Holiday Cooking Tips to make sure your cooked food is safe • After cooking, keep hot food at 60°C (140°F) or hotter until it’s served. • Serve hot food while hot, or put it in the fridge or freezer as soon as possible once cooled (within two hours of preparation). • Never leave food out for more than two hours. • Use clean dishes and utensils to serve food. Never use the same ones you used when preparing raw food. • Never leave perishable food outside the refrigerator for more than two hours. • Pack lunches in insulated carriers with a cold pack. Warn children never to leave lunches in direct sun or on a warm radiator. • Keep cold party food on ice or serve it on platters from the refrigerator. • Divide hot party food into smaller serving platters. Keep platters refrigerated until it's time to warm them up for serving. Microwave safety Microwaves are great time-savers but they can sometimes leaves cold spots in food where bacteria may surv
