ServSafe Food Safety 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A food handler notices a shipment of raw chicken has an internal temperature of 48°F upon delivery. What should they do?
- Accept it and refrigerate immediately
- Reject the shipment (Correct answer)
- Cook it immediately to 165°F
- Place it on ice and accept it
Correct answer: Reject the shipment
Raw poultry must be received at 41°F (5°C) or lower; 48°F exceeds the safe limit, so the shipment must be rejected.
Question 2: Which pathogen is most commonly associated with undercooked ground beef?
- Salmonella Typhi
- Listeria monocytogenes
- Escherichia coli O157:H7 (Correct answer)
- Clostridium botulinum
Correct answer: Escherichia coli O157:H7
E. coli O157:H7 is strongly linked to undercooked ground beef because grinding disperses surface bacteria throughout the meat.
Question 3: What is the correct method for thawing a large frozen roast quickly in a food service operation?
- Leave it on the counter at room temperature
- Submerge it under running potable water at 70°F or below (Correct answer)
- Thaw it in a microwave and hold it at room temperature
- Place it in a pan on top of the stove over low heat
Correct answer: Submerge it under running potable water at 70°F or below
Running potable water at 70°F or below is an approved rapid-thaw method that keeps the food surface out of the temperature danger zone.
Question 4: A cook prepares a large pot of chili and needs to cool it. The chili must be cooled from 135°F to 70°F within how many hours?
- 4 hours
- 6 hours
- 2 hours (Correct answer)
- 1 hour
Correct answer: 2 hours
The first stage of the two-stage cooling method requires food to drop from 135°F to 70°F within 2 hours.
Question 5: Which of the following is an example of a physical contaminant in food?
- Sanitizer residue left on equipment
- A bone fragment in a fish fillet (Correct answer)
- Salmonella bacteria on raw chicken
- Mycotoxin in improperly stored grain
Correct answer: A bone fragment in a fish fillet
A bone fragment is a physical contaminant — a foreign object that can cause injury when consumed.
Question 6: When using the FIFO (First In, First Out) method, how should new stock be stored relative to older stock?
- New stock in front, older stock in back
- New stock on top, older stock on bottom
- New stock behind or beneath older stock (Correct answer)
- New stock and old stock can be mixed freely
Correct answer: New stock behind or beneath older stock
FIFO requires placing new stock behind or beneath older stock so the older product is used first.
Question 7: A food handler with a sore throat and fever is assigned to work on a prep line serving a high-risk population (elderly care facility). What is the appropriate action?
- Allow them to work if they wear gloves
- Restrict them to non-food-contact duties
- Exclude them from the operation entirely (Correct answer)
- Allow them to work if they wash hands frequently
Correct answer: Exclude them from the operation entirely
When serving a high-risk population, a food handler with fever and sore throat must be excluded from the operation, not merely restricted.
ServSafe Food Safety 4
A food handler notices a shipment of raw chicken has an internal temperature of 48°F upon delivery.
What should they do?