Do I need to wash chicken?!

[IWillOnlyEatBeans]

I am vegetarian and have been since I was 14, so am not that experienced when it comes to preparing meat (although DS and DH both eat it, so I have cooked it quite a bit over the past 2 years).

Anyway, I bought a lovely new cookery book (I think it's an American one) and all of the chicken recipes start with the instruction: "Rinse the chicken and pat it dry".

I cook chicken quite a bit for DS (now 2.10) and have never once rinsed it. Should I have been? He has not been poorly. But I hate the thought that I have been doing it wrong all this time and risking making him ill!

So - do you rinse??

[fergoose]

no you don't - in short

I saw something once that said you risk more by washing a chicken as you potentially are spreading raw meat on your taps, sink, etc - rather than just plonking it in a tin and bunging in the oven.

[imtheonlyone]

No, I have never rinsed my chicken but apparently you are supposed to!!! I have eaten it at least once a week for the last 35 yrs, never rinsed and never been ill!

[twooter]

Agree with fergoose.

[XBenedict]

No never wash chicken. Much safer to just cook it.

[starlingsintheslipstream]

What Fergoose said.

It used to be what people did, but not advised any more.

[PacificDogwood]

Nope, you shouldn't rinse chicken as fergoose said.
Too much risk of spreading potential bugs around.
Cook it well and all's good.
There is a reason why there is no Chicken Steak Tartare [boak]

[chocolateistheenemy]

No, you don't rinse it - don't worry! You've done nothing wrong! Equally you shouldn't rinse other meats, fish or eggs. Yes to fruit & veg obviously... I once knew the reason but I've forgotten it my 20m old DD has turned me to mush after refusing daytime sleep for the first time ever

[chocolateistheenemy]

Thanks Fergoose!

[Gimblinginthewabe]

nooooo! You will spread bacteria all around your kitchen!!!!

Cooking will kill anything that you would have washed off anyway :-)

[GreatUncleEddie]

No. No one ever does, it just spreads germs around from splashes of water.

Do you rince your mince ??

(Does anyone else remember that thread?)

[XBenedict]

Taken from the Foods Standards Agency website

'You need to wash chicken and poultry before you cook it.' This was one of the most common misconceptions with two thirds (65%) of the UK thinking this is true; here in Wales 59% thought it was true. In fact, washing chicken could splash germs around the kitchen. Cooking it thoroughly will be enough to kill any bacteria that may be present.

[BrawToken]

Agree with everyone else

[Startail]

NO!
I had to train DH out of this habit for the reasons listed above.

Roast chicken was what they did in his student house on Sunday's and they must have read it in a book somewhere

[Startail]

I was eggs, but that's because they come from hens up the road and aren't always clean.

Supermarket eggs are fine.

[Startail]

wash

[GreatCongas]

Shouldn't wash eggs either. The shells are porous
I have been known to wash chickens but that's when they've still got crap on them from outside. The whole kitchen gets disinfected afterwards

[IWillOnlyEatBeans]

Brilliant, thanks everyone! It's a relief to know I've not been doing it wrong!

[IWillOnlyEatBeans]

...and I don't rinse my mince either! Don't get me worrying about that too!!

[jenduck]

Somebody I know washes sauasages before eating them, yet does not wipe chicken poo off of the eggs from their own hen! I was and when I found out!

[jenduck]

sausages

[Asinine]

Never freeze your cheese

[KnittyFoxyMa]

we were taught to wash chicken in home ec, but one of those fluorescent germs ads and campylobacter poisoning abroad from. chicken made me realise it is farsafer and less germ spreading not to wash chicken.

[GreatUncleEddie]

[sashh]

Nope. British chicken (all meat) doesn't need washing.

But don't try to tell any Jamaican that.

[RafaellaNhaKyria]

I'm American, and it's vey common to wash poultry here, but I never do. All my friends do and it freaks me out.

Years ago at thanksgiving my mom washed the turkey, then washed down all the surfaces with Lysol. Somehow, we still all ended up with salmonella poisoning. It was awful! We never, ever wash chicken or turkey now.