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Practical kitchen guide

Food safety in the home kitchen: clean, separate, cook and chill

Food safety works best as part of the kitchen layout and routine rather than a checklist remembered at the end.

CleanSeparateCookChill

Last reviewed: August 10, 2026 · By Clara M. Ashbourne

Clean

FDA's first step is clean: wash hands and keep counters, utensils and food-contact surfaces appropriately clean. Cleaning is most effective when sinks, soap and drying space are easy to reach.

Separate

Keep raw meat, poultry, seafood and their juices away from ready-to-eat foods. Use separate boards or thoroughly clean food-contact equipment before it moves to another task.

Cook

Use a food thermometer and current safe-minimum-temperature guidance for foods where an internal temperature target applies.

Chill

Refrigerate perishable foods promptly and keep the refrigerator at an appropriate safe temperature. For detailed storage times, use the current FoodSafety.gov cold-storage guidance.

Design the workflow to reduce mistakes

Keep raw-food prep physically separated from finished-food plating when possible, make clean containers easy to reach and avoid reusing a plate or utensil that held raw food unless it has been properly cleaned.

For food safety, use current public-health guidance and a food thermometer when temperature matters. For powered appliances, hot surfaces and specialized equipment, follow the current manufacturer instructions.