19 Safety Practices in the kitchen
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The kitchen is one of the most functional areas in the house where foods are made. Apart from food, other activities like dishes, cleaning, and many more are performed in the kitchen. Therefore, there is the need that an individual who uses the kitchen for any reason must know safety practices that are needed to be put in place to use the kitchen effectively and efficiently.
This article will emphasize the 19 basic tips to use kitchen and safety practices every kitchen user must know and follow to be safe while using the kitchen.
Many kitchen utensils are needed to be handled with care. Spoon, Gass cooker, stove, Knives, among others, can be dangerous if used with negligence.
What is Kitchen Safety Practice?
Kitchen safety practices are those rules guiding the uses of the kitchen. Varying from the Kitchen room, appliances, and the cook. These kitchen practices help an individual who uses the kitchen to avoid any form of unplanned accident in the kitchen.
The 19 safety practices in the kitchen are;
1. Label each container
2. Use proper Container for storage
3. Utensils arrangements
4. Avoid traffic obstruction in the kitchen
5. Make use of shelves
6. Avoid Spilling on the floor
7. Mop Often
8. Do not touch Electrical Appliances with a wet hand
9. Put Off the Cooking Gas after use
10. Put Off Electric Appliances after use
11. Avoid Faulty Electrical Appliances
12. Repair Faulty Appliances Before Use
13. Use Padded Pot Holder
14. Practice Kitchen Ventilation
15. Keep utensils out of reach of children
16. Do not leave the plate and cutleries unwashed in the kitchen
17. Cover all the food in the kitchen
18. Clean the kitchen Often
19. Services and appliances replacement
In Details:
1. Label each container
Labeling every container in the kitchen clearly will help you to remember where you kept your stuff. Also, this practice will help to avoid some mistakes in the kitchen. For instance, Salt and Sugar may look alike but they serve different purposes in the kitchen. Labeling salt containers differently from sugar containers will help you to make use of the exact substance you need at that particular time.
Another one is that, when containers are well labeled in the kitchen, it helps the kitchen users to know the number of ingredients remaining and if there will be a need to buy more of such ingredients.
2. Use proper Container for storage
Do not store bleaches in fruit containers, It can be dangerous. Use appropriate containers to store cooking ingredients in the kitchen.
Just like the first tip, after storing your ingredients, make sure that each container is well labeled. Even at that, make sure you check the contents of each container before using it.
3. Utensils Arrangements
Spoon, spatula, cotton board, fork, etc. Are kitchen utensils that should the arranged properly in the kitchen. A small cupboard in the kitchen can be a great help when it comes to utensils arrangements. Some utensils like knives can be dangerous and should not be kept in the reach of the children.
4. Avoid traffic obstruction in the kitchen
Obstruction happens in the kitchen when the kitchen is not properly arranged. All foodstuffs should be in the warehouse or a room meant for foodstuffs. Arranging your kitchen properly will enable an individual who uses the kitchen to move freely in the kitchen and also perform tasks easily in the kitchen.
5. Make use of shelves
Shelve(s) in the kitchen can be used to store items. This will make it easy to notice any missing items in the kitchen and also, will help to detect finishing products so that they can be replaced.
Shelve can also serve as holders of some utensils like knives and other cutleries in the kitchen.
6. Avoid Spilling on the floor
Water on the floor inside the kitchen can be slippery and at the same time, dangerous. Avoid any form of spills. Water or any liquid substance should not be on the floor while cooking to avoid accidental falls.
7. Mop Often
Always Mop the kitchen floor to ensure that it is dry. This will help to keep the kitchen clean and odorless. Dry food also will prevent accidents in the kitchen. Remember children may not be able to control themselves in the kitchen like an adult.
8. Do not touch electrical appliances with a wet hand
Water is a bad conductor of electricity. Therefore, always make sure that your hand is not soaked or wet by water if you're going to use electrical appliances in the kitchen.
Do not switch or touch an electrical appliance with a Wet hand.
9. Put Off the Cooking Gas after use
Make sure the cooking gas is at its lowest range after cooking. Before leaving the kitchen, make sure that there is no leakage from the gas.
Gas is inflammable and won't hesitate to explore if there is a leakage.
Read Also: 7 things to do after using a meat slicer
10. Switch Off Electric Appliances after Use
Make sure that all the electric appliances used during cooking or boiling are properly switched off after use. Appliances such as Hot plate needs to be put aside immediately after use to avoid an unplanned accident.
11. Avoid Faulty Electrical Appliances
For safety reasons, all faulty appliances should be removed from the kitchen with immediate effect. Faulty appliances are very dangerous because of the electricity that it carries.
12. Repair Faulty Appliances Before Use
Another kitchen safety tip is repairing faulty electric appliances after detecting that it's faulty. This will prevent accidents in the kitchen and also will enable to carry out some tasks such as boiling and cooking with a rest of mind that the house at large is safe.
13. Use Padded Pot Holder Always
Either you use oven gloves or pot holder, just make sure that you do not carry a hot pot with your bare hands to avoid burns. These gloves will also help you to take in and out foods from the oven and on the cooking gas. This is another safety measure in the kitchen that can help to prevent or minimize kitchen accidents.
14. Practice Kitchen Ventilation
Kitchen ventilation is done by allowing fresh air / outdoor air into the kitchen. You can do this by opening kitchen glasses and curtains. This will in return keep the kitchen dry and odorless.
15. Keep utensils out of reach of children
Sharp utensils like tin cutters and knives, should be kept out of the reach of the children who may not be able to use these tools properly. This will prevent the children from hurting themselves with these tools.
16. Do not leave the plate and cutleries unwashed in the kitchen
Cleanliness they say is next to Godliness. Make sure that every plate and cutleries used are washed and stored properly after use.
17. Cover all the food in the kitchen
Do not let flies touch your food before eating such food. Some organisms can be dangerous when they touch your food and this can cause food poisoning. Make sure that your food is well covered after dishing it out.
18. Clean the kitchen Often
You can have a schedule for cleaning the kitchen to make it look good and a safe place for making meals. It can be a weekend or a day during the week. Just make sure that the kitchen is not dirty. This safety measure has to do with good health.
19. Service and Appliances Replacement
It is advisable to always check all the appliances in the kitchen. For instance, cooking gas needs services every 2 months of usage. Also, faulty appliances should either be fixed or replaced.
In Summary:
Safety measures or practice in the kitchen is very important and every kitchen user needs to follow these instructions to make use of the kitchen effectively and efficiently.
While some practices are for personal reasons, others are for health purposes. It is however advisable to keep these rules to be safe both physically and mentally.