5 . Chicken is America’s most popular meat. Many people assume chicken follows a simple rule-of-thumb: Pink chicken turned white means “done.” It’s similar to how we cook other meats. But is this true? To study how cooks at home follow safety recommendations, researchers filmed 75 households in five European countries. From a random but nonrepresentative sample, they also conducted an online survey of nearly 4,000 households in the same countries that say they cook chicken.

Worried that chicken would dry out, most home cooks determined doneness by color and texture (口感) inside the meat, they found. Few bothered with thermometers (温度计), claiming they took too much time, were too complicated to use, didn’t fit in the chicken or weren’t necessary (although easy-to-use thermometers are inexpensive and widely available).

In additional lab experiments, the scientists injected raw chicken breast with bacteria (细菌), which cause millions of sicknesses, thousands of hospitalizations and hundreds of deaths each year in the United States. They cooked the breasts until they reached core temperatures ranging from 122 to 158 Fahrenheit, and they discovered something surprising. At 158 degrees, but not lower, bacteria inside the chickens’ cores was reduced to safe levels, and when cut open its flesh appeared dull and fibrous, not shiny like raw chicken. But meat began changing from pink to white far below this, and most color change occurred below 131 degrees Fahrenheit. Sometimes, the chicken’s core would be safely cooked, but unsafe levels of bacteria still existed on surfaces that hadn’t touched the grill plate.

So what are you supposed to do?

Dr. Bruno Goussault, a scientist and chef, recommends buying and cooking breasts and legs separately. Bring the breast’s core to 165 degrees Fahrenheit, he said, and the leg to between 168.8 and 172.4 Fahrenheit. If you really want to safely measure temperature for a whole chicken, insert a pop-up thermometer into the thickest part of the leg before roasting it, Dr. Goussault suggests. By the time it pops, the breasts will have long cooked. They will likely be dry and far from his standards of culinary (烹饪的) perfection. But you’ll be sure to, as Dr. Goussault says in French, “dormir sur ses deux oreilles,” or, figuratively, “sleep peacefully.”

6 . Which meal kit service is right for you?

As the simple act of shopping and preparing food for dinner becomes harder to fit in, a way to help meet consumer needs and change the way we shop and eat has grown: meal-delivery plans. Here’s a quick review of some popular options:

1. HelloFresh

HelloFresh provides high-quality ingredients （烹饪原料） and generous portions（分量）, with recipes that are generally easy to prepare. The clear, step-by-step instructions get even the newest home chefs up to speed, and the recipe cards are well-made, so you can refer to your favorite recipes again and again.

There are meals for almost any lifestyle, including vegetarian（素食）options, low- calorie meals and “quick” recipes that get dinner on the table fast.

Cost: $8.75 to $9.99 per serving, with up to 16 servings per week.

2. Freshly

Get fresh, home-cooked food without the trouble of actually cooking. This subscription service delivers comfort foods to your doorstep, and the meals are prepared right before delivery. Never frozen and only requiring minimal reheating, they’re nutritious and cost less than many standard takeout options.

Cost: $7.99 to $11.50 per serving, with up to 12 servings per week.

3. Blue Apron

Blue Apron is full of fresh ingredients, with traditional or vegetarian options. Like many of the plans, the food is delivered in one big box and the recipe card is separate from the meal ingredients. The variety is good and the recipes are generally easy to prepare.

Cost: $7.49 to $9.99 per serving, with up to 16 servings per week.

4. EveryPlate

EveryPlate offers simpler meals for a lower cost. Users can choose between eight recipes each week, so there isn’t a lot of flexibility for different dietary needs, but the recipes are full of flavor and give subscribers generous portions. If you’re looking for an affordable way to get into meal kits, EveryPlate is a good option.

Cost: $4.99 per serving, with up to 12 servings per week.

5. Daily Harvest

Daily Harvest specializes in delicious smoothies. The meals are packed with fruits and vegetables, making nutrition easy and tasty. Smoothies just require the addition of liquid, so feel free to add your favorite type of milk or water to the blend and get your day started.

Cost: $6.99 per serving, with between 9 and 26 servings available.

7 . Food experts say washing could spread the germs on your turkey in the kitchen sink or nearby food. But it's been a challenge trying to convince cooks to stop rinsing （冲洗）off raw poultry. Germs that can make people sick are common in the guts of healthy poultry and are legally allowed to be on raw turkey and chicken. The assumption is that nobody eats their poultry raw, and that thorough cooking will kill the bacteria.

The do — not — wash raw poultry advice from the USDA is relatively new and perhaps hasn't caught on because it goes against the common belief that washing makes things clean, said Chapman. Benjamin Chapman, a study author and food safety expert at North Carolina State University, said the instinct to wash raw poultry goes back at least decades when people relied more on visual clues to spot problems with poultry. Meanwhile, washing hands and surfaces are also important.

But food preparation is a complicated act, and germs from poultry can be spread even if it's not washed, especially when birds are removed from packaging.

The USDA-funded study stresses that point. Researchers sprayed raw chicken with a harmless strain of E. coli （大肠杆菌）and watched volunteer cooks at test kitchens. Among those who washed their raw chicken, about a quarter ended up spreading the bacteria to their lettuce. But even some of those who did not rinse the chicken got germs on the lettuce. And there are other opportunities for germs to survive on turkeys: melting and cooking.

To ensure a bird is thoroughly cooked, they say to use a thermometer to check that the deepest and thickest parts of it have reached 165 degrees. Even after the meal is cooked, you aren't out of the danger zone. To keep turkeys and other leftovers safe, experts say they should be refrigerated after two hours.

8 . Many of us love July because it’s the month when nature’s berries and stone fruits are in abundance. These colourful and sweet jewels form British Columbia’s fields are little powerhouses of nutritional protection.

Of the common berries, strawberries are highest in vitamin C, although, because of their seeds, raspberries contain a little more protein (蛋白质), iron and zinc (not that fruits have much protein). Blueberries are particularly high in antioxidants (抗氧化物质). The yellow and orange stone fruits such as peaches are high in the carotenoids we turn into vitamin A and which are antioxidants. As for cherries (樱桃), they are so delicious who cares? However, they are rich in vitamin C.

When combined with berries of slices of other fruits, frozen bananas make an excellent base for thick, cooling fruit shakes and low fat “ice cream”. For this purpose, select ripe bananas for freezing as they are much sweeter. Remove the skin and place them in plastic bags or containers and freeze. If you like, a squeeze of fresh lemon juice on the bananas will prevent them turning brown. Frozen bananas will last several weeks, depending on their ripeness and the temperature of the freezer.

If you have a juicer, you can simply feed in frozen bananas and some berries or sliced fruit. Out comes a “soft-serve” creamy dessert, to be eaten right away. This makes a fun activity for a children’s party; they love feeding the fruit and frozen bananas into the top of the machine and watching the ice cream come out below.