Nutrition, Food and Diet
Storing Food
Keeping food in the fridge - Fridge Temperature should be between 0ºC and 5ºC
To help stop bacteria from growing:
- when the label says 'keep refrigerated', make sure you do keep the food in the fridge - if the food isn't labelled with any storage instructions and it's a type of food that goes off quickly, you should put it in the fridge and eat it within two days
- some jars and bottles need to be kept in the fridge once they’ve been opened - check the label and follow storage instructions
- when you're preparing food, keep it out of the fridge for the shortest time possible, especially when the weather or the room is warm
- if you have made some food (such as a sandwich or a cold dish) and you're not going to eat it straight away, keep it in the fridge until you're ready to eat it
- if you're having a party or making a buffet, leave the food in the fridge until people are ready to eat - you shouldn't leave food out of the fridge for more than four hours
- cool leftovers as quickly as possible (ideally within one to two hours) and then store them in the fridge - eat any leftovers within two days, except for cooked rice, which you should eat within one day to help avoid food poisoning
Storing meat
It's important to store meat safely to stop bacteria from spreading and to avoid food poisoning. You should:
- store raw meat and poultry in clean, sealed containers on the bottom shelf of the fridge, so they can't touch or drip onto other food
- follow any storage instructions on the label and don't eat meat after its 'use by' date
- when you have cooked meat and you're not going to eat it straight away, cool it as quickly as possible and then put it in the fridge or freezer
- keep cooked meat separate from raw meat
Keeping food in the freezer
You can keep food safely in the freezer for years as long as it stays frozen the whole time. But the taste and texture of food changes if it’s frozen for too long, so you might well find that it’s not very nice to eat.
You can check any instructions on food labels or in your freezer’s handbook (if you don’t have this anymore, you might be able to find it online) to see how long food should be frozen.
It's safe to freeze most raw or cooked foods providing you:
- freeze it before the 'use by' date
- follow any freezing or thawing instructions on the label
- thaw it in the fridge so that it doesn't get too warm, or, if you plan on cooking it as soon as it's defrosted, you could defrost it in a microwave
- try to use it within one to two days after it’s been defrosted – it will go off in the same way as if it were fresh
- cook food until it's steaming hot all the way through
When frozen meat and fish (and some other foods) thaw, lots of liquid can come out of them. If you’re defrosting raw meat or fish, this liquid will spread bacteria to any food, plates or surfaces that it touches. Keep the meat and fish in a sealed container at the bottom of the fridge, so that it can't touch or drip onto other foods.
Always clean plates, utensils, surfaces and hands thoroughly, after they have touched raw or thawing meat, to stop bacteria from spreading.
If you defrost raw meat or fish and then cook it thoroughly, you can freeze it again, but remember never reheat foods more than once.
Storing dry food in containers
Many types of food don't need to be kept in the fridge to keep them safe to eat, for example dry foods such as rice, pasta and flour, many types of drinks, tinned foods, and unopened jars. But it's still important to take care how you store them.
To store dry food safely:
- keep food in sealed bags or containers - this helps keep food fresh and stops anything falling into the food by accident
- don't store food or drinks near cleaning products or other chemicals
- don't use old food containers to store household chemicals, and don't store food in containers that have been used for other purposes
- only reuse undamaged plastic water bottles that you can clean
- don't store food on the floor, because this can encourage mice, ants and other pests
- keep the storage area dry and not too warm
Tin cans
When you open a can of food and you're not going to use all the food straight away, empty the food into a bowl, or another container, and put it in the fridge.
Don't store food in an opened tin can, or re-use empty cans to cook or store food. This is because when a can has been opened and the food is open to the air, the tin from the can might transfer more quickly to the can's contents.
This advice doesn't apply to foods sold in cans that have resealable lids, such as golden syrup and cocoa, because these types of food don’t react with the can.
nidirect government services - https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/storing-food-safely
Five reasons to get five portions
You should eat five portions of fruit and vegetables a day because:
- fruit and vegetables are delicious
- fruit and vegetables provide vitamins and minerals, including folate, vitamin C and potassium
- fruit and vegetables provide dietary fibre, which helps maintain a healthy gut and prevent constipation and other digestion problems - a diet high in fibre can also reduce your risk of bowel cancer
- fruit and vegetables can help reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke and some cancers
- fruit and vegetables contribute to a healthy and balanced diet
nidirect government services - https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/fruit-and-vegetables
Portion size
Aim for at least five portions (a total of 400g) of a variety of fruit and vegetables each day. One portion of fruit is roughly 80g, which could be half a large grapefruit, a slice of melon or two satsumas.
One portion of dried fruit is around 30g, about the same as 80g of whole fruit. One 30g portion could be three dried apricots or one tablespoon of raisins. Intake of dried fruits should be restricted until meal times to avoid tooth decay.
A portion could be:
- three heaped tablespoons of cooked carrots, peas or sweetcorn
- one cereal bowl of mixed salad
- three heaped tablespoons of beans and other pulse vegetables, such as kidney beans, lentils and chickpeas
Portion sizes for children
Portion sizes are different for children and depend on their age and size. As a rough guide, one portion is the amount that fits into the palm of their hand.
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