10.07.2024.
You can take steps to prevent getting food poisoning from chicken. When cooked, chicken can be a nutritious choice, but raw chicken can be contaminated with Campylobacter, Salmonella, or Clostridium perfringens germs. If you eat undercooked chicken, you can get a foodborne illness, also called food poisoning. You can also get sick if you eat other foods or beverages that are contaminated by raw chicken or its juices.
If chicken is on your menu, follow these tips when shopping, cooking, and eating out to help prevent food poisoning. You might find these tips from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention useful.
At the store
Place chicken in a disposable bag before putting it in your shopping cart or put it in the bottom of the cart to keep raw juices from getting onto other foods.
In the refrigerator
Keep your chicken stored on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator in a sealed container or wrapped securely so the juice doesn’t leak onto other foods.
Prepping chicken
Wash hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds before and after handling raw chicken. If you choose to wash chicken, do so as safely as possible:
- Run the water gently over the chicken to reduce splashing.
- Immediately clean the sink and area around it with hot, soapy water and sanitize them thoroughly.
- Wash your hands for 20 seconds
- Use a separate cutting board for raw chicken. Never place cooked food or fresh produce on a plate, cutting board, or other surface that previously held raw chicken.
- Wash cutting boards, utensils, dishes, and countertops with hot, soapy water after preparing the chicken and before you prepare the next item.
While cooking
- Use a food thermometer to make sure chicken is cooked to a safe internal temperature of 165°F.
- If cooking a microwaveable meal that includes frozen raw chicken, handle it as you would fresh raw chicken. Follow cooking directions carefully to prevent food poisoning.
- If you think the chicken served at a restaurant or anywhere else is not fully cooked, send it back for more cooking.
After eating
- Refrigerate or freeze leftover chicken within 2 hours (or within 1 hour if the food is exposed to temperatures above 90°F, like in a hot car or at a picnic).
- Use a food thermometer to make sure chicken is cooked to a safe internal temperature of 165°F.
- Keep raw chicken and its juices away from ready-to-eat foods, like salads or food already cooked.
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