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some food will grow bacteria on it if not put in proper place. Read the labels on the back of the product to see if its refrigerated or has to be put in the freezer. Some products don't have to be in neither.

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Depending on the type of food, you'll need to store it in the fridge, freezer or in containers you keep in cupboards or on shelves. When storing food, it's important to keep food safe so that's it still safe to eat or cook.

Storing food in the fridge

Some food needs to be kept in the fridge to help stop bacteria from growing on it, such as food with a 'use by' date, cooked food and ready-to-eat food such as desserts and cooked meats.

Make sure your fridge is cold enough

You need to make sure your fridge is cold enough otherwise food poisoning bacteria will still be able to grow. Your fridge should be between 0ºC and 5ºC.

If you're not sure how the temperature setting or dial works on your fridge, you could use a fridge thermometer to check it's the right temperature.

To store food safely in the fridge:

keep the fridge door closed as much as possible

wait for food to cool down before you put it in the fridge

turn the temperature down to help keep it cold enough if the fridge is full

Keeping food in the fridge

To help stop bacteria from growing:

when the label says 'keep refrigerated', make sure you do keep the food in the fridge. If the food isn't labelled with any storage instructions and it's a type of food that goes off quickly, you should put it in the fridge and eat it within two days

some jars and bottles need to be kept in the fridge once they've been opened. Always check the label and follow storage instructions

when you're preparing food, keep it out of the fridge for the shortest time possible, especially when the weather or the room is warm

if you have made some food (such as a sandwich or a cold dish) and you're not going to eat it straight away, keep it in the fridge until you're ready to eat it

if you're having a party or making a buffet, leave the food in the fridge until people are ready to eat. You shouldn't leave food out of the fridge for more than four hours

cool leftovers as quickly as possible (ideally within one to two hours) and then store them in the fridge. Eat any leftovers within two days, except for cooked rice, which you should eat within one day to help avoid food poisoning

Storing meat

It's important to store meat safely to stop bacteria from spreading and to avoid food poisoning. You should:

store raw meat and poultry in clean, sealed containers on the bottom shelf of the fridge, so they can't touch or drip onto other food

follow any storage instructions on the label and don't eat meat after its 'use by' date

when you have cooked meat and you're not going to eat it straight away, cool it as quickly as possible and then put it in the fridge or freezer. Remember to keep cooked meat separate from raw meat

Keeping food in the freezer

You can keep food safely in the freezer for years as long as it stays frozen the whole time. But the taste and texture of food changes if it's frozen for too long, so you might well find that it's not very nice to eat.

You can check any instructions on food labels or in your freezer's handbook (if you don't have this anymore, you might be able to find it online) to see how long food should be frozen.

It's safe to freeze most raw or cooked foods providing you:

freeze it before the 'use by' date

follow any freezing or thawing instructions on the label

thaw it in the fridge so that it doesn't get too warm. Or, if you intend to cook it as soon as it's defrosted, you could defrost it in a microwave

try to use it within one to two days after it's been defrosted - it will go off in the same way as if it were fresh

cook food until it's steaming hot all the way through

When frozen meat and fish (and some other foods) thaw, lots of liquid can come out of them. If you're defrosting raw meat or fish, this liquid will spread bacteria to any food, plates or surfaces that it touches. Keep the meat and fish in a sealed container at the bottom of the fridge, so that it can't touch or drip onto other foods.

Always clean plates, utensils, surfaces and hands thoroughly, after they have touched raw or thawing meat, to stop bacteria from spreading.

If you defrost raw meat or fish and then cook it thoroughly, you can freeze it again, but remember never reheat foods more than once.

Storing dry food in containers

Many types of food don't need to be kept in the fridge to keep them safe to eat, for example dry foods such as rice, pasta and flour, many types of drinks, tinned foods, and unopened jars. But it's still important to take care how you store them.

To store dry food safely:

keep food in sealed bags or containers - this helps keep food fresh and stops anything falling into the food by accident

don't store food or drinks near cleaning products or other chemicals

don't use old food containers to store household chemicals, and don't store food in containers that have been used for other purposes

only reuse undamaged plastic water bottles that you can clean

don't store food on the floor, because this can encourage mice, ants and other pests

keep the storage area dry and not too warm

Tin cans

When you open a can of food and you're not going to use all the food straight away, empty the food into a bowl, or other container, and put it in the fridge.

Don't store food in an opened tin can, or re-use empty cans to cook or store food. This is because when a can has been opened and the food is open to the air, the tin from the can might transfer more quickly to the can's contents.

This advice doesn't apply to foods sold in cans that have resealable lids, such as golden syrup and cocoa, because these types of food don't react with the can.

Covering food with cling film

Cling film is useful for protecting food but, like many things, it needs to be used correctly.

