Safe Grilling…

                        Start to Finish

At the Store... Purchase meats just before checking out at the supermarket and refrigerate immediately at home in the meat compartment or coldest part of the refrigerator.

At Home... When using frozen beef, defrost in the refrigerator, never at room temperature.

In the Kitchen... Wash hands well with hot soapy water before and after handling raw meat and poultry and keep uncooked meat and poultry from coming into contact with other foods during preparation.

Wash all utensils, cutting surfaces and counters with hot soapy water after contact with uncooked meat and poultry.

Keep carving boards separate from other cutting boards.

Keep beef refrigerated until grilling time.

At the Grill... Never take beef off the grill and return it to the same platter that held uncooked beef.

After Your Great Beef Meal... Refrigerate leftovers promptly after serving (within 2 hours after cooking; 1 hour if in a warm place). Use the refrigerated leftovers within 3 to 4 days.

For more food safety tips check out our market-to-mealtime brochure Plating It Safe.

Determining doneness of beef is easy,

once you know how...

For steaks, an instant-read thermometer can be used as well and is recommended for steaks thicker than 1 ½ inches. Thinner steaks can be checked with a well-trained eye to assess the steak’s doneness when a small slit is made near the bone or the steak’s center to check for color (view our color guide for steak doneness). It is recommended that most steaks be enjoyed at medium-rare doneness (145°F), when the beef is still very pink in the center and slightly brown towards the exterior.

For ground beef, an instant-read thermometer is essential in determining doneness of burger patties which should be at least 160°F internal temperature (medium doneness), or when the centers are no longer pink and the juices run clear, showing no pink color.