1 in 6 Americans will get sick from eating contaminated food and over 3,000 people die every year from bad food.

It’s critical to practice good hygiene in the kitchen in order to prevent foodborne illnesses from affecting you and your family.

So, how can you improve your cleanliness? Follow our simple kitchen hygiene rules to start.

Our Kitchen Hygiene Rules

In our kitchen, we don’t mess with cleanliness. We want our food to be tasty, healthy, and safe to eat.

How do we achieve that while being so busy? We take simple steps to assure that our kitchen hygiene is top-notch.

Here are five of the easiest ways to improve your hygiene habits.

1. Wash Your Hands

The simplest thing you can do to improve your cooking cleanliness is washing your hands!

Do you know how to tell if you’re done washing your hands? You should scrub your hands with soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds.

2. Store Food Correctly

Here are a couple of food storage tips.

Be sure to let food cool down before putting it in the refrigerator. If you put warm food in the cold refrigerator, bacteria could form.

Also, make sure to properly cover all food that you put in storage. Use tin foil, plastic wrap, or reusable storage.

Do not, we repeat, do not put a hot pot of leftovers into the fridge. This is like a breeding ground for foodborne illness.

When you go grocery shopping make sure to store cooked or ready to eat foods in a separate space than raw meats.

3. Properly Cook Foods

A big part of good food hygiene is properly cooking foods. If meat isn’t cooked to the correct temperature it can be hazardous to consume and store.

Poultry should be cooked to at least 160-165 degrees Fahrenheit. A rare steak clocks in at 115 degrees Fahrenheit, but the U.S Department of Agriculture recommends cooking beef, pork, and lamb to a minimum of 145 degrees Fahrenheit.

4. Clean Everything After Use

If you take hygiene and safety in the kitchen seriously, this one’s for you.

As soon as you are done using cutting boards and knives with your meat, make sure to clean it immediately. You may think that leaving it to soak is beneficial, but it can actually create more harmful bacteria.

Don’t leave it on the countertops either, bacteria can transfer surfaces. If you do leave cooking gear out after using it, make sure to clean the entire area with disinfectant after.

5. Empty Trash Bin Regularly

An easy way to improve your kitchen health is by regularly emptying out your trash bin. Any overflowing trash waste may be hazardous to your health if it gets in contact with any cooking equipment or food.

Go ahead and give your trash bin a good scrub every now and then. Bacteria are certainly living in there.

Keep It Clean!

Now that you’re familiar with our kitchen hygiene rules, it should be easy to improve your cooking cleanliness. These simple steps will save you from potential germs and bacteria that could be harmful to your health.

If you’re looking for more helpful information like this, check out the rest of our website.