Not every type of cling film is suitable for using with all foods. Check the description on the box to see what foods it can be used with.

There are three main points to remember when using cling film:

don't use cling film if it could melt into the food, such as in the oven or on pots and pans on the hob

you can use cling film in the microwave (in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions), but make sure the cling film doesn't touch the food

cling film should only touch high-fat foods when the description on the box says the cling film is suitable. High-fat foods include some types of cheese, raw meats with a layer of fat, fried meats, pies and pastries, and cakes with butter icing or chocolate coatings

Covering food with kitchen foil

Kitchen foil, which is made from aluminium, can be useful for wrapping and covering foods. But it's best not to use foil or containers made from aluminium to store foods that are highly acidic, such as:

Aluminium can affect the taste of these foods.

More useful links

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Depending on the type of food, you'll need to store it in the fridge, freezer or in containers you keep in cupboards or on shelves. When storing food, it's important to keep food safe so that's it still safe to eat or cook.

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Google helped me find out how to get clean dishes properly.

1. Step 1: Fill the dishpan/sink.

2. Step 2: Clean to dirty.

3. Step 3: Soak - Scrub - Rinse - Drain.

4. Step 4: Silverware speed trick.

5. Step 5: Special treatment items.

6. Step 6: Clean up.

7. Step 7: Dry the dishes - and put away.

If you follow these steps you will have clean dishes. I find this to actually be true it works like a charm

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Introduction: Wash Dishes by Hand

First, I'd like to thank my mom for teaching me to do this. I've met a few people who grew up with dish washers, and weren't really sure how to do this when they got their first cheap apartment without one. I thought I'd write this for other people in the same boat. If nothing else, it may save a few roommate relationships.

Now take a look at the picture. This is my setup. I have the drain rack on the counter, and keep the dirty dishes on one side of the divided sink. If you need to conserve water the drain rack should really be in the sink, to allow you to rise the whole rack of dishes at once. The drain rack I have doesn't fit in this sink, so I'm doing it this way.

Tools:
1. Dish Soap - Just about any brand works. You'll need to use a little more of some of the cheaper ones.
2. Drain rack - You can buy these in big box stores and hardware stores
3. Plastic net puff scrubber - These work pretty well, and dry quickly, but gunk tends to get stuck in them, especially cooked egg.
4. Dish Brush - These are good for knocking the big chunks off. They are great for pre-washing for the dish washer, or knocking things into the garbage disposal, but they don't really get the crusty bits off very well. If you want one, look for one that has a straight edge you can use to scrape with.
5. Dish cloth - This is the traditional tool. They are good for wiping down counters, and you can use them to wash dishes. They have some limitations. Because they are absorbent, germs grow on them if you aren't careful. You need to wash them out with soap after each use, and boil them, or put them in the microwave soaking wet to kill germs. DON'T MICROWAVE A DRY DISH TOWEL or SPONGE. You will start a fire. You should also hang them to dry between uses.
6. Sponge - I don't have one at the moment. These are a lot like dish cloths in use and maintenance, but they don't dry as fast.
7. Green scrubber pad - These are my favorite for dish washing. They scrub well, dry quickly, and don't get too much food stuck in them.

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Step 1: Fill the Dishpan/sink

In these instructions, I'm using a double sink. If you don't have a double sink, that's not a problem. Instead of filling one side of the sink, use a plastic dish pan. If you don't have a plastic dish pan, use the biggest widest pot or bowl you have.

1. Wipe out the sink and rinse
2. Plug the drain. If you don't have a plug, go to the hardware store. This one came with the apartment. If you're buying, I'd go for the cheap flat rubber one that fits all sized drains.
3. Add some dish soap right under where the water is going to hit. About two teaspoons works with this soap and this size sink. The amount needed varies with the brand and the dish pan size. You're aiming for just enough soap to cause suds to cover the top of the water.
4. Fill the sink about 1/3 with bath temperature water. You want hot water, because hot water cuts oils.

Step 2: Clean to Dirty

You're going to be using the same tub of soap water to scrub the whole sink of dishes, so it's important to clean the cleanest things first. Generally this means glasses, dishes, pots and pans. You need to use a little common sense here. Sometimes the order will vary depending on what's been cooked. Oily dishes use the most soap power and should go last.

Step 3: Soak - Scrub - Rinse - Drain

1. Soak - Put several items into the soapy water, starting with the cleanest. Putting items into the water before you scrub them lets them soak for a bit, and makes the scrubbing easier. Don't overload the sink. you still want room to work.

2. Scrub - Pick up one thing at a time and scrub it all over. You should use two hands for this. The picture only shows one because I needed one hand for the camera. Friction is your friend.

3. Rinse - Once scrubbed, put the dish under the faucet on the dirty side if it will fit and give it a quick rinse with warm water.

