“Although this seems to be a common step in preparation among home cooks and was recommended in the past, professional chefs do not typically rinse poultry,” he says.
This is because washing raw chicken can spread food poisoning bacteria around your kitchen. The spray from the sink can travel up to 80cm - an arm's length. So be safe, protect your family and never wash raw chicken.
It is not recommended to wash chicken meat before cooking. This recommendation has the endorsement of the Food Safety Information Council (FSIC). Washing is likely to splash raw meat juices and any bacteria in to the kitchen sink, bench top and utensils and washing will not remove all bacteria.
According to the USDA, you should not wash raw poultry or any other meat, because you may spread potential bacteria in the poultry juices to other foods, utensils, and surfaces.
Even when consumers think they are effectively cleaning after washing poultry, this study shows that bacteria can easily spread to other surfaces and foods. The best practice is not to wash poultry.”
USDA research found that washing or rinsing meat or poultry increases the risk for cross-contamination in the kitchen, which can cause foodborne illness.
Wash hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds before and after handling chicken. Raw chicken is ready to cook. It doesn't need to be washed first. According to a USDA study, 1 in 7 people who cleaned their sink after washing chicken still had germs in the sink.
“Although this seems to be a common step in preparation among home cooks and was recommended in the past, professional chefs do not typically rinse poultry,” he says.
Australian chickens are given a bath in chlorine during processing that knocks out most of the naturally occurring campylobacter and salmonella on the chicken skin – but not all the bugs. There is a lot of water used in processing and when packaged this water and some of the serum from the flesh leaches out.”
Raw chicken (and other poultry or meat) can be contaminated with bacteria that may cause foodborne illnesses such as campylobacter and salmonella, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Washing raw poultry in a diluted lemon juice or vinegar solution is an inefficient method for removing pathogens and results in pathogens both in the wash water and on the chicken, increasing the risk for cross contamination and potential foodborne illness.
Again, it's cultural. “Everyone I saw in the kitchen, including my mother, cleaned their meat before seasoning. My mother used acid—warm water and lemons or vinegar—to wash meat. This was especially true for chicken.”
Do not rinse raw meat and poultry before cooking. Washing these foods makes it more likely for bacteria to spread to areas around the sink and countertops.
Make sure juices from raw meat and poultry do not come into contact with other foods. Thoroughly clean all utensils, equipment and surfaces after preparing raw meat and poultry before contact with other foods. If possible use a separate cutting board specifically for raw meat and chicken.
Natural way to tenderize
To ensure tender meat, Chinese cooks wash it thoroughly. The meat is tenderized as they rinse the meat and wring it out (via Milk Street).
In professional kitchens most chefs enforce the “clean as you go” rule, which prevents unsightly messes from building to unmanageable levels and removes clutter, which can distract even the most efficient cooks as they chop, grill, and plate through the evening.
Don't rinse meat before cooking.
Many people believe you should wash or rinse raw poultry, beef, pork, lamb or veal before cooking, but it's actually not necessary. Any bacteria that might be on it will be killed during the cooking process. In fact, rinsing meat before cooking it can actually do more harm than good.
Roughly 90 percent of people say they wash their chicken before cooking it, as recipes have historically called for chicken washing. In addition, it's thought the practice started because people wanted to rinse the slime off of just-opened chicken pieces.
Food safety authorities and regulators around the world recommend you don't wash raw poultry before cooking. That's because washing chicken can splash dangerous bacteria around the kitchen. It's best just to thoroughly cook the chicken without washing it, so it is safe to eat.
Use a digital food thermometer to check that the thickest part of your chicken is at least 165 °F (74 °C). This is the best way to tell if it's cooked. Look for other signs of doneness like a firm texture, clear or white-ish juices running from the chicken, and a white or very light pink internal meat color.
Raw chicken can be contaminated with numerous pathogenic bacteria including Campylobacter, Salmonella, and Clostridium Perfringens, all of which can lead to foodborne illness.
Apparently a thing in Japan — where it is known as torisashi — and available at a handful of culinarily adventurous American restaurants, chicken sashimi is pretty much what it sounds like: raw chicken.
The biggest concern with washing raw chicken is the increased risk of spreading foodborne illnesses. Raw chicken and its juices can carry harmful bacteria like Campylobacter or Salmonella, both of which can cause food-borne illness.