Spit roasts

Frozen storage

Spits are often supplied frozen to retail stores.

Never put frozen meat on the machine.  Spits which are completely or partly frozen are difficult to cook.  Spits should be always be thawed in the refrigerator or coolroom.  Thawing food out of refrigeration can allow bacteria to multiply.

Plan ahead.  Frozen spits can take between one to two days to thaw completely.

The spits should be covered during thawing to prevent cross contamination.  Ready-to-eat food should be protected from raw spits being thawed. Never re-freeze thawed spits.

Cooking

It takes thorough cooking to kill harmful bacteria.

To avoid food poisoning, the internal temperature of the meat needs to reach at least 75°C before being cut from the spit.  Even when the surface temperature reaches above 75°C, the internal temperature of the meat could potentially be in the danger zone of 5°C to 60°C.  This will provide an ideal temperature for food poisoning bacteria to multiply and there is also a risk of cross-contamination from raw to cooked meat during slicing.

• meat must be further cooked on a hot plate/grill prior to serving to prevent the risk of partly cooked meat being served to customers
• cut/slice meat from the area of the spit that has reached 75°C
• use thin cuts of meat to stack on the spit
• never serve raw or partly-cooked food to customers
• do not allow meat to fall in the drip tray as the drip tray may contain raw juices from the meat and may contaminate ready-to-eat meat with food poisoning bacteria.

Cooling spits

It is not a good idea to re-use leftover spits.  While the spit is cooling, bacteria can survive and multiply and produce toxins (poisons) that survive reheating.

Before cooling, the spit must be cooked completely, reaching an internal temperature of at least 75°C, as bacteria can survive in food which does not reach at least 75°C in the centre.

• do not re-use a spit if the internal temperature of the spit has not reached 75°C
• the meat should be cooled quickly - that is, cooled to 21°C within two hours then to 5°C within the next four hours.  Food that is not cooled quickly enough can allow bacteria to multiply.
• for large quantities of meat, cut into smaller pieces to ensure it cools quickly
• store the leftover meat in the refrigerator or coolroom. Never leave the meat on the rotating spit to cool overnight.

Checking temperatures

Checking internal temperatures of meat should be done using a probe thermometer that can reach the middle of the spit. The probe should be cleaned with water and detergent then sanitised with boiling water or an alcohol wipe before and after each use.

The following records should be kept in a temperature control log whenever temperature checks are completed:

• date
• time
• who completed the check
• the product that was checked
• the internal temperature reading.