To wash or not to wash?
There seems to be a neverending food debate about whether or not to wash or rinse your raw chicken before cooking it. I often wondered if it was a regional practice. Or was it how you were brought up and taught from those you learned to cook from. I did a lot of reading and asking around. It didn't seem to fit into one box or another on answering why some people wash and some do not.
I will tell you now, I am on team NO WASH! I will share the reasons why you should not wash your chicken before cooking it. For example, it can do more harm and spread more bacteria, like salmonella. Safe food handling has been important to me most of my life. When I recertified my certificate in 2000, chicken safety was the #1 thing used as an example of what to focus on during the classes and the testing process.
There is a good reason for that, the safe handling of chicken and your surroundings when cooking chicken is very important. Every cooking show on the Food Network includes a bit of hand washing as the cooks do their meal prep. But have you ever seen them rinse off their chicken? Maybe I missed an episode but I have never seen them do this. And have you ever seen Gordon Ramsey on Master Chef scream - "IT'S RAW" - and throw a plate full of undercooked chicken in the trash? There is no mystery how serious food handling and cooking can be.
Should You Wash Raw Chicken .....
Why You Should NOT Wash Your Chicken
Bacteria Spreads and Can Contaminate Other Things
There is really only one reason to NOT wash your chicken - FOOD SAFETY!
Washing your chicken spreads possible bacteria. It can contaminate other areas in your kitchen that you may not realize and be cautious about. Washing chicken also gives you a false sense of cleanliness. You may think your chicken is safer and not worry about washing hands and surfaces as thoroughly. You may also think that cooking it to the right temperature is not as worrisome as well. All of this is a food safety nightmare.
Chances of Getting Salmonella from Chicken
Think about it. When splashing water hits the raw chicken it will likely splatter any possible germs onto other surfaces. For example, salmonella is now not just on the chicken, but is in your sink, splashed up on the counter, onto a random utensil, and on the faucet handle. A few minutes later, your child comes in to rinse off an apple to eat for a snack. They grab the faucet handle, turn on the water, rinse the apple, turn off the water, and rotate the apple back to that same hand that touched the salmonella splashed faucet and start eating the apple. ICK!!!!
The chances of getting salmonella from raw or undercooked chicken increase when proper food handling is not followed. Wondering if all raw chicken has salmonella? According to the CDC, as many as 1 in 25 packages of chicken at the grocery store can have salmonella. That means 4% of all chicken has salmonella. Even the CDC says to NOT wash chicken in this recent ARTICLE
Not convinced yet because this is always what you have done and Grandma still does it this way? But still not convinced because you think raw chicken that is not rinsed would be unclean and can be more dangerous to eat. Keep on reading. Because safe food handling and cooking to the right temperature is all you need to worry about. Washing chicken is not the correct practice.
What You Should Do to Prevent Food Poisoning
- Keep raw chicken in disposable bags in your grocery cart. Pack in separate grocery bags that are not shared with fruits and vegetables.
Keep raw chicken wrapped in disposable bags
- Always wash your hands with a lot of soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds after handling the chicken. Make sure you get under any jewelry and your fingernails.
- You can also use disposable gloves when handling raw chicken. I advise still washing your hands after removing the gloves. You cannot be 100% sure that you didn't still contaminate your hands during the glove removal process. My husband always uses gloves when he touches any sort of raw meat. Here are some gloves that work great.
- NEVER put cooked chicken or other food onto a surface that touched the raw chicken. If you grill chicken and bring the raw chicken outside on a platter to transfer to the grill, get a new serving platter to transfer the cooked chicken before serving.
- Use a separate cutting board, knives, and utensils for raw chicken. Do not share with any other foods, even those you plan to cook as well. I always have many cutting boards to choose from and keep them separate when I am prepping food. I recommend this cutting board pack to keep your food safe.
What Temperature Do You Cook Chicken To?
- Chicken is ALWAYS COOKED TO AT LEAST 165° internal temperature. Never anything less. There is no such thing as medium-rare chicken.
- DO NOT GUESS or just cut and peak. For one, you can be wrong and eat chicken that is not safe. And for the love of juicy meat, you cut that chicken there go all the juices. NO!!!!
- I love this quick read meat thermometer for no matter what way I cook my chicken it works great. It is great when grilling, baking, or frying any meats. The digital readout has a backlight which makes it easy to read for everyone. It is also magnetic so ready to grab quickly when the time comes.
There are 17,000+ positive reviews on Amazon for this instant-read thermometer, a must-buy!!
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Do you wash chicken before marinating?
The answer here is the same as I shared above. For the safest food-handling of raw chicken, never rinse or wash it. Doing so simply spreads the chicken bacteria to other surfaces like your sink, counter, or even on your skin should it splash.
The Best Way to Marinate Chicken
To marinate raw chicken, place it in a deep-rimmed dish. This will ensure none of the marinade or raw chicken juices splash or escape. You want to contain all the liquid. Add your favorite marinade or one of my homemade recipes. For an easy recipe with bold flavors like garlic and citrus, try Lemon Pepper Marinade.
In case your chicken is not defrosted yet, try to marinate frozen chicken. It is not ideal but it can be done if you follow those steps. It does take a day or so still and is not a quick way to have dinner tonight so keep that in mind.
