consume; rather, it’s a combination of temperature and time The line on the graph above essentially represents how long a piece of chicken must be held at a specific temperature in order to be considered safe to consume DEGREES FAHRENHEIT TIME FOR CHICKEN TIME F TURKE 135 63.3 minutes 64 minute 140 25.2 minutes 28.1 minu 145 8.4 minutes 10.5 minu 150 2.7 minutes 3.8 minut 155 44.2 seconds 1.2 minut 160 13.7 seconds 25.6 seco 165 Instantaneous Instantane So, at 165°F, the chicken is safe pretty much instantaneously This is why the USDA sets 165°F as the lower limit for their general guidelines At 155°F, the same bacterial reduction takes 44.2 seconds to occur in chicken At 150°F, 2.7 minutes: 2.7 minutes! That’s all! What this means is that as long as chicken stays at 150°F or higher for at least 2.7 minutes, it is as safe to eat as chicken that has been cooked to 165°F I monitored a few pieces of chicken that I cooked to 150°F before removing them from the heat and found that their temperature increased to about 153°F during the first few minutes and stayed at well above 150°F for a good minutes before they started to cool down again Even chicken cooked to 145°F can be safe if you let it rest It easily maintains its temperature for the requisite 8.4 minutes.§ My mom often comments on how incredibly moist my roast chicken is, believing that it’s some secret technique or marinade I’m using to get it that way Want to know the secret? Just don’t overcook it What Temperature Should I Cook Chicken To? Fact: 145°F chicken is not for everybody Some folks used to chicken having a certain texture may find it a little too wet and soft Here’s a quick guide to chicken temperatures: ...So, at 165°F, the chicken is safe pretty much instantaneously This is why the USDA sets 165°F as the lower limit for their general guidelines At 155°F, the same bacterial reduction... before removing them from the heat and found that their temperature increased to about 153°F during the first few minutes and stayed at well above 150°F for a good minutes before they started to... chicken cooked to 145°F can be safe if you let it rest It easily maintains its temperature for the requisite 8.4 minutes.§ My mom often comments on how incredibly moist my roast chicken is, believing