We all love a good barbecue – especially on summer’s afternoon or evening. But no-one wants a belly-ful of food-borne illness thanks to food not cooked properly.

As such, here’s some tips on how to barbecue food properly, from the Ministry of Primary Industries that works with Food Safety NZ on educating Kiwis on how to safely prepare food.

Keep your food covered and chilled until you cook it – and cover and chill any leftovers as soon as possible, too.

Make sure the barbecue and cooking tools have been cleaned with soap and water before using.

Have separate utensils, plates, and other equipment for raw and cooked foods. If you only use one set, germs can spread from raw meats to cooked foods.

Make sure raw meat doesn’t touch cooked food or ready-to-eat foods like salads.

Barbecue meat until it is steaming hot – this means it needs to be at a temperature of more than 75 degrees Celsius all the way through.

Turn food often on the barbecue so it cooks evenly. And if marinating meat, marinate it in a covered container in the fridge. Plus, cook the marinade before pouring it over cooked foods.