BACK TO PAGE 1Hygiene and Safety in the kitchen - 2
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Gas:
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• If you think you smell gas, there is a straightforward list of precautions you can take:
• Switch off the gas at the mains.
• Open all windows and doors.
• Do NOT use any electrical equipment. For example, don't switch the lights either on or off.
• Do NOT light a match to detect the leak.
• Contact the local gas supplier immediately.
Hot Appliances:
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• Never leave what you are cooking unattended, even to answer the door or the phone. If you must leave the kitchen,
turn off the heat and take with you a reminder that you have something cooking. Turn off the oven or appliances as soon as you have finished using them.
• Ensure that all care is taken to prevent children accidentally burning themselves, a good quality oven will have triple glazing on the door along with a cooling system, this is essential with the combination of low ovens and children,
• Try and keep children away from hot hobs, good education can teach them that hobs can be very dangerous,
• If a fire starts in an oven or microwave, shut the door, keep it closed, and turn off the gas or electricity supply.
Fat Fryers and Oil:
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• Most kitchen fires start because of heating fat or oil. As oil gets hotter it begins by smoking, as it gets hotter it bursts into flames.
• To extinguish a fat fire, cover it with a fire blanket or damp cloth and turn off the gas or power. You can use foam of powder extinguishers but NEVER use water. NEVER try to carry the burning pan!
• NEVER put water or other liquids into hot cooking oil, it will turn into steam instantly, and will explode hot oil in all directions.
• Be cautious when adding food to a deep fat fryer. If the fat is too hot, or if there are pockets of cold liquid in the prepared food, the hot fat will spit up.
• Remember that steam will rise out of a deep fat fryer when you take off the cover. Use a cloth or oven gloves before opening the cover.
Sharp Objects:
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• Knives and sharp objects should be stored where inaccessible to children, knife holders can be fixed to the rear walls out of reach,
• If dangerous items are difficult to store safely, fix kitchen cabinet door child locks, these are available at children's stores such as Mothercare,
• When you are using a knife, don't cut toward you or your fingers. Pay attention to where the edge of your sharp blade is pointing. Think! If you were to slip could it stick into me.
• Broken glass is sharp and dangerous. Clean it up carefully, preferably with a dustpan and brush. Wrap it in old newspaper and a seperate bag or box, then put in a well packaged bag. Make sure you don't leave pieces of it in the sponge or cloth.
Storage and Heavy objects:
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• Heavy items such as electrical gadgets, large pans and casserole dishes, should be stacked in the lower base units where they are easy to lift,
• Light items such as packets and glasses should be stored in the wall units,
• Crockery is often difficult to store in cupboards, try and stack in pull-out pan drawers. Accessories are sold to hold crockery and stop items moving when drawers are opened and closed,
• Lifting a hot pot of boiling pasta is one of the most dangerous of kitchen practices. Invest in a pasta cooker that consists of a strainer inserted into a larger pot. You just lift the pasta out of the water to drain it, This is far safer than moving a heavy pot of boiling water from the hob, to the sink.
Solvents & Cleaners:
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• Always keep chemicals away from children, either lock away or store at high level,
• Never mix different chemical or cleaning fluids, mixing can cause chemical reactions that can generate toxic fumes and/or explode,
• Never put bleaches or solvent cleaners in other bottles than supplied by the manufacturer, remember it isn't just the fluid can burn, some are very poisonous.
• If you must store cleaning chemicals and other possibly toxic non-food items in the kitchen, always store them on shelves below foodstuffs, so if they leak, they can't get into your food.
Flooring:
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• Always wipe up spills immediately,
• Often when you are working in the kitchen you are moving fast. Don't leave boxes, stools, bags of groceries or anything else out on the floor where you or any one else whose liable to walk buy can trip up.
• If possible, choose non-slip floor materials, laminate floors although they are easy to clean and look good, can be extremely slippery even when dry,
• If you find it tiring to stand for long periods, remember hard floors such as ceramic can be really uncomfortable, compared to timber or thick vinyl,
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