Safe Internal Temperatures
Color and firmness lie; a thermometer does not. Cooking food to its safe minimum internal temperature is what actually kills the bacteria that cause foodborne illness.
Harmful bacteria are invisible, and chicken can look cooked through while still holding enough to make you sick. The only proof is the temperature at the thickest part.
Memorize the safe minimums. Poultry, whole or ground: 165°F (74°C). Ground beef and pork: 160°F (71°C). Whole cuts of beef, pork, and fish: 145°F (63°C) plus a three-minute rest.
Guessing costs you safety or a good meal, usually both. An inexpensive instant-read thermometer removes the guess, turning doneness into a simple reading.
Temp it, don't eyeball it
Probe the thickest part
Slide the thermometer into the deepest, densest part of the food, away from bone, fat, and the pan, where it heats slowest. That coldest spot is the one that has to reach the target.
Hit the standard minimums
Cook to the tested safe minimum for what you are making, then pull it from the heat. When in doubt, these are the numbers.
- Poultry, whole or ground: 165°F / 74°C
- Ground beef and pork: 160°F / 71°C
- Whole beef, pork, fish: 145°F / 63°C, then rest
Clean the probe between foods
Wash the stem with hot soapy water after checking raw meat so you don't carry bacteria from one food to the next on the tool itself.
You cannot see a safe temperature, taste it, or wish it. You can only measure it.
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