It goes without saying – well, I hope it goes without saying – that kitchen workers need to wash their hands often. The official Food Standards Agency guidelines state: “Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and warm water… before starting to prepare food; after touching raw meat, including poultry; after going to the toilet; after touching the bin; after touching pets.”

How do you get hands clean? The Institute of Food Science and Technology Trust Fund lays down the law here: you should use hot soapy water and pay particular attention to nails, fingertips, between fingers and backs of hands. It also advises rubbing your hands together for about 20 seconds before rinsing.

What do clean hands have to do with the Green Kitchen? Plenty. To begin with, you need to minimise the number of washings, each of which uses water and soap. Plan food preparation so that you handle meat or fish at the end of the process. If you have to use your hands to open the bin, leave food scraps on a sheet of paper next to the chopping board, and discard them in a single swoop. Needless to say, don’t pat Fido on the head while peeling the carrots.

One bit of green handling may require re-equipping. Kitchen taps with lever handles are infinitely preferable to cross-head or block handles. Levers can be turned on with your uncontaminated wrist or forearm, but the others need to be used with fingers and palm. If your hands are covered with raw chicken, the handle will need thorough washing once you’re finished with your hands.

Finally, your choice of hand soap. An ordinary bar is low on packaging but a pump-action bottle leaves no mess on the back of the sink. If you want a low-impact bottle, the range from Method is excellent (available from www.goodnessdirect.co.uk), and a good choice for clean but green hands.

greenkitchen@thetimes.co.uk

Explore Food & Drink

• Gordon Ramsay

• Heston Blumenthal

• Recipes

• Wine

• Real Food

• Anjum Anand

• Eating Out

• Video Recipes

Times Recommends

• English wine has always been possible
• AA Gill reviews Foxtrot Oscar
• The authentic taste of Italy: Veneto