PASTEURIZATION TABLE... or.. how to safely cook your food to a lower internal temperature..

[wade]

...  I would use a vacuum tub to suck all the stuff into the meat...   I have found 3 pulses does good....   Vac... release...  Vac... release.... Vac... release and the liquid it all sucked into the meat...    dry on paper towels then into the smoker or dehydrator.....   Nitrite starts to break down at ~130 F....

Do you have more info on this Dave. I would like to give it a try.

Cheers, Wade

 

[DanMcG]

Thanks for the charts Dave!

 

[daveomak]

 

High enough concentrations of nitrate in drinking water can result in a temporary blood disorder in infants called methemoglobinemia, commonly called "blue baby syndrome." In severe, untreated cases, brain damage and eventually death can result from suffocation due to lack of oxygen. 

Thanks Dave - A lot of good information there too. I see though that the only mention of Blue Baby Syndrome was in conjunction with Nitrate.

Short-Term (Acute) Effects
Nitrite changes the normal form of hemoglobin, which carries oxygen in the blood to the rest of the body, into a form called methemoglobin that cannot carry oxygen.

 

[daveomak]

Thanks for the charts Dave!

..

..

 

[webpoppy8]

Not sure how to read this... guess I'm stupid, or maybe it's the wine...

Can I smoke my sausage to 150 degrees for - say, an hour - and have it be safe?

 

[daveomak]

 
Not sure how to read this... guess I'm stupid, or maybe it's the wine...

Can I smoke my sausage to 150 degrees for - say, an hour - and have it be safe?

Poppy evening....  the first charts shows...   134 deg. IT for 45 minutes and it's safe....   The 2nd chart shows 35 minutes at 134 deg, F...  The time a temp are a function of the type of meat...  whole muscle...  ground and formed... etc...   the natural pathogen suspected in the meat...   the processing the meat has been subjected to.....

Personally, I cook beef sticks, as an example, to ~135 deg. F in my smoker at 150 deg. F for at least 2 hours and usually 5 or 6 hours to insure death to any pathogens...  Also, to give a safety margin in the event the smoker temp is off or the meat therm is off by several degrees...  there is no fat out, moist sticks are always the result...  no grainy, sandy, saw dust type sticks in my refer....

Things I have read suggest, meat temp can NOT get any closer to oven/smoker temp than ~15 degrees...     meaning....  if the smoker is at 150, the meat will not get above 135...  I haven't personally checked those numbers because I do not have the equipment to duplicate their test....

Temperature Time Temperature Time
°F (°C) (Minutes) °F (°C) (Seconds)

130 (54.4) 112 min... 146 (63.3) 169 sec
131 (55.0) 89 min.... 147 (63.9) 134 sec
132 (55.6) 71 min.... 148 (64.4) 107 sec
133 (56.1) 56 min.... 149 (65.0) 85 sec
134 (56.7) 45 min.... 150 (65.6) 67 sec
135 (57.2) 36 min.... 151 (66.1) 54 sec
136 (57.8) 28 min.... 152 (66.7) 43 sec
137 (58.4) 23 min.... 153 (67.2) 34 sec
138 (58.9) 18 min.... 154 (67.8) 27 sec
139 (59.5) 15 min.... 155 (68.3) 22 sec
140 (60.0) 12 min.... 156 (68.9) 17 sec
141 (60.6) 9 min...... 157 (69.4) 14 sec
142 (61.1) 8 min...... 158 (70.0) 0 sec
143 (61.7) 6 min.......
144 (62.2) 5 min.......
145 (62.8) 4 min.......

Table C.1: Pasteurization times for beef, corned beef, lamb, pork and cured pork (FDA, 2009, 3-401.11.B.2).

2015-12-20 NON INTACT pasteurization table 001.jpg

• daveomak
• Apr 12, 2017

 

[webpoppy8]

Thank you Dave.  Sorry to be so dense!

 

[daveomak]

Valuable learning experience....   Dave

 

[webpoppy8]

Here's a good quote from that fact sheet (https://www.aphis.usda.gov/vs/trichinae/docs/fact_sheet.htm) showing trichinosis is close to a non-issue - it dies at a very low temp:

