Although it is one of the worst kitchen items to clean, regularly cleaning your microwave can prevent icky odors and drips that could affect the quality or taste of your food. You can also lower the risk of bacteria buildup and mold growth. Plus, after a while, letting messy residue accumulate in and on your appliance can even affect its performance and lifespan.
Viruses can be spread at any time, according to Amarat (Amy) Simonne, a professor of food safety and quality at the University of Florida's College of Agricultural and Life Sciences. While she said that the CDC hasn't collected specific data on foods associated with holiday seasons, one study reported an uptick in certain Salmonella cases following the Thanksgiving holiday, which the researchers said was most likely related to foods disproportionately eaten then, particularly turkey.
Some of us will cut off the bruise and eat the rest, but evidence shows that a lot of bruised apples are tossed out. According to the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations, about 45% of all fruits and vegetables are wasted. That's 3.7 trillion apples. The creators of Arctic apples saw that as a major problem they needed to fix as they attempted to design an apple that wouldn't turn brown, allowing it to stay fresher longer.
All it takes is a few unnoticed meat drippings to ruin just about everything in your fridge, so storing raw chicken in the bottom shelf is one of the most important food safety tips every home cook needs to know. There, it's safely tucked in the corner - where the bacterial contaminants are kept far away from fresh and cooked food.
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Bacon, even when cooked, is still a perishable food item and it will only stay safe for consumption for up to two hours at room temperature (or one hour if it's really hot out), according to the United States Department of Agriculture. Keep it unrefrigerated any longer than that, and you risk serious foodborne illness from harmful bacteria. You can extend the lifespan of your bacon (and your BLT) by putting it in the fridge, or packing your sandwich on ice if you're on the go.
Cheese made from contaminated raw milk was found to contain infectious avian influenza virus, raising potential health concerns for consumers, according to new research. The study also found that no virus was detected in samples of raw milk cheese with high acidity. Feta cheese, which is naturally more acidic, served as an example of this safer variety. The findings were published on October 8 in Nature Medicine.
You can never have too much of a good thing, the saying goes. For months now, Americans treated protein that way. What started as a fringe supplement used mostly by "gym bros and fitness-obsessed teens," as Consumer Reports journalist Paris Martineau put it, has transformed into a full-blown mass-market wellness movement. There's protein pastas, protein cereals, protein sodas, and even Starbucks protein cold foam.
So I nearly spit out my smoothie when I read that a new study from Consumer Reports found that many popular protein powders also contain more lead per serving than their experts advise consuming in a single day. The plant-based protein powders tended to contain the highest lead levels, while animal and whey-based options tended to be on the lower side.
Making your own beef jerky not only saves money but also allows you to fully customize the flavor of your snack. In this recipe, written with developer Michelle McGlinn, the beef is marinated in a sweet and spicy hot honey and ancho chile sauce, then dehydrated in the oven until chewy and pliable. The best part? Though a dehydrator is useful for many foods, you don't need it to make jerky.
While filleting fish takes the salmon off the main skeleton, fish fillets may still contain what's known as pin bones or sharp spikes that run through the flesh. These can be sifted out as you eat but they are easy to miss and could leave you with a mouthful of nasty surprises. Removing the pin bones before cooking makes for a much more enjoyable dining experience, and it's a non-negotiable if you're making sashimi, cured salmon, or salmon tartare.
Even though buffets can be annoying (so annoying that fights have broken out over crab legs), there are still expectations on guests and mistakes you want to avoid. One of those is that you shouldn't sample dishes in line. You're at a buffet, which means you can take as much or as little as you like whenever you like. If there's an item you're not sure you want, take a small portion back to your table to see if you like it.
Nate's Fine Foods of Roseville, California, recalled thousands of cases of linguine, fettucine, penne and other pastas sold to large producers of heat-and-eat meals and pasta salads on Sept. 25, according to a U.S. Food and Drug Administration notice posted Thursday. The move came after tests showed that pasta made by Nate's Fine Foods contained the same strain of listeria found in chicken fettucine Alfredo and meatball linguine products linked to an outbreak that has killed four people and sickened 20 since August 2024.
"On Sunday, October 5th, around 7 p.m., at the location on 1310 Surf Ave, my husband bit into what he initially thought was a hard onion, but it turned out to be a blade inside his food," Abbey told AMNY. "Once he spit it out, we saw the blade and notified the employees." "The manager stated that the hot dogs are not made there and claimed there was no way they came from their location," she added. "He suggested it could have come from the onions or the mustard dispenser."
A family claims they found a razor blade inside their order from Nathan's Famous Hot Dogs in New York City. A short video posted on TikTok appears to be taken outside the company's flagship location in Coney Island, Brooklyn. In the video, a man can be seen taking a bite of a hot dog and revealing what appears to be a razor blade. He then hands the plate over to the woman who is recording.
In the video, an unseen narrator opens a bag of Lipton lemon-flavored green tea - normally, you would never open your tea bag, so it's unclear what prompted this. The narrator proceeds to pour out the loose tea and begins to point out tiny shapes, claiming are "worms," despite nothing moving over the course of the video. The narrator also says it's not a fluke, as "several bags and several boxes" that they've opened are the same.
Texans love steak. What other state has politicians putting forth plans to declare an official state steak? Texas Representative Ken King wants to name the Tomahawk Steak the official steak of Texas, so it comes as no surprise that Texans are 14 times more likely to call steak their state dish than chili, according to NewsWire, and it's their top pick for grilling by a wide margin.
