Cleanliness 157
Food selection. Sometimes food is bad even before it is cooked or stored.
Here are some things to look for when selecting food.
Fresh (raw) foods should be:
• fresh and in season.
• whole—not bruised, damaged, or eaten by insects.
• clean (not dirty).
• fresh smelling (especially fish, shellfish, and meat,
which should not have a strong smell).
Processed (cooked or packaged) foods should be stored in:
• tins that look new (no rust, bulges, or dents).
• jars that have clean tops.
• bottles that are not chipped.
• packages that are whole, not torn.
Strong-smelling fish
and bulging cans
are signs that the
food has spoiled.
Food storage
Whenever possible, eat freshly prepared food. If you store
food, keep it covered to protect it from flies and other insects,
and dust.
Food keeps best if it stays cool. The methods described below
cool food using evaporation (the way that water disappears into
the air). Put the food in shallow pans for more complete cooling.
Pottery cooler. This double-pot cooler is
made of a small pot inside a large pot. The
space between the pots is filled with water.
Use a large pot and lid that have not been
glazed (coated with a hard, smooth, baked-
on covering) so that the water will evaporate
through the pot.
The small pot should be glazed on the
inside to make it easier to keep clean and to
stop water from seeping into the stored foods.
Cupboard cooler. Put a wooden crate or box on its side, and
then set it on bricks or stones to raise it off the floor. Put a
container of water on top of the crate and drape sackcloth or
other coarse cloth over the bowl and around the crate.The cloth
should not quite reach the floor. Dip the cloth in the water, so
that the wetness spreads throughout the cloth. Place the food
inside the crate. As the water in the cloth evaporates, it will cool
the food.This method works best if you can keep the cloth wet
all the time.
➤ Women in the
community can teach
others about which
local foods keep well
and good ways to
store them.
Cover the entire crate
when you make a
cupboard cooler. The
front is open here
just so you can see
inside.
Where Women Have No Doctor 2012