 
Trichinella spiralis  is killed in 47 minutes at 52˚ C (125.6˚ F), in 6 minutes at 55˚ C (131˚ F), and in < 1 minute at 60˚ C (140˚ F). It should be noted that these times and temperatures apply only when the product reaches and maintains temperatures evenly distributed throughout the meat. Alternative methods of heating, particularly the use of microwaves, have been shown to give different results, with parasites not completely inactivated when product was heated to reach a prescribed end-point temperature. The U.S. Code of Federal Regulations for processed pork products reflects experimental data, and requires pork to be cooked for 2 hours at 52.2˚ C (126˚ F), for 15 minutes at 55.6˚ C (132˚ F), and for 1 minute at 60˚ C (140˚ F).  The U.S. Department of Agriculture recommends that consumers of fresh pork cook the product to an internal temperature of 71˚ C or 160˚ F. Although this is considerably higher than temperatures at which trichinae are killed (about 55˚ C or 131˚ F), it allows for different methods of cooking which do not always result in even distribution of temperature throughout the meat. It should be noted that heating to 77˚ C (171˚ F) or 82˚ C (180˚ F) was not completely effective when cooking was performed using microwaves.

 

[pit 4 brains]

Dave, 

Great post!

You should re-post this info  in the sous vide sub-forum as well. I'll bet few people know you can have chicken med rare if its held to the correct temp for the correct time. 

 

[daveomak]

 
Dave, 

Great post!

You should re-post this info  in the sous vide sub-forum as well. I'll bet few people know you can have chicken med rare if its held to the correct temp for the correct time. 

Below is Doug Baldwin's poultry time/temp/thickness table from his Sous-Vide site....     I've tried rare - medium chicken and I can say from experience, it's not for me...   It may be perfectly safe to eat but the texture leaves something to be desired...

There is an article that describes the "RED" in the internal meat on a chicken....  It's because they are young birds and the bones etc. haven't "matured" and hardened like would be on an old bird...   I will find it....   

Pasteurization Time for Poultry
(starting at 41°F / 5°C and put in a 134.5–149°F / 57–65°C water bath)

	134.5°F	136.5°F	138°F	140°F	142°F	143.5°F	145.5°F	147°F	149°F
Thickness	57°C	58°C	59°C	60°C	61°C	62°C	63°C	64°C	65°C
5 mm	2¼ hr	1¾ hr	1¼ hr	45 min	35 min	25 min	18 min	15 min	13 min
10 mm	2¼ hr	1¾ hr	1¼ hr	55 min	40 min	35 min	30 min	25 min	20 min
15 mm	2½ hr	1¾ hr	1½ hr	1¼ hr	50 min	45 min	40 min	35 min	30 min
20 mm	2¾ hr	2 hr	1¾ hr	1¼ hr	1¼ hr	55 min	50 min	45 min	40 min
25 mm	3 hr	2¼ hr	2 hr	1½ hr	1½ hr	1¼ hr	1¼ hr	60 min	55 min
30 mm	3¼ hr	2¾ hr	2¼ hr	2 hr	1¾ hr	1½ hr	1½ hr	1¼ hr	1¼ hr
35 mm	3¾ hr	3 hr	2½ hr	2¼ hr	2 hr	1¾ hr	1¾ hr	1½ hr	1½ hr
40 mm	4 hr	3¼ hr	2¾ hr	2½ hr	2¼ hr	2 hr	2 hr	1¾ hr	1¾ hr
45 mm	4½ hr	3¾ hr	3¼ hr	3 hr	2¾ hr	2½ hr	2¼ hr	2 hr	2 hr
50 mm	4¾ hr	4¼ hr	3¾ hr	3¼ hr	3 hr	2¾ hr	2½ hr	2½ hr	2¼ hr
55 mm	5¼ hr	4½ hr	4 hr	3¾ hr	3½ hr	3¼ hr	3 hr	2¾ hr	2¾ hr
60 mm	5¾ hr	5 hr	4½ hr	4¼ hr	3¾ hr	3½ hr	3¼ hr	3¼ hr	3 hr
65 mm	6¼ hr	5½ hr	5 hr	4½ hr	4¼ hr	4 hr	3¾ hr	3½ hr	3¼ hr
70 mm	7 hr	6 hr	5½ hr	5 hr	4¾ hr	4½ hr	4¼ hr	4 hr	3¾ hr

Table 4.1: Time required for at least a one million to one reduction in Listeria and a ten million to one reduction in Salmonella in poultry starting at 41°F (5°C). I calculated the D- and z-values using linear regression from (O’Bryan et al., 2006): for Salmonella I used D[sub]60[/sub][sup]6.45[/sup] = 4.68 minutes and for Listeria I used D[sub]60[/sub][sup]5.66[/sup] = 5.94 minutes. For my calculations I used a thermal diffusivity of 1.08×10[sup]-7[/sup]  m[sup]2[/sup]/s, a surface heat transfer coefficient of 95 W/m[sup]2[/sup]-K, and took β=0.28 (to simulate the heating speed of a 2:3:5 box). For more information on calculating log reductions, see Appendix A.

