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Food Safety

Pinty's takes all the necessary precautions to maintain the freshness and safety of all our meats -- and then some. We rigorously control product as soon as it enters our store, continuously inspecting it throughout the day to ensure it is top-notch and keeping the entire Meat department sanitary to prevent any chance of contamination. There are things you should do to ensure your kitchen is as sanitary as possible before preparing chicken -- or any food:

• Clean your sink before using it for food preparation.
• Wash utensils that have come in contact with the floor and other contaminated areas.
• Use only clean utensils to open packages and cans of food.
• Wash utensils used for tasting before reusing.

In the kitchen

It's relatively easy to make your kitchen clean and germ-free when you are preparing food -- and critically important. Most food-borne illnesses are caused by poor handling and less-than-spotless cleaning. Here are some tips to make sure you are preparing poultry as safely as possible.

• Always wash your hands with hot, soapy water before handling food or any time you come in contact with uncooked meat.
• Use a non-porous cutting board like plastic or glass. Wood is porous, and can absorb juices from raw meat that cannot be thoroughly cleaned.
• Keep raw meat, poultry and seafood separate.
• Never use a surface that has held uncooked meat to hold any other food, cooked or not.
• Clean kitchen surfaces with paper towels instead of cloth towels. Soiled paper towels can be tossed in the trash, while using cloth towels over and over could spread germs.
• Be sure that any utensils, knives, plates, counters and sinks that touch raw chicken are washed thoroughly before being used for cooked chicken or any other foods.
• Always cook foods to the proper internal temperature. (Temperatures should be taken directly after cooking; continue cooking if necessary).