4. Drain - Place it in the drain rack.

Step 4: Silverware Speed Trick

1. Put a big pot or a bowl in the middle of the sink as a place holder.
2. Put all your dirty silverware above in the water above the pot with the handles facing away from your scrubbing hand.
3. Grab about 2-3 utensils at a time by the handles, scrub them off with your other hand
4. Once scrubbed drop them back in the water below the pot facing the same way.
5. Once they are all scrubbed, grab them all by the handle and rinse them all at once.

Step 5: Special Treatment Items

There are a few things that need some special treatment

1. Non-stick Teflon coated pans - When you buy scrubbing tools, be sure they say Teflon safe on the package. If you're not sure, use a sponge, or dish cloth to avoid scratching the Teflon off.

2. Anything with a metal cutting edge - Don't ever drop these things into the soapy water. You can dunk them, but don't let go. This is so they don't rust, but also, so they don't cut your hands up.

3. Wooden cutting boards - These are prone to warping when left wet, or even on a wet surface. When they warp, they crack, or the seams come unglued. Don't soak them in water. You can wipe them off with soapy water, and put them under running water, but it's a good idea to wet both sides at once.

4. Cast Iron skillets - If it's not yours, ask the owner. People have very particular, and sometimes peculiar ideas about how to clean these. This is all related to not wanting to wear off any of the burnt on seasoning, which works as a non-stick surface. To avoid controversy I'm just going to direct you to the company that made mine. Link to Lodge cleaning instructions

5. Nice china with metal edges - Some nicer dishes have rims, or other decorations that are metallic. Use a soft dish cloth, or sponge on these, to avoid scrubbing off the metal decoration.

6. Blenders - Screw off the bottom of the blender to wash. If you don't gunk collects in the joint.

Step 6: Clean Up

1. Pull the plug on the sink and give it a quick rinse.
2. Empty out the drain strainer.

Step 7: Dry the Dishes - and Put Away

I've stopped doing this step. I just do the dishes in 1 drain rack batches and let them air dry. If you have a large family, or throw big parties, you may need to dry them to make room. To do this, you'll need a large thin cotton dish towel. Just pick a dish, dry it off and put it away. Don't use the dish drying towel for anything else. You want to keep it clean.

We have a be nice policy.
Please be positive and constructive.

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First, I'd like to thank my mom for teaching me to do this. I've met a few people who grew up with dish washers, and weren't really sure how to do this when they got their first cheap apartment without one. I thought I'd write this for other people in the same boat.

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This website showed me to:
Use separate cutting boards and plates for produce and for meat, poultry, seafood, and eggs.

Make sure you aren’t contaminating foods in your grocery bag

Use separate plates and utensils for cooked and raw foods.

Before using them again, thoroughly wash plates, utensils, and cutting boards that held raw meat, poultry, seafood, or eggs.

Separating raw meat, poultry, seafood, and eggs from other foods in your shopping cart.

At the checkout, place raw meat, poultry, and seafood in plastic bags to keep their juices from dripping on other foods

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From CNN .1 in 6 Americans get sick from food borne illnesses. Unwashed vegetables and under cooked meats are also prime sources of illnesses.

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The cause was most likely a delicious meal the previous day -- now deeply regretted in hindsight.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 48 million Americans -- 1 in 6 people -- get sick from foodborne illnesses each year, with 128,000 hospitalized and 3000 dying from consuming contaminated food.

In reality, the numbers are likely to be much higher as most people don't visit their doctor due to bouts of diarrhea -- they instead prefer to suffer in silence.

But if people become complacent with their eating and hygiene habits, the number of infections will go up courtesy of multiple bacteria growing wildly in foods before they're eaten.

We've put together six common sense ways to avoid food poisoning and the key bacteria behind it -- a crib sheet to keep to hand in the kitchen.

1) Don't leave your food out

Food left out at room temperature for hours at a time -- be it at home, a cookout (barbeque), a party, or a restaurant buffet -- is a prime source of food poisoning. The spores and toxins released by bacteria commonly found on food can flourish at this temperature.

"[The spores] thrive in the 'danger zone' of 40-140 degrees Fahrenheit (5 to 60 degrees Celsius)," says Gabrielle Judd, a registered dietician with the University of Maryland Medical Center. Judd works with transplant patients whose reduced immunity puts them at greater risk from infections -- increasing the importance of them eating wisely.

The main spore-producing bacteria are Clostridium perfringens -- among the most common causes of food poisoning in the United States. Another culprit multiplying and producing toxins at room temperature is Bacillus, found commonly in rice, soups, sauces and leftovers.

Judd refers to these bugs as "cookout bugs" as this is a typical situation where food is prepared and left out for hours at a time. "Food should not be out for more than two hours at a time," she says.