 

[daveomak]

I was looking for a different article but....  

The FDA Food Code recommends cooking chicken to 165°F (74°C). But the pasteurization of chicken is actually a function of both temperature and time. If you can hold your chicken at 145°F (63°C) for 8.5 minutes, you can achieve the same bacterial reduction as at 165°F (74°C). In his new book Kenji López-Alt uses this principle along with the principle of carryover cooking in large masses of meat to achieve succulent, perfectly safe results at a dramatically lower pull temp. To learn the necessary thermal secrets, keep reading.

The Food Safety Culprit: Salmonella

Verifying the internal temperature of chicken is particularly important given the threat of salmonella bacteria in poultry. Why is there so much concern with this particular bacteria? Salmonella is a very hardy bacteria. It lives in the temperature range of 35-117°F (2-47°C) which is beyond what most other common food bacteria can tolerate. According to the CDC, 1 in 6 Americans gets sick from foodborne illness each year, and about one million of those cases can be attributed to salmonella.

Proper cooking and refrigeration temperatures when dealing with chicken are critical to avoid foodborne illnesses.

Food Safety is About Temperature and Time

The FDA Food Code suggests cooking chicken to 165°F (74°C) to be sure all bacteria is killed and safe to eat. This temperature is suggested because at 165°F (74°C) the chicken achieves a 7-log[sub]10 reduction—meaning that 99.99999% of the bacteria present are destroyed—instantaneously: a foolproof rule to follow for safety. Salmonella isn’t anything to be trifled with, and 165°F (74°C) is indeed the temperature to target if preparing food for individuals at higher risk of illness (older adults, pregnant women, young children, and others with compromised immune systems).[/sub]

Not widely known is the fact that chicken can achieve the same 7-log10 reduction at temperatures as low as 136°F (58°C) as long as that temperature is held at 136°F (58°C) for at least 63.3 minutes. As the internal temperature increases, the holding time for a 7-log10 reduction decreases.

In a document from the [sub]USDA on [/sub]Time and Temperature Tables for Cooking Poultry Products[sub], the time cooked chicken must be held when brought to an internal temperature of 145°F (63°C) is 8.4 minutes. At 150°F (65.5°C) the time is reduced to only 2.7 minutes![/sub]

Chicken as the Temperature Rises

In [sub]The Food Lab[/sub][sub], Kenji breaks down what is going on with the protein as the internal temperature of poultry rises:[/sub]

Under 120°F: The meat is still considered raw. The muscle cells are bundled up in long, thin fibers giving the meat its "grain."

At 120°F: The protein myosin begins to coagulate, forcing out some liquid that remains within the protein sheaths at this point.

At 140°F: The remaining proteins within the muscle cells of the breast meat coagulate, forcing all of the liquid out of the cells. The coagulated proteins make the meat firm and opaque.

At 150°F: Proteins in the sheaths themselves rapidly coagulate and contract. Water that was forced out of the cells and collected within the sheaths is squeezed out of the breast meat.

Above 150°F: Muscle fibers in breast meat have become almost completely squeezed dry. Meat is dry and chalky.

160-170°F: When held in this temperature range for ten minutes, collagen in the leg meat will begin to convert into rich gelatin, keeping the meat moist and juicy even after the muscle fibers have expelled most of their liquid.

Chicken Texture at Different Pull Temps

Below is a breakdown of what the texture of the breast meat of chicken will be at different pull temperatures:

140°F: Pinkish-tinged and almost translucent; extremely soft, with the texture of a warm steak; fleshy.

145°F: Pale, pale pink but completely opaque; very juicy, a little soft. This is Kenji’s favorite doneness temp.

150°F: White and opaque, juicy, and firm.

155°F: White and opaque, starting to turn a little bit stringy; bordering on dry.

160°F and higher: Dry, stringy, and chalky.

According to this temperature guide, the breast meat will become dry if taken too far above 150°F (65.5°C), while the leg meat needs to reach the temperature range of 160-170°F (71-77°C) in order for the connective tissue to dissolve into mouthwateringly rich gelatin. Knowing that salmonella has been scientifically proven to be safely eliminated at temperatures lower than 165°F (74°C), we followed Kenji’s recipe for Simple Whole Roast Chicken to the finest detail, including the 145°F (63°C) pull temperature.

