Football fans are gearing up for Super Bowl LX on Feb. 8 when the Seattle Seahawks meet the New England Patriots. The big game takes place just over the hill at Santa Clara’s Levi’s Stadium. As is common for the Super Bowl, a local team did not make it to the competition.
I imagine few readers will be attending the extravaganza in person. Those who go should take plenty of cash.
Recently, I was surprised to read that Super Bowl Sunday ranks among the highest food-consumption days in the United States, second only to Thanksgiving. According to the National Retailer Federation’s estimate, more than 130 million people last year attended a Super Bowl party or watched the big game at a venue that served food and beverages.
The National Chicken Council predicted a significant increase last year for Super Bowl LIX. They anticipated the consumption of 1.47 billion chicken wings. That amount of chicken does not include nuggets, fried chicken and all the other ways chicken is eaten. Pizza is another big football day item.
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has a special publication regarding concerns about the food offered on Super Bowl Day. It focuses on food safety.
For more than twenty years, the USDA has offered Super Bowl food safety publications. In 2014 blogger Donna Karlsons attempted to garner attention by adapting football terms to food safety guidelines. Her approach was heavy with defensive plays and penalties.
For Karlsons, illegal use of hands meant preparing food with unwashed hands. Pass Interference indicated raw foods came in contact with cooked items, such as using the same platter to serve both types. A Personal Foul meant the cook was careless with guests’ health if not cooking food at the required temperatures. Holding refers to food being held too long on a buffet.
In the following years, the USDA issued updated food safety guidelines specifically for Super Bowl Sunday. Last year’s document had a more serious yet positive approach. It focused on do’s instead of don’ts. Staff writer Chris Berstein offered Food “Safety” Plays.
Safe chicken wings are cooked at the proper temperature. An oil temperature of 375 degrees should cook wings to a safe internal temperature of 165 degrees. Several wings per batch should be temperature checked on a clean plate.
A safe food buffet keeps hot food hot and cold food cold. Hot foods should be on a food warmer at 140 degrees minimum. Cold foods can be kept on ice. A Halftime “rule” says that all foods that have been on a buffet since before the game need to be discarded and replaced with fresh items at halftime.
A safe kitchen towel is only touched with clean hands. Wash hands with soap and water for 20 seconds to avoid spreading bacteria. Frequently put towels in the washer and replace them with fresh ones to avoid contamination. Never reuse paper towels, which are for single use only.
The current simplified food safety guideline uses a four-word mantra: Clean, Separate, Cook, Chill. Clean hands, surfaces and all serving items. Use separate cutting boards, platters and utensils for various items. Cook all foods to the required temperatures. Keep cold foods chilled and all unused items refrigerated or frozen.
Learn more at FoodSafety.gov. For answers to questions about food safety, call the USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline at 1-888MPHotline.
Many here will be crying in their beer as two local favorites, the 49ers and the Bills. did not make the cut again this year. With the past behind us, we can watch the game free of anxiety. Our blood pressure should be better if we don’t spike it by overeating.
(Janet Miller’s e-book, Family Prayers and Activities: Weekly Guides, is for families or prayer groups. Janet is the creator of Friends on the Way, an e-resource for churches to teach families about the Bible and discipleship. Find it at www.TeamRCIA.com.)
