Potentially Hazardous (Time and Temperature Control for Safety) Foods.
24 RCNY § 81.09
in effect§ 81.09 Potentially Hazardous (Time and Temperature Control for Safety) Foods.
(a) Holding and storage temperatures. Potentially hazardous food must be stored or held at or below 41 degrees Fahrenheit (5 degrees Celsius) or at or above 140 degrees Fahrenheit (60 degrees Celsius) except as follows:
(1) Immediate service. Cooked and refrigerated food prepared for immediate service in response to an individual consumer order may be served at any temperature.
(2) Eggs. Intact shell eggs must be stored at an ambient temperature of 45 degrees Fahrenheit (7.2 degrees Celsius) or below.
(3) Processed fish. All processed fish products must be prepared and stored at a temperature that does not exceed 38 degrees Fahrenheit (3.3 degrees Celsius) without interruption until served to the ultimate consumer, provided, however, that:
(A) Processed fish that contains a water phase salt level of at least 17 percent shall not require refrigerated storage; and
(B) Dry salted fish that contains a water phase level of at least 10 percent, salt water activity of less than 0.85 Aw, or a pH of 4.6 or lower, must be held at refrigerated temperatures that do not exceed 41 degrees Fahrenheit (5 degrees Celsius).
(4) Necessary preparation. Foods may be held out of temperature during active necessary preparation. Active necessary preparation of food does not include time food is being heated, cooled, cooked, reheated or stored and requires temperature control.
(5) Time as the sole public health control. When using time alone as a public health control in accordance with 24 RCNY Health Code § 81.10.
(b) Freezing and storage of fish to be served raw, raw marinated or undercooked.
(1) Freezing required. To destroy parasites in fish or fish products that are to be consumed raw, undercooked or raw-marinated, an establishment must either purchase frozen fish or fish products, or freeze fish or fish products prior to service as follows:
Minimum Freezing Temperature Minimum Storage Temperature Minimum Freezer Storage Time
-4 degrees F (-20 degrees C) -4 degrees F (-20 degrees C) 168 hours (7 days); or
-31 degrees F (-35 degrees C) -31 degrees F (-35 degrees C) 15 hours; or
-31 degrees F (-35 degrees C) -4 degrees F (-20 degrees C) 24 hours.
(2) Exceptions to freezing requirement. Freezing is not required before serving raw or undercooked:
(A) Molluscan shellfish; or
(B) Tuna of the species Thunnus alalunga, Thunnus albacares (Yellowfin tuna), Thunnus atlanticus, Thunnus maccoyii (Bluefin tuna, Southern), Thunnus obesus (Bigeye tuna), Thunnus thynnus (Bluefin tuna, Northern); or
(C) Aquacultured or farm raised fish, such as salmon that are:
(i) Raised in open water in net-pens or in land-based operations such as ponds or tanks, and
(ii) Fed formulated feed, such as pellets, that contains no live parasites infective to the aquacultured fish; or
(D) Fish eggs that have been removed from the skin and rinsed.
(c) Cooking temperatures. All parts of potentially hazardous foods requiring cooking are to be heated to 140 degrees Fahrenheit (60 degrees Celsius) or above for 15 seconds, except as follows:
(1) Poultry. Whole or ground poultry, poultry parts, all food containing poultry, poultry stuffing and poultry stuffing containing meat must be heated so all parts of the food are at least 165 degrees Fahrenheit (73.9 degrees Celsius) for 15 seconds with no interruption of the cooking process.
(2) Pork. Pork and food containing pork, other than whole pork roasts, and ground and comminuted pork, must be heated so all parts of the food are at least 150 degrees Fahrenheit (65.6 degrees Celsius) for 15 seconds, unless otherwise ordered by the consumer.
(3) Whole meat roasts. Roast beef, beef steak, corned beef, lamb roasts, pork and cured pork roasts must be heated to and cooked at the following minimum temperatures for the corresponding time:
Temperature °F (°C) Cooking Time in Minutes Temperature °F (°C) Cooking Time in Minutes
130 (54.4) 112 138 (58.9) 18
131 (55.0) 89 140 (60.0) 12
133 (56.1) 56 142 (61.1) 8
135 (57.2) 36 144 (62.2) 5
136 (57.8) 28 145 (62.8) 4
(4) Ground and comminuted meat. Ground meats and comminuted meat products, other than poultry, and food containing ground meat must be heated so that all parts of the food are at least 158 degrees Fahrenheit (69.4 degrees Celsius) with no interruption of the cooking process, unless otherwise ordered by the consumer.
(5) Stuffings and mechanically tenderized and injected meats. Stuffed meats, stuffed fish, stuffed ratites and stuffing containing ratites and fish, must be heated to a temperature of at least 165 degrees Fahrenheit (73.9 degrees Celsius) with no interruption of the cooking process, unless otherwise ordered by the consumer. Meats whose exterior surface has been mechanically tenderized or injected by breaking, puncturing, or scoring must be heated to a temperature of at least 155 degrees Fahrenheit (68 degrees Celsius.
