StickyDango

I'm sorry for being so busy with the new place especially after how many people have probably gone through the process of getting a new car.

Can confirm. I wrote to an author asking what I the best way I can support her because I have so limited space in the place I currently in. She said buying physical books is the best, but I was surprised to learn that borrowing books from libraries is also a big help. Authors don't make much from ebook sales.

I've heard it in person, can confirm satanic mating call. At first I was like "W.. T.. F... Am I in danger" but walked a bit more and actually saw it making the sounds.

I've never used olive oil or water before. Good to know it still turns out. I make it in a loaf tin so I can have consistently same sized slices and it fits in to the toaster without having to cut to size. It'll also bake more evenly.

I wish I could get Odlums flour. The company I bought I from now claims to only do wholesale and to a supermarket chain, but they won't get back to me with a supplier whom I can actually find it from. :(

Couldn't tell you, but it would be more in Canadian football fields. ;)

If you've any other questions (this also goes for anyone else), tag me l, respond to this thread, or send me a DM. Happy to provide info on what I know. :)

And thanks for the C -> F conversion!

Yup. Aussie slang, sorry. Eskie = cooler.

Good question!

The 2h/4h rule (also seen written as 2/4h rule, 2-hour/4-hour rule, etc.) is used for two things: cooling potentially hazardous foods, and potentially hazardous foods left out of temperature control.

Cooling: Foods are to be cooled from 60C to 20C within two hours, and from 20C to 4C within the following four hours. Of course most foods are cooked above 60C, which is the range where pathogenic bacteria don't grow. You want to get food from 60C to 4C within the certain time frame, otherwise it just gives bacteria some good conditions to grow well (food, no other microbes to compete with, etc.). The range of 4C-60C is called the "temperature danger zone." Foods should stay out of here as much as they can.

Food left out of temperature control is something else that many people are less stringent about, but it is also really important (think summer time bbq season). Potentially hazardous foods can be in and out of the fridge for a cumulative total of two hours (example: you take out a food item and put it back in after 5 minutes, now it has 115 minutes left. Do it again tomorrow, it now has 110 minutes, etc.). After the two hour mark up to four hours, you eat it or throw it out. Once it hits four hours, throw it. Someone used milk as good example. Milk in the fridge door goes off far faster than on a shelf. Foods on the BBQ cooked at noon should be eaten or thrown out by 4PM.

There are lots of other little details and exceptions, but this is what applies in the majority of cases. ;)

So maybe that's where the house hippo originated.

At home, I just use soap, water and a scrubber. As an additional step, I also either wipe it down with an alcohol wipe if I have any laying around, or let it sit in freshly boiled water. I'm not crazy about doing this for everything except with undercooked or raw poultry.

At work, everyone is required by law to implement a sanitising step to ensure any residual harmful microbes are destroyed... but I'd never deter anyone at home from doing this ;) I suggest properly diluted bleach (100ppm, or as per label instructions, freshly made), or quaternary ammonium compound ("quat", also diluted to either 200ppm or as per label). Otherwise, dishwasher.

Yeah, that's huge. Outbreaks are becoming more and more common. In Canada and USA, it's a requirement to keep eggs in the fridge, and we just assume chickens = Salmonella, which is also why there is such stress on washing your hands thoroughly after handling raw chicken, cut chicken on a designated poultry-only cutting board, etc.

I think some countries will do a sanitising wash, some just wash with water.

In Australia, Salmonella infections have been increasing, so it's strongly recommended to keep eggs refrigerated. It's not written in to law, but we're a little behind here on a few things. Also consider the differences in handling of eggs at a supermarket, at a farmer's market, or someone selling excess eggs outside their home.

Another thing that needs to be considered: Egg shells are porous. In a supermarket, temperatures don't fluctuate as much as it would at home or in a restaurant, so they're not going to sweat (moisture = nice spot for bacteria to grow). In restaurants and at home, if they're not in the fridge, eggs will be subject to sweating (think hot kitchen during the day, cool kitchen at night; flies, cockroaches, rodents, unclean human hands, etc.) I've seen eggs being sold out of eskies on the side of the road, and I avoid those. The Aussie sun is HOT.

Canadian living in Australia. Omnivore.

Kicker: Food technologist and health inspector. AMA.

Tl;dr: Doesn't matter if it's meat or veg. It goes in the fridge. Follow 2h/4h rule. Edit: Should specify certain veg are potentially hazardous as soon as you cut in to them, like leafy greens. All cooked or partially veg that should be treated like meat.

For work, I'm fairly strict in businesses because the food can go anywhere once it's in the hands on the customer, even in restaurants or at home. You can look at your dine in customers and they all look healthy, but what if they're not, or where do the leftovers go? Do they take it home after date night to share some with little Bobby or Grandma Jane? In business, you do what you can to keep the food as "clean" as you can.

At home and in food businesses, handwashing is ALWAYS a problem. Food handlers are always touching their faces, phones, hip towel they've had on all day, touching a towel they use used to wipe their hands after only rinsing hands in water in the sink, and then touching lettuce for a salad. So even at home, you can cook things to keep bacteria, but is the scoop, container, and your hands clean? Dust, pollen, flies, hairs, etc also carry microbes, and if any of them fall in to food after its been cooked, the bacteria can grow.

It also depends on the type of bacteria, too. Salmonella can infect at an extremely low dose, and Staphylococcus infects at very high doses.

I follow the 2h/4h rule for anything potentially hazardous. Of course, at home, I'm a bit more flexible, usually +/- 1h. If I make myself sick, alright, but there's no way I'm going to make anyone else sick, so if I'm making food for others, I keep to the strict rules. I'm also generally more risk adverse because the thought of anything involuntary coming out either end makes me sick just thinking about it.

I think the amount of time a food stays out is cultural, and if you grew up with it, your gut will have gotten used to the levels of bacteria. Us westerners generally get sick drinking tap water in certain countries when the locals are fine. I used to live with a Japanese lady for a year, and she knew what I did for a living. She always left rice out all night and ate it the next day. One day, she came to me with it and said "does this smell weird?" and it was a definite yes from me. I'd never leave cooked rice out that long and feel comfortable eating it.

So yeah, Bacillus cereus or whatever bacteria present may not occur all the time, but it does happen. Imagine making large batches and serving to large numbers of unrelated people.

Another thing: Cool foods within 2h to a reasonable temperature (I say 40C is fine) before putting it in the the fridge uncovered. If you put hot food in the fridge, you run the risk of warming up the foods already in the fridge.

Wash your hands.

And use a thermometer. Make sure it's clean before you use it.

Thanks for listening to my Ted Talk.