Do your kids love chicken nuggets? Cook completely to keep them safe

(NC) A classic family favourite that’s always a hit with the kids is chicken nuggets. As a parent, you know your kids love chicken nuggets, fingers and burgers, and you love them too because cooking them is a cinch. But did you know that this popular food choice has been linked to Salmonella, which can make you sick?

While some frozen breaded chicken products are pre-cooked, many are raw. Over the last year and a half, public health officials across Canada have found hundreds of confirmed cases of illness linked to frozen raw breaded chicken products.  The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has issued food recall warnings for several different products. For every confirmed illness reported, there are many more unreported cases, affecting a broad range of Canadians.

To keep your family healthy, follow these simple tips to safely cook and handle chicken nuggets:

1. Know what you’re buying, serving and eating. While frozen raw breaded chicken products may appear to be pre-cooked or browned, they contain raw chicken that can make you sick if it is not properly handled or fully cooked.

2. Cook according to package directions. You need to cook these products completely following the package instructions, even when the items are labelled “uncooked,” “cook and serve,” “ready to cook” and “oven ready.”

3. Use a digital food thermometer. Insert it through the side of the meat, all the way to the middle, and make sure the internal temperature is at least 74°C (165°F) to ensure your chicken nuggets are safe to eat. Note that oven-safe thermometers designed for testing whole poultry and roasts during cooking, are not suitable for testing nuggets, strips or burgers.

4. Never microwave your nuggets. Always cook them in the oven. Don’t use a microwave to cook frozen raw breaded chicken products because uneven heating could leave them undercooked and unsafe to eat.

5. Prep and clean carefully. Be sure to wash your hands, serving dishes, cutting boards and utensils thoroughly before and after handling frozen raw breaded chicken products, just as you would with raw chicken. This helps reduce the chance of spreading harmful bacteria from the frozen nuggets to other things in your home.

Find more information at Canada.ca/FoodSafety.