(6) Shell eggs and egg products. Unpasteurized raw eggs or foods containing unpasteurized raw shell eggs, including but not limited to, drinks, condiments, dressings, desserts and sauces, must be heated to 145 degrees Fahrenheit (62.8 degrees Celsius) or greater for 15 seconds, unless the consumer requests preparation of shell eggs in a style such as raw, poached or fried which in order to comply with the request must be prepared at a temperature less than 145 degrees Fahrenheit.
(7) Microwaving. Raw animal foods cooked in a microwave oven must be covered during cooking; rotated or stirred during cooking to a temperature of at least 165 degrees Fahrenheit (73.9 degrees Celsius); and allowed to stand covered for 2 minutes after cooking.
(8) Advisory for raw, undercooked foods. When menu items containing raw or undercooked eggs, meat, fish or other potentially hazardous foods including but not limited to steak tartare, rare duck breasts, uncooked dessert mousse, Caesar salad dressing, sashimi, and ceviche or any other raw or undercooked seafood, are served, the consumer advisory required by 24 RCNY Health Code § 81.11 must be provided.
(d) Reheating previously cooked food. Potentially hazardous food that is cooked, cooled and reheated for hot holding must be reheated so that all parts of the food reach a temperature of at least 165 degrees Fahrenheit (73.9 degrees Celsius) for 15 seconds. The minimum temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit (73.9 degrees Celsius) must be reached within 2 hours of commencing reheating. Reheated food must be held at or above 140 degrees Fahrenheit (60 degrees Celsius) until served.
(1) Microwave reheating. Food reheated in a microwave oven must be covered during heating; food must be rotated or stirred during heating, or otherwise manipulated according to label instructions, if provided, and must be reheated to a temperature of at least 165 degrees Fahrenheit (73.9 degrees Celsius) and allowed to stand covered for 2 minutes after reheating.
(2) Heating commercially processed foods. Commercially processed pre-cooked potentially hazardous food in hermetically sealed containers and precooked potentially hazardous food in intact packages from non-retail food processing establishments must be heated to 140 degrees Fahrenheit (60 degrees Celsius) within 2 hours of removal from container or package and held at such temperature until served.
(e) Cooling.
(1) After cooking or removal from hot holding. Foods removed from cooking or hot holding that require refrigeration must be rapidly cooled from 140 degrees Fahrenheit (60 degrees Celsius) to 70 degrees Fahrenheit (21.1 degrees Celsius) within 2 hours and from 70 degrees Fahrenheit (21.1 degrees Celsius) to 41 degrees Fahrenheit (5 degrees Celsius) within 4 hours after cooking or removal from hot holding by placing containers of food in an ice bath, a rapid chill unit or adding ice to the food, and
(A) Placing the food in shallow pans or containers (less than 4 inches in height); and/or
(B) Dividing foods into smaller or thinner pieces or portions; and/or
(C) Using containers made of materials that facilitate heat transfer; and/or
(D) Stirring foods that are liquids or semi-liquid, and
(E) Arranging containers in cooling equipment to provide maximum heat transfer through container walls, not stacking or nesting; and
(F) Keeping containers loosely covered, or uncovered if protected from overhead contamination during the cooling period, to facilitate heat transfer from the surface of the food.
(2) Other cooling. Potentially hazardous foods removed from cold holding or prepared from or combined with ingredients at room temperatures must be cooled to 41 degrees Fahrenheit (5 degrees Celsius) or below within 4 hours of preparation using cooling methods described in paragraph (1) of this subdivision.
(f) Thawing frozen foods. Potentially hazardous food must be thawed as follows:
(1) In refrigerated facilities at a temperature not to exceed 41 degrees Fahrenheit (5 degrees Celsius); or
(2) Completely submerged under potable running water at a temperature of 70 degrees Fahrenheit (21.1 degrees Celsius) or below, with sufficient water velocity to agitate and float off loose particles into the overflow; or
(3) In a microwave oven when the food will be immediately transferred to other conventional cooking equipment as part of a continuous cooking process, or when the entire uninterrupted cooking process takes place in the microwave oven; or
(4) As part of the conventional cooking process, without interruption.
(5) Whole frozen poultry, other than a single portion intended for service to an individual consumer, must be completely thawed prior to conventional cooking; a single portion may be thawed during the cooking process.
(g) Thermometers and other temperature measuring devices. Establishments must provide devices such as thermometers and thermocouples to measure internal temperatures of potentially hazardous foods during cooking, cooling, reheating, hot holding and cold holding. Such devices must be properly calibrated to plus or minus 2 degrees Fahrenheit (1.1 degrees Celsius), made from food grade materials that will not expose food to contamination and be kept readily accessible in the establishment's food preparation and hot and cold holding areas.
(Amended City Record 7/9/2015, eff. 8/8/2015)
Source: City of New York, Charter, Administrative Code and Rules (American Legal Publishing XML export, codelibrary.amlegal.com)URL: https://codelibrary.amlegal.com/codes/newyorkcity/latest/NYCrules/0-0-0-46103Fetched: 10/24/2026