Health Tip: Marinating Meat

Marinating meat adds flavor to your food, but it can also introduce germs if it's done improperly.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture mentions these marinating safety tips:

• Allow food to marinate in the refrigerator, never on the counter.
• You can safely allow poultry and cubed meat to marinate for up to two days.
• You can safely allow steak, beef, pork, veal, lamb roasts and chops to marinate for up to five days.
• If you want to use some of the marinade to baste the meat as you cook, reserve a portion before you add it to the meat.
• If you reuse marinade that's been used on raw meat, first bring it to a boil to kill any bacteria.