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?

Oh god are we married to the same man?!?

Sorry to jump on the pile on OP - but I also always put raw meat board and knife into the sink/dishwasher as I just can't trust my family not to do something gross.

Your fault. Chicken cutting board should have gone straight in the dishwasher after being used.

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

Until I read this thread, no. My parents didn't and my husband didn't when I met him, so it wasn't something I'd seen modelled. I knew they sometimes do it in bulk catering situations because I have worked in schools where the kitchens had rules about having different coloured chopping boards for different types of food. But I didn't realise it was usual for people cooking in small quantities at home.

I’m super lax with food hygiene if it’s just us eating but this is a no from even me.

🤢🤮

I agree. You don't mess about when it comes to raw meat.

It's interesting that poster think basic food hygiene makes you a clean freak. I'm sure if a poster's husband had left the chopping board, knife and empty chicken packet on the side, there would be hundred of replies telling him how disgusting he was and asking why the OP was with a man-child who didn't clean up after himself.

Well I'd have put the red board for chicken straight in the dishwasher the knife straight into hot soapy water. DH does the same because I'm funny about chicken. Won't even touch it with my hands. The green board for veg I will hand wash.

Hopefully you're not poorly.

I had campylobacter food poisoning from my ex husband doing this. He didn't know about not using the raw chicken board and knife.. I didn't know that he didn't know. I lost a stone and a half!!

Yes - scissors on to a plate rather than a board and always rinsed and straight in dishwasher with hands washed after all raw meat stuff disposed of.

I honestly find your actions more disgusting than his.

OK I accept it wasn't ideal to.leave it on the counter but it was so obvious it had been used and there were other clean chopping boards plus a clean bread board in the cupboard as well as plenty of clean knives available.

For the people saying they use scissors, without a board ever, this is something I've never seen. How do you evenly dice a chicken breast with scissors ? Wouldn't the handle of the scissors get raw meat juices inside it or are your scissors entirely metal?

Ooff, grim, good luck. let us know how your gut is tomorrow 🙈

I think anyone who doesn't put the raw meat board and knife in the sink is BU.

I always spray a good amount of washing up liquid on the board and the knife straight after using for raw meat. That way, even if the numpty isn't listening when I say not to use it, he can't because it's all soapy 🤣
Although there was one memorable night he blew a few bubbles, never ignored the green soapy trail again though!

I always cut chicken with scissors straight into the pan. I never chop it on a board.

You are both wrong. you for not clearing up, him for not checking/noticing the board was dirty.

Obviously he was in the wrong -
if he actually knew you’d used that knife and chopping board for raw chicken. But why on earth did you leave them out? They’d have been straight in the dishwasher or sink in our house. Also, who uses the same kind of knife on bread and raw meat? You need a sharp knife for meat (or scissors), a serrated bread knife for bread, surely?

Easily. Just snip bits off. And the handles never touch the chicken. Scissors straight in sink, then dishwasher.

Sorry - what exactly is it you think a bit of raw chicken, on a board, not even in the same room as you, is going to do if it's not washed up immediately? Did I say it shouldn't be washed up? Because yes, washing up is basic hygiene. Insisting it's grim and not basic hygiene to not do it immediately, isn't.

He was angry with me for being angry with him.

🚩🚩🚩

I should add that it was obvious the board was dirty as it had the empty chicken packet next to it and small pieces of chicken still on the knife and board.

Hmmm. Is there more to this? Does he usually jump straight to DARVO when you’re upset with him? Do you usually have one of those strict “one person cooks, one person cleans” deals and he’s a sulky resentful twat about cleaning? Does he have a reason to manufacture a disagreement right before the weekend? Or is he perhaps just a twat in general?

He obviously did it on purpose so I’m just wondering why he’d risk severe illness. Unless he’s just very very stupid and doesn’t know better, which is also a problem.

No. No. No
I had campylobacter and haven’t eaten chicken since, just the thought of it makes me feel sick now
i lost 17lbs and had diarrhoea 50 times a day and a raging fever for over 10 days and ended up in a&e

That is one of the most bizarre things I’ve ever read. You had food poisoning countless times because your mum couldn’t be arsed to use food hygiene at home? Wild.

I still don't understand if he (1) doesn't agree that it's not OK to mix raw chicken traces with other food and thinks you're overreacting or (2) knows it's unacceptable but argues that he didn't notice the state of the knife and board and assumed it was OK to use because it was out, or something, so thinks he made an honest mistake?

My biggest concern would be making sure he doesn't do this again and while I'd probably also have cleared up the raw chicken remnants right away, if he really doesn't see or believe the contamination issue there's still the risk he'd contaminate things when HE is cooking. (And I don't think banning him from the kitchen is a good solution either; he's not 6.)

Why would the juices get inside the scissor handles? I cut all meat with scissors, I’ve never used a chopping board. I can’t see the point in contaminating extra surfaces when it’s not necessary.

Not good, but these things happen. The odds are you'll be OK. If you don't want to wash the board up straight away after cutting meat, in future squirt some washing up liquid on it to stop anyone accidentally using it.

When I finish cooking ,I put all chopping boards ,knife’s etc in a sink of hot bubbly water /dishwasher before I dish up .Perhaps you should have removed possible contamination ?