Healthy BBQ Tips – Salisbury Post

Tips for a healthy barbecue

Published at 00:00 on Saturday June 8, 2024

By Tanya Freirich

For the Salisbury post

As the weather warms up, summer barbecues, picnics and other outdoor meals could fill your schedule. Registered Dietitian Tanya Freirich is here to share how to eat healthily and safely at upcoming summer events!

Above all, the best way to ensure there are healthy offerings is to bring one! Easy barbecue ideas include a big fruit salad, fruit skewers, or vegetable and chicken skewers for the grill. If you’re hosting a potluck outside, consider bringing a vegetable dish. If your specialty is pasta salad, consider adding more vegetables. A green salad made with watermelon, feta cheese and cucumbers is easy and refreshing. Or consider a black bean, corn, tomato, avocado, and cilantro salad as a great source of protein for vegetarians or vegans.

When it comes to food safety, there are many things to keep in mind during the hot summer months.

On the way to the event, place cold foods in a cooler containing ice or frozen gel packs. Everything should be kept at 40 degrees or lower to prevent bacterial growth. Keep coolers closed to maintain this temperature. Consider separating the beverage cooler from the food cooler to minimize the frequency of opening the top of the cooler.

Avoid cross-contamination by keeping raw meat, poultry and seafood that will be grilled away from any prepared foods such as fruits, vegetables or cold salads. Juices from these unprepared proteins can easily lead to food poisoning.

In addition, when preparing the products, do not forget to rinse and scrub with a clean vegetable brush the outer peels that will not be consumed. For example, with watermelon, if it is not washed, the knife you use to cut it can carry bacteria and dirt from the rind inside the fruit.

On the grill, make sure to cook the meat well. Undercooking ground meats like hamburgers is particularly dangerous because when the meat is ground, bacteria from the outside can move to the center of the hamburger and not be killed if it is undercooked. Consider bringing turkey burgers or lettuce, tomatoes and onions to add on top.

During the event, do not let food sit for more than two hours. If the outside temperature is 90 degrees or higher, food should only sit for a maximum of one hour. Remember, it’s not just meat that can make you sick: mayonnaise-based egg, potato, and tuna salads or dairy-based dishes can just as easily lead to food poisoning.

Finally, if you choose to consume alcohol, be sure to alternate each alcoholic drink with a glass of water. It’s very easy to become dehydrated in the summer heat and can quickly become worse with alcohol. Plus, having seltzers can be a fun way to hydrate while enjoying a flavored drink without added sugars.

I hope everyone has a safe, happy and healthy summer barbecue season.

Tanya Freirich MS RDN CDCES is a registered dietitian. You can find her online at www.thelupusdietitian.com and as @TheLupusDietitian on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok. Additionally, anyone can schedule a nutrition appointment with Tanya at the Rowan Diagnostic Clinic at 611 Mocksville Avenue.

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