Food Safety Tips for Your Big Game Party

We’re all getting excited for football’s biggest game as the list for top contenders gets shorter and shorter! Of course the best part of the Big Game might not be football, but the viewing party — it’s certainly our favorite part! But we want to make sure we’re hosting a safe party — starting with the food. Here are 3 important food safety tips for your Big Game party

Keep Cold Food Cold… Bacteria grows fastest in food when it’s at temperatures between 40℉ and 140℉ — in the food industry, they call it the “Temperature Danger Zone.” If you’re hosting a party, make sure food like dairy-based dips, shrimp or deviled eggs are kept on ice to keep their temperatures under 40℉.

Quick tip: fill a cute baking dish with ice and place your bowls or platters with cold food on top of it.

…and Hot Food Hot If you’re serving hot dips — keep them in the slow cooker so you can maintain the safe temperature (140℉). If you’re serving meat, make sure it’s thoroughly cooked (beef and pork should be cooked to 145℉; chicken should be cooked to 165℉) and hot-held at 140℉. Any casseroles and ground meat of any kind should be cooked to 165℉ and held at 140℉. If anything needs to be reheated, it should be reheated to 165℉. If anything has been left at room temperature for more than two hours, throw it away.

Quick tip: Use your oven as a warmer. Set it at 200℉ to keep casseroles warm between plays and it’s not being served.

If you’re going to a Big Game party and you’re bringing the hot dip or a casserole, there are slow cooker carriers and NFL casserole carriers that will help keep your food hot while you’re traveling.

Think Small Serve dips and snacks in small quantities. There are two reasons for this: 1) you’ll have more control over the serving temperature to keep the food safe — and reduce the risk of it staying at room temperature for too long and 2) you’ll reduce the risk of contaminating items like chips and nuts by having too many hands in the bowls. It’s a little bit more work to continually refill everything, but it’s worth the work if no one gets sick at your party.

We’d all love to be able to serve the food and forget about it to watch the Big Game, but food needs monitoring. Following a few food safety tips will keep your guests healthy and your party successful!