3. Cooking Food
4. Cooking and Reheating Food

Essential Questions
1. What are ways to prevent cross-contamination and time-temperature abuse?
2. What are the correct ways to thaw food?
3. What are the minimum internal temperatures for cooking food safely?
4. What are the correct ways to cool and reheat food to the correct temerpature
and in the correct amount of time?
 Chapter 6: Vocabulary
These terms are crucial to understanding this chapter. As you navigate these slides, make note
of the meaning of each word and how it relates to managing a safe kitchen . The Patachou
Foundation recommends making flashcards. But feel free to use the note-taking method or
graphic organizer that works best for your learning style.

variance
partial cooking
 Preparation

General Preparation Practices

Minimize time food spends in the temperature danger zone (41°F–135°F).
Only remove as much food from refrigeration as needed.
Use clean and sanitized equipment.
Prevent cross-contamination by:
Using separate equipment for raw and ready-to-eat foods
Cleaning and sanitizing between tasks
Preparing raw meat, seafood, and poultry at different times than ready-to-eat foods

Thawing Food Safely

Food must be thawed using one of these approved methods:
In the refrigerator (best method)
Submerged under running potable water at 70°F or lower (never above 41°F for more than 4 hours)
In a microwave if it will be cooked immediately after
As part of the cooking process
⚠️ Never thaw food at room temperature.
 Prepping Specific Food

Preparing Specific Food Types

Handle salads containing TCS foods (e.g., tuna salad) carefully – only use previously safely handled
ingredients.
Do not serve raw seed sprouts, raw or undercooked eggs, meat, or seafood to high-risk populations (e.g.,
nursing homes).
Use pasteurized eggs for high-risk groups or when preparing dishes that will not be fully cooked (e.g.,
Caesar dressing).
Variances - Some food preparation requires special documentation to be issued by your regulatory
authority
Examples Include:
packaging fresh juice onsite for sale
smoking food to preserve it
using food additives like vinegar to preserve it
curing food
custom-processing animals for personal use
packaging food using a reduced-oxygen (ROP) method
sprouting seeds or beans
offering live shellfish from a display tank
 Cooking Food

Cooking Food to Safe Minimum Internal Temperatures

Poultry (whole or ground) 165°F
Stuffing/stuffed foods 165°F
Ground meat (beef, pork), injected meat 155°F
Seafood, steaks, chops 145°F
Roasts of pork, beef, veal, lamb 145°F 4 min
Fruit, veggies, grains (for hot-holding) 135°F No minimum time

Use a calibrated thermometer to check temperatures.

Take readings in the thickest part of the food.

Partial Cooking (Par-cooking)

Do not cook food for more than 60 minutes initially.
Cool and store it immediately.
Reheat to required final temperature before serving.
 Cooking and Reheating Food

Cooling Food Safely

TCS food must be cooled from 135°F to 41°F within 6 hours, using this two-stage cooling
method:
Step 1: Cool from 135°F to 70°F in 2 hours
Step 2: Cool from 70°F to 41°F in next 4 hours
Use methods like:
Ice baths
Blast chillers
Stirring with ice paddles
Adding ice or using shallow pans
Reheating Food
Reheat food for immediate service to any temperature, as long as it was properly cooked
and cooled.
Reheat food for hot-holding to 165°F within 2 hours.
 Reviewing the Essentials
As you study, go back an make sure you understand the answers to each of these
questions.

What are ways to prevent cross-contamination and time-temperature abuse?

What are the correct ways to thaw food?

What are the minimum internal temperatures for cooking food safely?

