Be careful!

Food safety is paramount. Last week while chatting to an old friend I learnt that he’d been unwell. In the course of the conversation he told me he’d reheated some left-over curry and rice. That led me to wobble on about the risk from bacillus cereus, a bacteria many people won’t have heard of, which can cause food poisoning. We’re all aware (I hope) of salmonella from undercooked chicken and listeria from soft cheeses, but bacillus cereus is less well known. It grows on cooked rice grains which are left uncovered and unchilled. Sitting a bowl of rice salad on a bed of ice only cools the grains around the sides of the bowl, not the centre, so it’s something to avoid at buffets. Food poisoning is very unpleasant so make sure food is cooked thoroughly, then kept cool and covered. If you need to reheat food make sure it’s piping hot all the way through – stay safe!