Proper produce prepping

From wjfw.com: “Proper produce prepping” —  Rhinelander – The recent listeria outbreak in cantaloupes has many people thinking twice before reaching for that favorite produce item.

Here’s some tips to keep you healthy.

Sometimes bacteria and pesticides make it from the farm to the store.

Jim Bonjean is the Assistant Manager at Walmart and says they have to inspect their produce before it makes the shelves. “For instance beets come in and they’re dirty, we wash it and then we put it on the counter.”

At Nicolet College, Culinary Arts Instructor Kevin Brown deals with produce everyday and has a few tips for you.

Bacteria not on your hands, like listeria, will hide in the grooves of our fruits and veggies. “If you have a vegetable that has grooves in it like potatoes and melons, for instance, use a gentle brush on them.”

Brown also says to run cool water over them with your hands, and to not fill up your sink and let them sit in the water. “It won’t clean it, it needs the action of the cool running water with your hands to rub it away.”

But some veggies harbor bacteria in different places.

“For instance if your washing lettuce, lettuce may have some bruised or cut edges on it, bacteria love to hide in those spots.” Brown says to remember not to cross contaminate your veggies when working with other raw products by keeping them separated and keeping you healthy.

Brown also says bacteria can be transferred into the center of melons by cutting it without washing first.