Do you wash your chicken before you cook it?

[Kellamity]

Well stop it! I don't but not because I knew not to it's because I'm lazy! However I have just seen on the tv that it's not a good idea as it sprays any bacteria all over your kitchen.

They said that 60% of chicken we buy is contaminated with campylobactor

Never wash chicken or any meat ,very bad idea .As long as you cook properly the campylobactor will be killed in the cooking process

Never. I saw this too and thought why would anyone wash meat?

I never do. DH does though and then leaves the teatowel he uses it to dry it on the bench
I've told him not to

I never wash meat either. Never have, never will.

Never done it but my mom used to. Weird really as they come clean and plucked.

Always wash meat and chicken using lemon juice to finish. Have heard the DoH reasoning but can't begin to contemplate it!

I'd rather continue and disinfect my kitchen afterwards as I've always done.

My mum always did too, not sure if she does now.

I don't understand why anyone would wash raw meat?

Does anyone know why people do this?

insancerre

Can't you buy him a book about microbiology or something?

He will make someone really ill sooner or later.

No. I can't imagine why anyone would.

No. And I don't rinse mince either.

1. Washing chicken and meat will not get rid of pathogens anyway - even with lemon
2. As has been said, it will just splash bacteria everywhere, which may also be hard to clean by washing
3. It is completely unecessary. If you cook it properly the heat will kill pathogens.

I'm with marrie, I don't know anyone who doesn't wash their meat

Its all bitty and bloody from the butcher who uses whatever knives on whatever meat and its not clean!

I'd feel dirty if I didn't wash my meat, I use lemon too.

I rinse mine (carefully over the sink ... what kind of idiot 'sprays it' all over their kitchen??? ) and pat it dry with some kitchen roll. Haven't made anyone ill yet to the best of my knowledge.

"I'm with marrie, I don't know anyone who doesn't wash their meat"

That's a bit anal.

"Its all bitty and bloody from the butcher who uses whatever knives on whatever meat and its not clean!"

Change your butcher then. The meat I buy from my butcher isn't bitty and bloody. I wash fruit and vegetables, but never meat. For a start it isn't hygienic and secondly it isn't necessary.

I like to give mine three rinses up the bum under a running tap .... i had a very bad experience once where i cooked a chicken and the craw had been left in...

b
o
a
k

In t'olden days the official advice was to wash your chickens because it was filthy (faeces the lot!). Nowadays it comes all washed and lovely so the risk of cross contamination from spraying bacteria around is worse. Everything bad should be killed off by the heat from cooking so as long as you cook it thoroughly and don't spread bacteria around you're sorted.

I don't know anyone who washes their meat. It seems an utterly bonkers thing to do.

It isn't going to get rid of any bacteria anyway

never washed any meat, never rinsed mince,the thought of washing it makes me boak, why would you, when you cook it you kill the bacteria!

i always wash chicken and fish (don't know why, think it's because my mum does)

Apparently, there is a correlation in the increase of people washing the Christmas turkey, splattering around the taps and people suffering from upset stomach disorders.

"why would you"

A few reasons that have nothing to do with bacteria. A lot of the meat we buy has been shrink wrapped or kept in cling film for days before we use it and there can be fluids sitting under that wrapping that can spoil the dish if left where they are because they make the meat too wet. Loose fish scales can spoil the appearance if they're not wiped or rinsed off. BTW... when I go to get my Christmas turkey it is hanging with hundreds of others in a slightly dusty barn, open to the elements. Giving it a wipe over seems a sensible thing to do.

"and there can be fluids sitting under that wrapping that can spoil the dish if left where they are because they make the meat too wet."

So you wipe it with a bit of kitchen towel. I do that on the very rare occasion I buy supermarket meat.

Nope, but then I don't wash fruit and veg either...

I figure my stomach acid will do what it was put there to do, and I've only had food poisoning once, from mussels in a restaurant.

I did actually know that you shouldn't wash meat because of the risk of spreading bacteria so I'm always a bit whenever I see people doing it.
Anything thats in the meat will be killed off as long as you cook it properly.