Do I need to heat spiral cut ham for safety issues if it will be served cold?

[Laurie4b]

I do not like ham and don't fix it for my family. However, I bought a spiral-sliced one for sandwiches for food for after a memorial service.

Do I need to heat it through for safety's sake?

 

Any tips?

[MaMa2005]

If it is like the Honey Baked Ham or the ones from Costco, they are already cooked and can be used without heating/cooking again.

Edited January 29, 2011 by MaMa2005

[Laurie4b]

It's a Smithfield spiral-sliced. It says fully cooked, but I know that with lunchmeats, etc., you're supposed to heat till they steam. I don't do that for my family, but since this ham is to serve a bunch of people I don't know, I'd like to make sure it's safe!

[Whereneverever]

As long as it says it's precooked, you should be fine.

[Laurie4b]

Thanks! That will make things easier this morning!

[Catwoman]

Be sure to read the packaging. The last one I bought required cooking.

 

Cat

[KidsHappen]

If the lable says, "Fully Cooked" then you are good to go. No need to heat or even warm. I used to manage a Honey Baked Ham so I feel pretty comfortable giving this advice.

[Forget-Me-Not]

I always buy the ones from Costco and the label says they can be served cold, but that if you want to serve them warm, they need to be heated up to a certain temp. . . 160 I think?

[amey311]

It's a Smithfield spiral-sliced. It says fully cooked, but I know that with lunchmeats, etc., you're supposed to heat till they steam. I don't do that for my family, but since this ham is to serve a bunch of people I don't know, I'd like to make sure it's safe!

 

Generally speaking, people don't heat lunchmeats until they steam. I don't know anyone who does this beyond a few hypervigilant pregnant women and people with real suppressed immune systems. They do this to prevent listeria: http://www.idph.state.il.us/public/hb/hblister.htm

 

All those functions you attend that have meat and cheese trays from delis? That meat hasn't been heated to steaming. It's meant to be served cold - the meat is already cooked.

[Laurie4b]

Generally speaking, people don't heat lunchmeats until they steam. I don't know anyone who does this beyond a few hypervigilant pregnant women and people with real suppressed immune systems. They do this to prevent listeria: http://www.idph.state.il.us/public/hb/hblister.htm

 

.

 

This is what I was referring to. Our church does sometimes serve lunchmeat to kids as part of a snack, and we do heat till steaming. To me, there is a difference between what I'll do at home and what I'll serve to other people whose health status I don't know.

 

I don't think deli meats have the same issue, because they are not sliced before packaging. It's my impression that the preslicing of lunchmeat, etc. is where the listeria can enter the product. A solid hunk of meat, no.

[Tylianna]

This is what I was referring to. Our church does sometimes serve lunchmeat to kids as part of a snack, and we do heat till steaming. To me, there is a difference between what I'll do at home and what I'll serve to other people whose health status I don't know.

 

I don't think deli meats have the same issue, because they are not sliced before packaging. It's my impression that the preslicing of lunchmeat, etc. is where the listeria can enter the product. A solid hunk of meat, no.

 

You are probably safer eating a pre sliced meat where they slice one type of product at a time and package it. It would be sealed and introduced to high temps to kill bacteria, etc.

 

When you go to a deli you are lucky if they cleaned the slicer after the last product. They are not supposed to cross contaminate the beef, poultry, ham and cheeses. Dh used to work for a deli company. They manufacturer was great about the product but he saw stores doing things that made his stomach roll. Slicing meat directly onto the plate where other meats were cut (not raw meat) and then putting it on the scale... At least when you buy a pre packed food you know what the expiry date is. Not so with the deli meats, where you don't get to see the bag.

 

Not to derail the thread (sorry!)

 

I would serve it cold, if it is pre cooked. Even though we ate ham cold and got sick, but that package said to cook it first and I didn't see that until after the fact :glare:

That ham was sliced at a deli, too. I bet they didn't clean the slicer after that...