Tracking the Cook

Using [sub]ThermaData Thermocouple Loggers[/sub][sub], we placed [/sub][sub]thermocouple needle probes[/sub][sub] in four locations: the standard recommended location at the deepest point in the breast avoiding bone (the lowest temperature found in the chicken), one in the breast toward the shoulder, another closer to the top of the breast about 1/2" below the skin, and the last probe in the center of the thigh. The data loggers enable us to see how all the temperature gradients rise over time as the lowest temperature reaches our pull temperature, and monitor the carryover cooking through a 30 minute rest to be sure it stays at or above 145°F (63°C) for at least 8.5 minutes.[/sub]

Thermal Tip:

Your chicken is only as safe as the lowest temperature found in the breast meat. Use an instant read digital thermometer like a [sub]Thermapen[/sub][sup][sub][emoji]174[/emoji] to find the lowest temperature to spot-check once the 145°F (63°C) alarm sounds. [/sub][/sup]

Ingredients

—1 whole chicken, 3-1/2 to 4 pounds

—1-2 tablespoons vegetable oil or olive oil

—Kosher salt and ground black pepper

Instructions

• Line a sheet pan with heavy-duty foil and place a V-rack or cooling rack on the pan. Suspending the chicken above the pan is important to allow for air circulation around the entire bird.

• Preheat oven to 500°F (260°C).

• Remove the neck and giblets and pat the chicken completely dry with paper towels. Dry skin with be more crisp and brown evenly.

Food Safety Tip: Don’t Rinse

Rinsing the raw chicken will cause tiny droplets of contaminated water to spray all around your kitchen increasing the risk of spreading bacteria through cross-contamination.

• Using your hands, separate the skin from the meat.

• Apply oil both under and on top of the skin. Using oil rather than butter will yield crisper skin because butter is about 18% water, which will steam and then cool the skin as it evaporates, giving the skin a spotty appearance with soft spots as it browns.

• Season on all sides with salt and pepper.

To Truss or Not to Truss?

Trussing—the act of tying up the bird’s legs before cooking—is an oft-recommended but totally pointless exercise. It has the opposite effect of what you want for a bird, effectively shielding the inner highs and thereby making the slowest-to-cook part cook even more slowly. Chickens and turkeys should always be left as nature intended them: with their legs wide open, to allow for maximum heating via convection. —[sup][sub]Kenji López-Alt, [/sub][/sup]The Food Lab[sup][sub], pg. 587[/sub][/sup]

• Place the chicken onto the prepared rack. Place the [sup][sub]ChefAlarm[/sub][/sup][sup][sub] probe into the deepest part of the breast to track the lowest temperature during the cook. Set the ChefAlarm’s high alarm to 145°F (63°C).[/sub][/sup]

• Place the chicken in the 500°F (260°C) preheated oven and turn the oven temperature down to 350°F (177°C) as soon as the oven door is shut. Continue cooking until the high alarm sounds (cook time will be approximately 1 to 1-1/2 hours depending on the size of the bird).

• Once the alarm sounds, spot-check the breast meat with an instant read thermometer like a [sup][sub]Thermapen[/sub][/sup][sup][sub] to be sure the ChefAlarm’s reading is the lowest temperature (the exact location of the lowest temperature may shift during the cook). You need to verify that the lowest reading is 145°F (63°C). Check the temperature of the leg meat, as well. It should be in the perfect 170-175°F (77-80°C) range. If not, put the chicken back into the oven for a couple more minutes.[/sub][/sup]

• Once final pull temp has been reached allow the chicken to rest, uncovered, for 15 minutes. This is critical. It must rest for a full 15 minutes for the full pasteurization of the meat to occur and for the chicken to be safe to eat. To be extra safe, you could use both the built in timer function in the ChefAlarm set to 15 minutes and the low temperature alarm feature unique to the ChefAlarm. Simply set the low temperature alarm to 145°F (63°C) during the rest to be sure your chicken doesn’t dip below the target temperature for at least 8.5 minutes.

　

Observing Temperature in Motion

The graph above shows the temperature changes at various points in the whole chicken as measured by our [sup][sub]ThermaData Thermocouple Loggers[/sub][/sup][sup][sub]. You can see exactly how the internal temperatures increased during the cook. The red horizontal line represents our pull temperature of 145°F (63°C). The most dramatic rises in temperature were, unsurprisingly, in the thigh and the outer breast meat which were most directly exposed to the hot air in the oven. Neither of those areas saw a temperature increase during the rest. Rather, you can see how they began to cool immediately once the inside breast meat reached 145°F (63°C) and the chicken was removed from the oven.[/sub][/sup]

Most importantly, we found that the coolest breast meat (the internal reading above) did NOT cool when the chicken was removed from the oven. See how the purple line above continues to rise from 145°F (63°C) to a maximum temperature of 155°F (69°C) during the resting period—the most dramatic temperature increase due to carryover cooking during the rest.

