20th Australian Total Diet Survey
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION - PART 5
FOOD PREPARATION INSTRUCTIONS
Boiling water
Except where other instructions are provided, ‘boiling water’ means that the food is to be boiled in ‘unsalted’ tap water.
Crush
When the preparation instruction states `crush’, then the following procedure is to be followed:
• Place food into a plastic bag;
• With a rolling pin, crush food so that the food pieces are no larger than half a centimetre in any one direction.
Chop
Except where other instructions are provided, 'chop' means that the food is to be chopped with a stainless steel knife into pieces no larger than 1 cubic centimetre. In most cases, it should be possible to chop into pieces much smaller than this, which is desirable.
Mix
When the preparation instruction states 'mix' or 'mix thoroughly', then the following procedure is to be followed:
(1) For dry foods (such as bran) or semi-dry foods (such as cooked chopped meat):
• Form the food into a cone or pile;
• Flatten the cone slightly and separate into four equal segments;
• Pull the segments apart so that four separate piles are formed;
• Combine diagonally opposite piles and mix together thoroughly;
• This process should be repeated until thorough mixing of the group of purchases has been achieved.
(2) For foods containing juice such as tomatoes and oranges:
• If possible, the food being prepared should be chopped in a large glass or stainless steel bowl so that all the juice is collected;
• Mixing of the chopped pieces is then done in the bowl using gloved hands or stainless steel cutlery and should be mixed as thoroughly as possible;
• For the purposes of the ATDS, any juice must be regarded as an integral part of the food being prepared for analysis. A proportional amount of juice and seeds must therefore be included in the sample containers.
(3) For liquids such as milk and wine:
• Liquids are to be measured into a large receptacle such as bowl or jug made of stainless steel or Pyrex. Plastic containers are to be avoided;
• The total volume added to the jug or bowl should be thoroughly stirred with a stainless steel utensil before being poured into the sample containers.
Cooking, Frying, Grilling
In the case of samples of meat, typical cooking behaviour was followed. For example, meat that is fried will exude fat. As the fried food was removed from the fry pan some fat remained in the fry pan and some remained on the cooked meat product. The fat remaining in the fry pan was discarded and only the fat on the cooked food was included for analysis.
Microwaving
The time required for microwaving depended upon the power of the microwave. Broccoli, beans and peas were required to be cooked by microwave. The following procedure is an example of what was used:
(1) Place 900 grams of broccoli, peas or beans into a glass/ Pyrex cooking dish that has a fitted lid and add one third of a cup of water;
(2) Place in 650-Watt microwave on high power setting for 7 minutes. Higher power microwaves should have the setting adjusted to medium or the time of cooking reduced as necessary. It may also be necessary to stir the vegetables during cooking to ensure even heat distribution;
(3) Remove from microwave and ALLOW TO COOL before handling.
GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS:
Gloves
Gloves are to be worn whenever the food being prepared could come into contact with hands.
The gloves to be used are Ansell rubber gloves not containing lubricant. Gloves will be provided by the State or Territory health departments.
Equipment
• Stainless steel knives.
• Wooden cutting board (good quality, smooth, crack free).
• Wooden rolling pin for crushing foods.
• Stainless steel or teflon coated utensils (i.e. frypans, spatulas etc.). Glass equipment can also be used provided it is Pyrex.
• Glass/Pyrex equipment can also be used. A dish with a fitted lid is required for microwave cooking.
• For the purposes of mixing liquids, a large stainless steel or Pyrex receptacle such as a jug or bowl is to be used.
• Avoid ceramic or enamel ware to ensure traces of cadmium or lead are not leached into the sample.
• Plastic bags for enclosing sample containers.
Washing of Equipment
Equipment is to be washed using only the detergent endorsed by AGAL, which is Neutracon and the ATDS liaison officers should have ensured that supplies of this detergent are available.
HANDLING PURCHASES IN THE FOOD PREPARATION FACILITY:
Each purchase, as provided by the purchasing officer, arrives in separate packaging. Fresh foods such as pears and chicken fillets were in separate packages labelled with the name of the food and the date of purchase. Manufactured, packaged foods were labelled clearly with the date of purchase. Purchases were in either lots of four or lots of nine.
Keeping Samples Separate
In those cases where nine purchases were made, care was taken to ensure no mixing of any kind between the three groups of samples. This meant careful cleaning of utensils between the three preparation procedures.
To ensure accuracy and to keep food samples separate, the procedure for preparing one sample in readiness for freezing, including labelling, was completed and all utensils were cleaned thoroughly before the preparation of the next sample was started.
