Is it safe to use vegetables (e.g. Romaine lettuce) that may be contaminated with E. coli if they are fully cooked?
I strongly suspect the answer is no, but I feel like there should be a question here about this for people to find more detailed information about as these outbreaks become more common.
Best Answer
From what I have read, some strains of E. Coli are heat-resistant, so it's not a good idea to think that cooking it will kill the bacteria if present. Also, you might contaminate your cooking utensils or other surfaces that do not encounter the heat. It's safest to just get rid of it.
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Can E. coli be killed by cooking?
E. coli is naturally found in the gut of humans and animals. The bacteria is usually killed by cooking but ground or tenderized meat poses a greater risk because the pathogens are distributed throughout.Can you cook E. coli out of vegetables?
The kind of vegetables most likely to contain E. coli are the ones we usually eat uncooked, like lettuces, baby spinach and sprouts. Unfortunately, cooking to a temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit is the only really reliable way of killing the bug.Can E. coli be washed off vegetables?
In a word, no. According to James Rogers, Ph. D., director of Food Safety and Research at Consumer Reports, if E. coli (or any other type of bacteria that can cause food poisoning) is present in your produce, washing it won't remove all of those organisms.Can E. coli be washed off romaine lettuce?
What about washing? Washing the produce at home is not a reliable way to remove bacteria. "The bacteria can be stuck on the surface of the lettuce, it can even get inside the lettuce," Goodridge says. "So if you wash it, you might remove some of the bacteria, but you're not removing 100 per cent.More answers regarding is it safe to use vegetables (e.g. Romaine lettuce) that may be contaminated with E. coli if they are fully cooked?
Answer 2
The problem with Romaine Lettuce (specifically) is that the vast majority of people eat it raw. That is why the U.S. CDC was so fast to put out an E. Coli alert, Nov 26th telling people to throw away any/all the Romaine you had. The illness was popping up, but the CDC couldn't pinpoint the origin of the tainted lettuce. Their swift alert prevented (possibly) 100's of deaths. Fortunately, E. Coli Prevention is relatively simple (handwashing, cooking thoroughly, avoid cross contamination, etc.). And for now... don't eat the Romaine.
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