Food Protection Trends - July/August 2023 - 309

TABLE 3. Examples of young women's responses to research questions about food skills
(cont.)
Question
Representative Quotes
Raw chicken is the only thing I'm always super careful about because that is
emphasized everywhere, but putting leftovers in the fridge within 2 h, I just put
them in whenever. I don't ever suffer repercussions for it. (P21)
Subtheme: Fear of working with raw meat
Whenever I cook anything with meat, I don't want to touch anything because
I'm scared of germs. If I have to wash my hands, I have to turn on the water, and
I'm like, 'Oh, now I need to clean that!' I don't really know how to go about it
sometimes! (P24)
3. In what area are you most and least confident?
I've met a couple individuals who don't cook meat because they're scared
they're not doing it properly and they'll get sick or something. So, they don't eat
meat even though they are not vegetarian or vegan. (P23)
I still cook meat and stuff, but I'm still a little paranoid or not the most
confident in how well I cleaned [knife and cutting board]. Even though I
washed it, what if there's, like, one molecule of Salmonella? (P26)
I avoid cooking a lot of meats. It freaks me out when I touch raw chicken.
When [my mom] cooked raw chicken she would be, like, 'I'm cutting chicken,
don't come over here, don't use the sink.' I'm really paranoid about the whole
contamination and stuff and the microbiology courses scared me. I will
definitely cook [chicken] long enough because I am paranoid. (P15)
participants said they learned from their fathers. Parents
however may not have transmitted correct information.
When criticizing her peers, one participant (P4) reflected on
a rule she learned from her mother: " How do you not know
you're supposed to wash the meat first!? " Eleven participants
(37%) learned their food skills from living independently, by
searching online, or through trial and error. Five participants
(17%) learned food skills through food service jobs.
Half of the participants (50%) had taken a food and
nutrition class; 10 of them remembered specific learnings
from that experience, such as " how do use a knife properly,
how to defrost chicken, and all of that stuff " (P11) or the
importance of " storing your meat on the bottom shelf and
thawing meat properly " (P22). For some, the course was
not that helpful. One (P15) admitted, " I have no idea how
to cook beef, " whereas another commented that the only
satisfaction derived from cooking was the outcome; there
was no gratification from cleaning.
Areas of most and /least confidence
When asked the question " In what areas are you most and
least confident? " only three (10%) participants stated that they
were confident in all three domains of food skills (i.e., food
selection and planning, food preparation, and food safety and
storage). These participants loved cooking, learned from family
members, and/or had worked in the food industry; however,
there were important differences between the three domains.
Food selection and planning
Thirteen participants (43%) were most confident in food
selection and planning. This domain involved knowing in
advance what to buy, following a budget, and purchasing
the necessary amount of food (rather than overbuying and
having food go to waste). Eight (27%) were least confident in
this area, primarily because they did not know how to select
appropriate items at the grocery store. Some of these young
women admitted that they had never before gone grocery
shopping by themselves. Lack of planning skills created
unnecessary stress with either too much or too little food
purchased at one time, resulting in guilt for overspending or
letting food go to waste due to spoilage.
Food preparation
Sixteen participants (53%) stated they were most confident
in the food preparation domain. This often resulted from
helping out at home. Six (20%) were least confident in food
preparation, primarily due to lack of experience. The other
two domains (i.e., food selection and planning and food
safety and storage) were considered easier to learn through
books, videos, or observation. Food preparation was the only
area where hands-on experience was deemed essential.
Food safety and storage
Only seven participants (23%) stated that they were most
confident in the domain of food safety and storage. Vegan,
July/August Food Protection Trends 309
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