Food Handling and Storage - Pasta

Of all the foods that require safe storage and handling, pasta is not the most likely to warrant attention. What's easier than pasta, right? Buy quality dry pasta, cook, drain, and keep it covered and stored cold until needed.

But pasta requires more food safety measures. When it comes to safety, the best place to start is with cleanliness. Keeping the kitchen clean is paramount for preventing foodborne illness. In every kitchen, contamination is always a concern, especially cross-contamination, and when making pasta from scratch, prevention is the best course.

Most fresh pasta is made with raw eggs, so working neatly and in a sanitized area is a must. Start by scrubbing the prep table well with soapy hot water, and finishing with a local health department-approved sanitizer. Working in a clean space is always important, but when spreading out flour, raw eggs and water, the area should be spotless, because fresh dough is a sponge for bacteria. The two types of bacteria associated with raw eggs and pasta are salmonella and bacillus cereus. Salmonella is an unfortunately prevalent bacterium in kitchens and one of the easiest to cross-contaminate with other surfaces and foods. The staff must be habitual about cleaning and sanitizing cutting boards, prep areas and their hands, both before and after handling items like poultry and raw eggs, thus controlling possible contamination.

The other bacterium, bacillus cereus, is lesser known than salmonella, though tied to starchy foods like pasta. This bacteria forms when cooling and holding times and temperatures are not held to code. For pasta, this is especially true for cooling the product after cooking. Dry pasta that is precooked for service in bulk then held for reheating during service is at the greatest risk for bacillus cereus. The critical time is after cooking and draining. The pasta needs to be spread out onto a sheet pan and cooled as soon as possible. The mistake often made is when the pasta is moved into a storage container with a lid and placed in a cold box. That is where the bacteria begin to grow, and at a warm temperature will flourish.