major food poisoning scare...please advise

[MVP123]

I put raw sausage into some stuffing mix and cooked it for 30 mins on 200c which is how I've always cooked it. But know I am panicking that I may have given everyone food poisioning, especially worried about my daughter who is 38 weeks pregnant. Can any one advise if it is alright to cook raw sausage meat like this, like I said I have cooked it this way many times before, so I don't know why I am in a major panic about it now, please help!

[AlexandriaUK]

That is absolutely fine as 200 is tops and half an hour is plenty long enough at that tempreture unless there was 10 LB of it in one huge lump which I am sure was not the case and that it was fresh meat , I bet it was lovely.
PS I am a qualified chef and I would eat it.

[MVP123]

Thanx both loads for your quick replies and its good to get reassurance from a qualified chef. Anyway what I did was use 1 fresh pork sausage, squeezed it out of the skin and mixed it with 170g sage and onion packet mix and boiling water, then put the mixture into a shallow roasting tin and cooked it for 30 mins on 200c, it went really crispy and brown on top so I couldn't really cook it any longer as it would have burnt, and it was soft and moist under the crust. Are you sure this is ok? As I have said before I always cook it like this, but my anxiety relapse seems to have given me an obsession about food poisoning, and of course I googled, but most of the answers suggest cooking the sausage before it goes into the mixture. I'm not so worried about myself this time but more my pregnant daughter x

[AlexandriaUK]

I promise its fine and I wouldnt cook the sausage meat before, your daughter will be fine and thats not your anxiety it is a natural thing that you are worried about your daughters health because she is preggers, feed her raw eggs or such like food and I would say naughty Mummy but not your sausage bake thats fine.
Congratulations on becomming a Gran is it the first?

[MVP123]

Yeah its our first grandchild, she is our only child as well, so we are very close. 4he is having a boy and is due next Saturday, we are all so excited. The thing I worry about now is her being in labour, and I think the closer she has got to her due date my anxiety levels are higher than ever. So as achef you would say this was fine? I never really worried about stuff like that before with food never thinking about bacteria, now it seems like its my new obsession xxxx

[AlexandriaUK]

Sorry I know I shouldnt laugh but I dont think its bad to think about food and cleanliness and bacteria etc just dont let it become an obsession you are a sensible person and cooking kills most microbes/bacteria that do us harm and washing hands and work surfaces and rinsing food in clean water does the rest, food poisoning is mainly caused by dirt and if your kitchen is clean and you are clean and you dont use food that has gone off you will be fine and so will your daughter and her new baby.

Food Poisoning and the main causes.

Food prepared too far in advance and then kept at room temperature not in the fridge. This allows food poisoning bacteria grow rapidly. Any food prepared in advance must be stored in a refrigerator to slow bacteria growth.
Keeping food at a high enough temperature till eaten.
Undercooking – this may result in harmful bacteria in the food not being destroyed, ensure all food is thoroughly cooked.
Not reheating food to high enough temperatures: Reheated foods are those that have been cooked, cooled and reheated prior to eating. If food is left to cool at room temperature for too long, any bacterial spores in the food that were not destroyed by the cooking process, have time to germinate and multiply and/or form harmful toxins. It is vital such products are thoroughly reheated to destroy the bacteria produced by these spores.
Cross contamination from raw food to ready to eat foods. Bacteria is naturally present on raw foods, particularly meat and poultry. If this bacteria gets onto foods that are ready to eat then they can cause illness. Cross contamination may occur from meat juices dripping onto other foods, placing cooked items onto unwashed surfaces touched by raw food, eg chopping boards, utensils , or dirty hands or dishcloths. Ensure raw and ready to eat foods and kept separate, and always use clean, thoroughly washed equipment.
Poor personal hygiene or infected food handlers – persons with existing infections or those with poor personal hygiene can transfer bacteria to the food they handle. The bacteria may then grow in and/or be carried on this food, causing illness in others. Those with sickness, diarrhoea or infected cuts should not be handling food.

This is sensible to follow

[MVP123]

I do follow all the guidelines above and today cause I was being more careful than usual I overcooked the beef to make sure it was absolutely cooked so it tasted like old boots lol. Now we don't usually have stuffing with beef, but my daughter insisted she wanted some of my lovely sausage stuffing. I only started worrying about it after and I googled and other peoples recipes all browned the sausage off first, so that got me thinking about what happens to the meat juices in the stuffing while its being cooked, and the stuffing def wasn't pink inside or anything just moist xx

[AlexandriaUK]

I am going to slap you in a minute stop worrying, it is and was fine and you have NOT poisoned any one and your daughter will be ok I PROMISE.
It is a sad thing that when we get a thing into our heads there is no moving it is there.
I had to laugh about the beef though My MI law does the same and they throw more meat away than they eat cause its tough.

[MVP123]

Awww thanx loads for your help and reassurance, I love this site, there is always someone who can help when I am having what my family now like to call 'episodes' lol. And I will def try to put it out of my head, thanx xxx

[AlexandriaUK]

I like that, episodes is about right, they dont realise how all consuming it can become, I am due new grandaught next month as well, my 17 th LOL