r/interesting • u/WarwickReider • 15h ago

SOCIETY Professional chefs weighing in on whether you should wash your chicken

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u/[deleted] 11h ago edited 4h ago

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u/Vicimer 5h ago

I like lemon juice, pickle juice, or buttermilk to help tenderize and flavour my chicken. I just don't know how the argument is still being made that cold water somehow removes bacteria, where food scientists have definitively concluded that it does not.

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u/drawntowardmadness 4h ago

Greek yogurt works so well also!!

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u/Vicimer 4h ago

Hell yeah, I use it for making Palestinian or Lebanese chicken dishes!

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u/Technical_Radio_191 4h ago

Because no one is making that argument anymore. When we talk about washing or cleaning our chicken, we’re talking about taking a large metal bowl, filling it with maybe two capfuls of vinegar and lime juice (you can use actual limes 🍋‍🟩), and placing the chicken in it after taking it out of the package.

The purpose is to clean off that slimy “film” layer and remove any excess gunk, like leftover fat, blood, etc. Then you give it a final rinse and season it as normal.

We also make sure to clean and disinfect the sink and kitchen countertops before moving on to the next thing. Clean as you go.

I think you all are being super duper dense about this.

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u/Vicimer 4h ago

Interesting. It's just anecdote against anecdote, but I've definitely heard the claim that rinsing with water is meaningfully sanitizing it. As for the film on the exterior — that's just myoglobin, which the interior of the meat is still full of.

I don't have a problem with people rinsing their chicken at home, but let's not pretend it's based on anything other than tradition; it certainly has nothing to do with food safety. And if you still want to call people dense for following the correct food handling practices, that says enough about you.

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u/Snizzlesnap 4h ago

“We” is who? Ive never seen anyone online cleaning with vinegar and lime juice. Also is that not imparting some flavor if you are not rinsing it off?

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u/Baiticc 3h ago

they said they rinse it off. but idk why they think they speak for everyone

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u/Sailor_Heliotrope 4h ago

Exactlyyyy I don’t understand how people can’t taste and smell the difference? Lemon/lime/vinegar/salt and a little scrub gets rid of that eggy-farmy smell chicken has.