What are the correct ways to cool and reheat food to the correct temerpature
and in the correct amount of time?
 Scenario 1

Marie needed to make 15 chef salads for lunch service in 3 hours. She got out the lettuce,
meat, and cheese and left them on the prep table so that she could make the salads in
between her other tasks.
 Scenario 1 Answers
This was not prepared correctly because the lettuce, meat, and cheese are being time-
temperature abused. She should take out of the cooler only what she can use within a short
amount of time.
 Scenario 2

Krista deveined raw shrimp on a blue cutting board for the restaurant’s signature shrimp
scampi. Then she washed her hands, cleaned and sanitized the prep table, and then used
a different knife to slice melons on a green cutting board.
 Scenario 2 Answers
This was prepared correctly because she used separate equipment for the shrimp and the
produce.
 Scenario 3

Jonathan filled a clean and sanitized prep sink with cold water and ice. Then he soaked a
partial case of spinach that he had gotten from the cooler. Next he added a new case of
spinach that was delivered that morning.
 Scenario 3 Answers
This was not prepared correctly because one batch of spinach could cross-contaminate the
other. Between batches, he should have emptied the sink, cleaned and sanitized it, and
changed the ice water.
 Scenario 4

Jeff wanted to test whether his customers would buy fresh juice to take home. He created
a special display by the cash register to store the juice on ice. He labeled each bottle with
the ingredients and use-by date.
 Scenario 4 Answers
This was not prepared correctly because he should have either gotten a variance
from his local regulatory authority before selling the juice without a warning label or
included warning labels on the juice.
 Scenario 5

Phillip, the chef at a nursing home, wanted to treat the residents to his famous chocolate
mousse. He whipped egg whites using pasteurized egg whites with chocolate, cream,
sugar, and vanilla and poured the mixture into individual serving dishes.
 Scenario 5 Answers

This was prepared correctly because he used pasteurized eggs and

undercooked, unpasteurized shell eggs cannot be served in a nursing home.
 Scenario 6

At 9:00 a.m., Lin clocked in, said hello to her manager, and started to set up the buffet.
Fifteen minutes later, she headed to the walk-in cooler, where she grabbed a stockpot of
chili that had been made a few days earlier. She placed the stockpot on the stove and
started rehearing it. At 11:30 am, she checked the temperature of the chili, which had
reached 155 degrees F. Satisfied, she moved on to her next task.
 Scenario 6 Answers
The chili is not safe to eat because it did not reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees F
within two hours.
 Scenario 7

Thursday at lunch, a customer ordered a stacked hot roast beef and cheddar sandwich.
Mina took pre-cooked slices of beef from the reach-in cooler and put them in a basin of
hot au jus. She heated the slices of beef for a few minutes. Then she made the sandwich,
topping it with melted cheddar, and placed it on the counter for pick up.
 Scenario 7 Answers

The sandwich is safe to eat because, assuming the roast beef was cooked and cooled
correctly, it can be reheated to any temperature because it is being served
immediately.
 Scenario 8
Amanda had a busy day ahead of her at the company cafeteria. Looking in the freezer, she
realized that she had forgotten to thaw the chicken breasts she had planned to serve for
lunch. Moving quickly, she placed the frozen chicken in a prep sink and turned on the hot
water. While waiting for the chicken to thaw, she grabbed a pan of leftover clam chowder
from the cooler and placed it in the steam table to heat up.

When the lunch hour ended at 1:30 p.m., Amanda had a lot of cooked chicken breasts
leftover. “No problem,” Amanda thought, “we can use the leftover chicken to make chicken
salad.” Amandad left the still-hot chicken breasts in a paw on the prep table while she
started putting other food away and clearing up.

At 9:45 p.m., when everything else was clean, Amanda put her hand over the pan of chicken
breasts and decided they were cool enough to be put away. She covered the pan with
plastic wrap and put it in the cooler.
 Scenario 8 Answers
She thawed the chicken breasts the wrong way. She used running water but it was hot
instead of 70 degrees F or lower. She also could have microwaved them to do it fast.
She cooled the leftover chicken breasts the wrong way by leaving them out at room
temperature. She should have used a blast chiller or placed the container of chicken
breasts in an ice-water bath, then moved them to the cooler.
She did not make sure that the clam chowder reached at least 165 degrees F for 15
seconds. She should have done that before moving the chowder to the steam table.