How do you know when barbecued meat is cooked through?

A Saturday afternoon at the end of August, in a garden near Ede. The coals are glowing, the neighbours have pulled up chairs and the table holds platters of sausages, chicken skewers and marinated pork belly. That is when things go wrong. The meat sits in the sun too long, the same tongs travel from raw to cooked, and a sausage is black on the outside and still pink inside.

The Netherlands Nutrition Centre, the Voedingscentrum, puts it plainly: a barbecue is fun, but getting the preparation wrong can leave you with stomach ache. A few fixed habits prevent that.

Wait for the coals to turn white

Most mistakes start with impatience. A charcoal barbecue needs half an hour to an hour, according to the Voedingscentrum’s barbecue guide. Only then are the flames gone and the coals covered in a thin layer of white ash. A gas or electric barbecue is up to temperature in about 10 minutes.

Then start with whatever takes longest. A burger needs 10 to 12 minutes on the grill, a barbecue sausage 6 to 10. A chicken leg is precooked for 30 minutes and then grilled for another 15. Precooked drumsticks or burgers make life easier: they are safer and ready sooner.

When is meat really done?

Looking is not enough. A sausage can be beautifully brown on the outside and raw in the middle. A meat thermometer is the most reliable test: push it into the centre of the piece, not against a bone, as the Voedingscentrum advises in its grilling guide.

Anything marinated, cut up or minced, such as burgers, sausages and skewers, follows one rule: check that it is cooked all the way through before you eat it. Cook chicken until the meat is completely white inside. Raw chicken can carry salmonella and campylobacter, the Voedingscentrum notes in its advice on chicken.

Pregnant women, young children, older people and anyone with lowered resistance are better off skipping pink meat altogether. More on that in pregnant at a party.

Keep raw and cooked apart

Tongs that have just turned a raw chicken breast should not then pick up a cooked sausage. The Voedingscentrum recommends separate dishes, plates and utensils for raw meat or fish, and marked tongs and cutlery. A strip of coloured tape round the handle does the job.

• One dish for raw meat beside the barbecue, and a clean one for whatever comes off the grill.
• Two pairs of tongs, one marked for raw. Or wash them in between with hot water and washing up liquid.
• Wash your hands with soap after touching raw meat, and before you eat.
• Do not rinse raw chicken under the tap, not even with vinegar or lemon.
• Keep a clean spot by the barbecue for dishes and utensils.

Keep it cold until it hits the grill

On a warm day the fridge does the heavy lifting. Take meat, fish and salads out in small amounts and use them straight away. A full platter of sausages sitting beside a hot barbecue for an hour is the thing to avoid.

Buy meat, fish and salads last and carry them home in a cool bag. Once home, everything goes straight into the fridge, set at 4°C. The two hour limit has an article of its own.

Marinades, dripping fat and charred edges

A marinade adds flavour, but marinated meat counts as processed meat. So check extra carefully that it is cooked through, and pat it dry before it goes on. Fat and marinade dripping onto the coals burn, which is how PAHs can end up in the meat through the smoke. A foil tray or sheet underneath catches the drips.

PAHs are carcinogenic substances that form when food burns. Turn the meat regularly and cut away blackened edges and crusts. And do not stand right in the smoke, because PAHs can be breathed in too.

Vegetables and fish on the grill

Vegetables are quick: cut into wedges, they need 4 to 6 minutes. Corn on the cob is precooked for 12 to 14 minutes and then grilled for 6 to 8, a potato precooked for 15 minutes and grilled for 10. Wash vegetables well under running water, cut them into thick slices, pat them dry and brush them with a little oil.

Fish takes less time than meat. Fish steaks need about 10 minutes, a whole fish 12 to 16 minutes and prawns 6 to 8. Oil the fish first so it does not stick.

Would you rather sit at the table with your guests than stand by the coals all afternoon? Chef David Nagib of Maximus Catering makes meat specials in Ede and the surrounding area, just the way you want them.