It is important to note that this continuous rise in internal temperature after the chicken was removed from the oven is due to the significant mass of the whole chicken being cooked. We would NOT expect to see such carryover cooking in a single chicken breast, for example.

The thigh’s peak temperature, as shown above, of 200°F (93°C) occurred as the internal breast meat reached our pull temp, resulting in a gradient variance of 55°F (30.5°C) between the coolest and hottest parts of the chicken! Many different temperatures occurring in the same roast chicken.

In summary, we were able to observe that with Kenji’s recommended pull temperature the chicken remained in the necessary thermal range above 145°F (63°C) for a full 15 minutes (more than the required 8.5 minutes for pasteurization) after pulling the chicken from the oven, making it just as safe to eat as a piece of chicken that had reached the instantaneous pasteurization temp of 165°F (74°C).

The Real Test: How Did it Taste?

Because the chicken was cooked to a lower temperature, the meat retained more moisture and the result was a juicy and succulent piece of chicken—not a dry bit to be found! Not only was the meat extremely juicy, but the measures taken with drying the meat and separating, oiling and salting the skin, made for crackling-crisp skin. Some of our very willing taste-testing subjects commented this was the best roasted chicken they’d ever tasted.

Because of personal preferences and some individuals being more susceptible to contracting illness, this cooking method may not be for everyone. But with the right tools and expert advice, you can experience better tasting roasted chicken. With the [sup][sub]ChefAlarm[/sub][/sup][sup][sub] and [/sub][/sup][sup][sub]Thermapen[/sub][/sup][sup][sub]‘s precision and accuracy there is no need to question your chicken’s safety. Get roasting![/sub][/sup]

[sup][sub]================================[/sub][/sup]

 

[wade]

 
I've tried rare - medium chicken and I can say from experience, it's not for me...   It may be perfectly safe to eat but the texture leaves something to be desired...

Totally with you there Dave. It is a but of a psychological barrier I think. Seeing a bit of pink in the joint also makes me think twice - even when I know it is perfectly safe.

 

[zymer]

A lot of good info posted above.  I'll throw in a couple pennies based on my experience with "industrial" food production:

A very high percentage of turkeys have the salmonella bacteria when they come in for processing.  The big companies go to great lengths to minimize the threat to consumers, but as with any other mass produced product sometimes a clunker slips through.  Not as familiar with chicken processing, but wouldn't surprise me if it wasn't the same.

Same with e. coli in ground beef.  

While it doesn't get the press of the above, the major companies are also very concerned with controlling listeria (https://www.cdc.gov/listeria/index.html).

These companies are always looking for new ways to improve food safety without compromising quality.  One of the latest is using pressure to kill the bad guys.  One of the most effective preventatives is irradiation, although it's got a bad rap with the public.  The same public who use microwave ovens daily.  Go figure.

On another note:

I mentioned in another thread I cook a lot of food to freeze for my parents since they're older and don't like to cook.  When doing lean pieces like chicken breast, I always cook to 145-150 and hold for the appropriate time, then freeze immediately.  That way, the risk of over-cooking/drying out the meat while re-heating is minimized.  They often comment on how juicy the chicken is.  Something to think about for those who like to cook in bulk and freeze to eat later.  Doesn't really apply to high fat foods like pulled pork etc.

 

[johnmeyer]

I still think that "don't rinse" is utter rubbish. Think about all the other ways stuff gets splattered:

• You tear off the clear plastic wrap covering the chicken: it pops as you tear and stuff goes everywhere.
• You lift the chicken out of the container and it drips: stuff goes everywhere.
• You cut the whole chicken into parts: little pieces goes off the counter, onto the floor, etc.: stuff goes everywhere
• You skin the chicken and pull really hard to get the skin to pop off the end of the drumstick: stuff goes everywhere
• You mix up a marinade, pour it over the chicken, and when you take the chicken out, the marinade drips like crazy: stuff goes everywhere

I can go on for another two pages, but it would get obnoxious. The FDA and USDA have some good stuff, but they also have some typical lawyer/government bureaucratic idiocy mixed in. Not rinsing the chicken is most definitely the latter. I have posted this before, but if you don't rinse, you'll leave all that wonderful slaughterhouse "brew" on the chicken. What a lovely taste it adds. The closer to the sell date, the more lovely it tastes.

I would also point out that those "droplets" the FDA is so worried about are at least diluted and, if you have municipal water, they are diluted with water that still contains chlorine which, as we all know, is put in the water to get rid of the kinds of things that are on the chicken! And, just to make the point again, those droplets are about 1/1000 the size of all that stuff listed in my bullets.

So, will all respects to the FDA, some of their advice is dumb.