Food Safety Magazine, August/September 2009

vals. However, I insist that all potentially hazardous foods received shall be monitored and the temperature logged or recorded on the invoice or receiving report. In addition, I encourage some consistent form of daily time and temperature record keeping of cold-holding equipment. I do not insist that the records are kept in English or use the Latin alphabet. If the establishment wants to use cuneiform and hieroglyphs, this is OK with me, just as long as the restaurant’s workforce can read it and knows its significance. After all, record keeping is for the folks who prepare and serve the food. I feel that becoming comfortable with record keeping is an important teaching tool in establishing a comprehensive food safety program.

enforcement, they have become absolutely essential parameters in evaluating the safety of ethnic foods. To do a credible evaluation, consider adding a portable water activity meter and a selection of three different types of pH monitors that include a sturdy portable potentiometer, pH papers and pH liquid indicators; each has a specific use. I have also added a Brix/salinity refractometer to my arsenal to measure and catalog

brine and sugar solutions unique to certain menu items.

For measuring cooking and both cold and hot holding temperatures in ethnic food kitchens, the infrared thermometer with spot or laser targeting is still the best and most convenient screening tool. However, for taking direct temperature measurements using the thermocouple thermometer, the single-needle probe

(continued on page 68)

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Because many ethnic dishes use unusual methods of preparation and even more exotic ingredients, by adding a few simple instruments and instrument components to the sanitarian’s inspection tools, a more comprehensive and quantitative evaluation is possible. These additional tools help the sanitarian identify critical issues that can easily be overlooked.

The latest iteration of the Food Code included an expanded definition of potentially hazardous foods to include pH and water activity. These two factors figure prominently in many ethnic food ingredients. Consider how foods were preserved before the invention of the modern refrigerator: heating to kill or denature organisms, oxidation, toxic inhibition, dehydration, osmotic inhibition, chelating and combinations of these methods. Add to this the many modern modes of preserving the flavor and texture of prepared ethnic foods. These may include freezing, modified atmosphere or vacuum packaging, canning and bottling, jellying, jugging and potting—just to name a few. With such a broad spectrum of choices, we can no longer rely on a bimetal thermometer and luck. While I was admonished that the addition of water activity and pH to the Food Code were not meant for local

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