On the plus side, infections with these bacteria are unlikely to hospitalize you, but instead leave you poorly for 24 hours. For this same reason, cases of illness often go unreported.

So as spring approaches and brings with it potential for weekend cookouts, don't forget to use your refrigerator.

2) Be wary of raw poultry

"At least half of all raw chicken carcasses carry significant levels of campylobacter," says bacteriologist Andrew Roe from the University of Glasgow, who states more than 500,000 cases of food poisoning in the U.K. are caused by these chicken-loving bacteria.

This group of bacteria cause the majority of foodborne infections in the developed world as the bacteria are prevalent in the food chain itself. "Four out of five cases [of food poisoning] are from contaminated poultry," says Roe.

Poultry expands beyond chicken, with infection also common in other commonly consumed birds with which people may be less vigilant in terms of hygiene."Turkey and duck are often highly contaminated with Campylobacter so the advice would be to treat them exactly as you would chicken," says Roe.

Judd adds that "food borne illness likely comes from improper thawing/preparation of meats."

Luckily, infection is usually self-controlling, meaning people don't get severely ill but instead recover over time. This low harm associated with infections is why the bacteria are not prioritized for removal from the food chain -- unlike salmonella which chickens in the UK are now all vaccinated against.

The solution? Wash your hands when handling poultry, avoid contaminating surfaces and thoroughly cook your meat. Basically, avoid any risk of raw meat entering your body.

"The best way to avoid infection is to make sure all chicken is cooked thoroughly [and] you have good kitchen practices," says Roe.

3) Learn the perils of minced meats

Chicken is not the only villain among the animal kingdom.

Roe advises to step away from your burger if there is any suspicion about its status as cooked -- minced meat can be a potent source of infection.

"Mince products are inherently more risky," says Roe.

The danger lies in the grinding together of meat -- and the increased likelihood of surface bacteria mixing deep into your meat -- unlike with a piece of steak.

"A steak is an intact piece of meat. Any contamination will be on the surface," says Roe. Cooking a steak well on the outside therefore reduces your chances of infection, even if it remains rare inside. But with minced meat the bacteria are mixed into the blend. This applies to any form of burger, be it gourmet or a simple slider handed out as a canapé.

"With ground meat the outside mixes up with all the meat and contaminates the rest," agrees Judd.

Burgers -- a cook-out favourite -- combined with the uncontrolled heat of a barbeque through intense, uncontrolled, flames bring a high risk of being cooked on the outside, but raw in the middle.

"People can be quite flippant, but these are the times you're increasing your risk," says Roe.

The solution? If you love your burgers, make sure you eat them well-done.

"Be prepared to reject food if not cooked thoroughly," says Roe

4) Don't forget to wash your fruit

The first thoughts when assigning blame to a bout of food poisoning commonly go towards meat and poultry, but your fruits and vegetables aren't as safe as you think.

A 2013 study by the CDC found that 46% of foodborne illnesses in the U.S are caused by fruits, vegetables and nuts. Leafy vegetables were found to cause the most illness, accounting for 22% of all cases in the study -- aided by the fact that bacteria, like E. coli, can live within the leaf tissue itself.

"There's less perceived risk [with fruits and vegetables] so people are more blasé," says Roe.

Many forms of bacteria are found naturally on the surfaces -- or skins -- of fruits and vegetables which need washing off before consumption. If not, that slice down the middle can bring those surface bacteria deep down inside the fruit. Judd advises the same rules be applied to all foods with outer skins or rinds -- such as oranges, watermelons or cucumbers.

"Most people wash off an apple but with melons assume they don't have to," says Judd.

When cutting or peeling such foods, bacteria on the surface can easily spread inside.

"If peeled and washed thoroughly you can reduce your risk quite significantly," adds Roe.

5) Reheat your leftovers properly

The risk of reheating rice is a common myth propagated as a means of food poisoning -- linked with bacillus bacteria found commonly in paddy fields and likely to be present in those rice grains.

The bacteria are killed when the rice is cooked, but their spores stay alive and flourish if then left out at room temperature. "The spores grow back into bacteria," says Roe.

The solution? Rice should be steaming hot when reheated, to ensure any returning bacteria have died.

These rules apply for reheated food in general to prevent any new bacteria from thriving -- both on your food and in your intestine. "Illness comes from improper management of leftovers," says Judd who also advises not to keep leftovers for more than 3 to 4 days.

"If you're served something that's inadequately hot...be brave enough to say you're not happy with it," says Roe.

Have you got the (healthy) guts to make a stand?

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The cause was most likely a delicious meal the previous day -- now deeply regretted in hindsight. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 48 million Americans -- 1 in 6 people -- get sick from foodborne illnesses each year, with 128,000 hospitalized and 3000 dying from consuming contaminated food.