PIN FOR SAFEKEEPING & SHARING!
Should You Wash Raw Chicken PIN
Chicken Recipes to Enjoy
Now that you know the basics of food safety when handling raw chicken, now to move on to enjoying it in some wonderful recipes. Here are some great chicken recipes that you and your family will love:
Lora Rovegna says
It's amazing how much of a debate there is about this. I washed chicken when I was younger but stopped many years ago. I will never forget an Iron Chef saying not to wash it first because cooking the chicken does the job.
Angela says
Great, glad you came over from the 'dark side' - haha!
Christina Siwik says
I agree with you. I do not wash my raw chicken. I also disinfect all utensils and surfaces when I am done preparing it.
Sydney Delong says
Thanks for the info! Nothing grosses me out more than an undercooked chicken!
Holly says
I'm with you no wash chicken...but habit makes me bathe my Turkey! Thank you for the tips!
Lee Anne says
I am on the "no wash" team!
Lucinda says
My husband always rinses chicken, probably because that's how his parents do it. It's nice to know that this is one step I can continue to skip!
Tricia Snow says
I have always felt like I could be spreading germs by washing chicken. But you do what you are told when it comes to this. Great tips!
Lisa Manderino says
I am on team no wash as well! I didn't know it was a debate though so I am glad I am doing it right!
Emily says
I am also a believer in NOT washing chicken!
Debbie says
Hmm sounds like I need to stop washing and get out the thermometer! Thanks for sharing!
Angela says
Yes, yes it does!
Noelle says
I loved your tip about putting chicken in its own bag. I hate picking up meat at the grocery store and having it leak on my hands and have nothing to wipe my hands on! So gross. We tend to have more trouble with our beef leaking for some reason though.
Angela says
Yes, always bag it. For a long time, I always put extra bags from the produce area into my car to then use at the meat section. About 4-5 years ago I think I noticed bags in our meat section, plus paper towels. The paper towels may dry the juices but they sure will not disinfect your hands.
Cindy says
I am glad to know the answer, I have heard both sides of that argument as well. The chicken dishes you showed look amazing.
Angela says
Glad I can help and I hope you try out some of my chicken recipes!
Lucy says
Lol well.... I have chicken defrosting in my kitchen sink right now and this is the first time I EVER hear about this. Makes complete sense so is def a topic I will be looking into a bit more
heather J jandrue says
I never thought to wash mine. I may pat it with a paper towel before putting seasoning on it, but that is it.
Candy says
Wow! I never thought about this before. I guess we are team no-wash as well!
Jennifer says
I prefer to pack meat separate for everything else when shopping.
Beth Shields says
Great reminders for food safety. Appreciate it. Love the recipes. Thanks! I follow up on FB.
Lisa S says
Thank you for this tip and bit of information. We do not wash our chicken either!
Brianna says
I never knew about the chance that bacteria could spread if you wash your chicken. I never do. Mostly because I’m lazy lol but I always wash my hands to avoid any cross contamination. Great post
Ramae Hamrin says
Excellent post! I have long been grossed out by raw chicken. I even went so far as to use the plastic bags to touch the package of chicken, so I never got any raw chicken germs on my bare hands. Many have given me sideways looks in the grocery store. I don't even have the stuff around anymore. I have a compromised immune system, so I won't take the chance. I do, however, have a meat thermometer like the one you had here that I use for fish. I also keep my kitchen stocked with those plastic gloves. And I'm seriously considering ordering those cutting boards. I LOVE the colors, and what a great idea to have one for meat and another for smelly stuff like onions. 😊
Angela says
I am glad you are careful and use similar products. Let me know if you like the cutting boards as much as we do. I have to admit I probably have way too many cutting boards but I do cook a lot!
judean says
Phew - I was team NO Rinse and was hoping this post wouldn't change my team! Glad we are on the same page!
Angela says
Glad it was the ending you were looking for -
Suzan says
We grow our own chickens for meat so this worry is somewhat diminished. Great tips on safe handling!
Christina Furnival says
I'm glad to know it can do more harm than good, because it simply grosses me out to wash it! Ha.
vanessa says
This is too funny. I was just having a conversation with my mom about this.
Angela says
I love that - so were you Team Wash or Team No Wash?
Beatriz says
Great fight over this indeed! My mom thought to wash and latinos wash but with Lemon and Salt. I am definitely in the no wash!
jen says
Thank god you are posting no nonsense smart articles. I need this in my life as i am kitchen inept.
Angela says
Ah Jen - you can do it! Glad I can help, you got this...
Lisa says
I've always wondered about this and this article helped a lot!
T.M. Brown says
These are GREAT tips for the beginning cook! It's a struggle, but I've been working hard to get the boys to recognize the need for food handling. It's not a foreign concept because we have to be wary of cross contamination due to food allergies ~ but the chicken thing? Sometimes they just don't get it.
Susan says
I'm glad you cleared this up. My grandparents always told me to wash everything first... but I could never see the point. Yea team "NO WASH"... 🙂
Kendra says
I used to wash my chicken before cooking when I was young, but not anymore. Great post!