AIBU or is DH? Cooking and food hygiene.

[Chickenandbread]

I cooked dinner this evening. One of the ingredients was chicken. I diced it on a separate chopping board with a separate knife. Veg and other dry ingredients that needed chopping were done on a different board with a different knife. In my view this is normal and basic food hygiene.

Sat down to eat in the dining room. I hadn't cleared everything up from the kitchen counter yet. DH wanted some crusty bread to go with his meal so he went into the kitchen to cut some and brought me a slice too.

After we'd finished eating I went back into the kitchen and saw he'd used the dirty chicken board and knife to slice the bread. I was angry with him for using an obviously dirty board and knife. He was angry with me for being angry with him.

AIBU or is DH?

I always put the meat contaminated stuff away in the utility room immediately after use, or straight into the dishwasher, my DH wouldn't know which board had been used for which, vegetable board might be left out till after dinner.

This.

anything that’s touched raw meat goes straight in the dishwasher/bin and wiped over with bleach spray to avoid exactly this situation.

it’s too easy to grab a knife not realising it’s been used to cut raw meat.

Another vote for immediately cleaning meat contaminated boards and utensils. I'd say it's the cook's responsibility to ensure this doesn't happen.

Fingers crossed that you don’t both end up on the loo all weekend

I think you leaving them out was just as grim TBH.

What reason is he giving for using the chicken board?. Does he simply no know it's wrong?

I think you have both been unreasonable. I wouldn't be leaving a knife and board that had cut raw chicken on the side. It would be cleaned straight away.

If the chicken and veg were all going in together to be cooked, rather than eaten raw I'd have used the same board and knife.

But ABsolutely not for bread later! I would have put the knife and cutting board in the dishwasher/sink/obviously ready for one of those two places though, just in case one of the kids doesn't realise (they know not to use a meat-cutting board for other stuff, but you can't really see chicken residue)

This is absolutely sort of idiotic and dangerous thing my DH would do, and why I don't let him in the kitchen when there is raw poultry being prepared. The potential consequences of campylobacter are too serious to take the risk.

No way could I have left a chopping board covered in chicken juices on the side while eating dinner! Ewwww…but yeah, my other half wouldn’t know either because he’s not a cook and has never cooked (gets icked out by the textures, of all things). He’d be devastated when I told him though.

I had this exact scenario and still shudder many years later. I'm vegan but had cooked chicken for the kids. I could taste the raw chicken on my bread so thankfully didn't ingest too much of it. If I prepare raw chicken now I squirt half a gallon of washing up liquid all over the board and knife so it will never happen again .

YANBU having described the board still with chickeny bits on it, and a board right beside it. Has he not a titter of wit? (FYI I also put meat implements in the sink and pour a kettle over immediately to avoid this, because of kids and also a thieving cat, but I wouldn’t expect another adult to take the stupid option when presented with two.)

I’d have put one I’d cut raw chicken on straight in the sink or dishwasher. I would never leave it sitting on the side.

Any board that’s been used to cut raw meat should be put in the sink immediately (preferably washed up) so it doesn’t get used by accident

I don’t leave anything that’s touched raw meat lying about.

I would also have put the board/knife away... but..

He should absolutely have the wit to ask which was the clean board, and if that were for some unfathomable reason impossible (his mouth fell off?) to get a clean board out, rather than assume he knew which was clean and safe to use.

I don't think you leaving the boards out is a valid excuse for him not engaging his brain and trying to work out which was clean.

Grim. But yes, my otherwise totally competent and capable DH would do something utterly revolting like this. Any kind of raw meat prep/anything that could poison us, I have to spray with bleach spray then it goes straight in the dishwasher to prevent exactly this. Why? I’ve no idea. This is the same man I caught hoovering the granite kitchen worktop. With the hoover, which obviously hoovers the floor. Where the dogs go 🤮🤮🤮🤮

its even worse that it had chicken bits and an empty packet on the side.

he might not have noticed if he was absent minded and went to the closest one. Yes He should pay attention but ultimately the food hygiene issue come from you.

leaving raw meat debris about the kitchen for other people to potentially use or cross contaminate is not great. Just throw the packet out and put the utensils in hot water

I'm really not an exceptionally clean or fussy person but I've never cut up raw meat on a board. It just didn't occur to me that some people might. I cut it up with kitchen scissors, either straight into the pan or over the packaging it came in, which can then be thrown away. That way there's no need for a separate chopping board (and once a board has a few cuts in it it might not be all that easy to get it thoroughly clean after using it for meat anyway).

But yeah, if I did use a board for chicken and it somehow hadn't been washed up afterwards, I would be pissed off with what he did. I hope you didn't come to any harm!

You are both unreasonable/unhygienic- him for the cross contamination, you for not tidying away used cooking equipment that had been in contact with raw meat

My DH did a similar thing many years ago. He cut up salad with a knife he'd used for raw chicken.

He was ill for about 2 weeks with campilobacter.

Needless to say he's been a bit more careful since.

I hope you're both ok OP as it could still make you ill.

I personally would have washed the chopping board and knife I used for the chicken as soon as it was finished with.

Heaven's to Betsy OP, don't you know it's YOUR fault for not immediately washing up the used items in case your husband - who isn't blind - were to pick up and use a dirty knife for bread?!

It's not fucking unhygienic in your own home to leave the dishes until after you've finished eating, honestly the competitive cleanliness on this site is out of control.

He's a fucking idiot and I'd say the same about anyone over the age of about 10 who used an obviously dirty knife to cut bread.

It has never occurred to you that people might use a chopping board and a knife to cut chicken?

I’m another who uses scissors to cut raw meat. They get washed under the tap in the sink and straight into the dishwasher as soon as they’re finished with.

I think it’s grim to leave a chopping board with bits of raw chicken on, and an empty chicken packet, lying around. You both could do with upping your food hygiene imo.

I’m more shocked that the wrapper was left on the side and the board and knife used for the chicken wasn’t washed immediately - I can’t understand why anyone would actually leave them on the worktop. I’m no “clean freak” but really - raw chicken juices?