Preparation Procedures
Where four purchases were provided, portions from each of these were mixed together and all utensils were thoroughly cleaned using the recommended detergent upon completion of the preparation.
FOOD | PREPARATION |
Almonds | Combine and mix. |
Apples | Unpeeled apples were cored and chopped and then mixed thoroughly. |
Bacon | Remove rind, chop and mix bacon and then fry until tender. |
Baked beans | Remove from can and mix thoroughly. |
Bananas | Remove skin, chop and mix together thoroughly. |
Beans, green, raw | Top and tail beans, remove ‘string’ and then microwave. |
Beef, minced | Dry fry until cooked. |
Biscuits, plain sweet | Crush and mix thoroughly. |
Biscuits, savoury | Crush and mix thoroughly. |
Bran, wheat, processed | Mix. |
Bread, white | Chop and mix. |
Bread, multigrain | Chop and mix. |
Breakfast cereals, mixed grains | Crush and mix. |
Breakfast cereals, single grains | Crush and mix. |
Broccoli | Microwave until cooked then chop and mix. |
Capsicum | Split and remove seeds, core and stalk. Chop and mix capsicum flesh. |
Carrots | Top, tail and peel to remove blemishes. Slice thinly. Boil in unsalted water. |
Celery | Separate celery stalks and trim of leaves and base of stalk then chop and mix. |
Cheese, cheddar | Chop into small cubes and mix. |
Chicken breasts | Cover with foil and bake in a moderately hot oven until cooked. Remove from bone and chop and mix. |
Coffee, instant | Prepare cup of coffee as per label directions and then mix. |
Dim sims | Chop and mix together thoroughly. |
Chocolate (milk chocolate) | As purchased. |
Eggs | Hard boil, remove shells. Chop and mix thoroughly. |
Fish fillets, raw, unfrozen | Cover with foil and bake until cooked thoroughly. Chop and mix. |
Fish portions | Cover with foil and bake until cooked thoroughly. Chop and mix. |
Grapes | Remove stalks, chop grapes and mix together. |
Hamburger | Chop and mix. |
Ice cream | Mix the contents. |
Infant cereal | Prepare in accordance with the label instructions and mix. |
Infant dessert | Mix the contents. |
Infant dinner, strained | Mix the contents. |
Infant formula, powder | Make up the formula according to manufacturers directions in a stainless steel or Pyrex bowl. Mix thoroughly. |
Kiwifruit | Chop with skin on and mix. |
Lamb chops | Grill, cut all the meat away from the bone and trim off excess fat. Chop the cooked meat as finely as possible. |
Lamingtons | Crumb and mix. |
Leg ham | Chop and mix. |
Lettuce | Remove any shrivelled outer leaves and roots, if any. Wash, chop and mix. |
Liver pate, chicken | Mix thoroughly. |
Margarine, canola oil based | Mix thoroughly. |
Milk, liquid, full cream | Mix together in large stainless steel or glass bowl. |
Mushrooms | Wash, wipe dry with paper towel. Chop and mix. |
Nectarines | Split nectarines without peeling, remove stone, chop and mix. |
Oats, rolled | Mix together thoroughly. Add water and simmer until cooked. Cool. |
Onions | Peel and rinse. Slice into rings and dry fry until soft. Do not scrape pan. Chop and mix. |
Orange juice | Shake and invert containers to ensure thorough mixing. Mix in a large stainless steel or glass bowl. |
Oranges | Peel, break into segments and mix thoroughly. |
Pasta, mixed | Boil in unsalted water until cooked. Drain and chop. |
Peanut paste/butter | Mix together. |
Peas, frozen | Microwave until cooked and mix. |
Potatoes | Wash thoroughly, peel and halve potatoes. Cook together in unsalted water. When cooked, drain potatoes, chop finely and mix. |
Potato chips/crisps | Crush the chips. Mix the crushed potato chips thoroughly in a large bowl. |
Prawns, unfrozen, cooked | Remove shell, devein prawns, chop and mix. |
Pumpkin | Wash, chop, and boil in unsalted water. Remove skin when cooked and mix. |
Rice, white | Cook in unsalted boiling water. Drain. |
Sausages | Dry fry, cool, chop and mix together thoroughly. |
Soft drink | Open, mix, allow gas to escape. |
Strawberries | Wash, remove leaves and stalks, chop and mix. |
Sugar | Mix. |
Sultanas | Mix thoroughly. |
Tomato sauce | Mix. |
Tomatoes | Chop and mix together. |
Tuna, canned | Drain contents, chop and mix. |
Watermelon | Cut a cross section, remove skin and seeds, chop and mix. |
Wine, white | Mix together. |