What temperature must TCS foods reach when reheating for hot holding at 135°F?

The correct answer is that commercially processed ready-to-eat (RTE) foods must reach a specific temperature when being reheated for hot holding. For safety and to ensure that pathogens are destroyed, TCS (Time/Temperature Control for Safety) foods should be reheated to an internal temperature of at least 165°F, regardless of their original preparation state. This guideline ensures that any harmful microorganisms that may have grown during storage are effectively killed.

In this context, commercially processed RTE foods are designed to be reheated and served, meaning they have generally already undergone cooking processes that make them safe to eat. Ensuring they reach 165°F during reheating helps maintain food safety standards.

Frozen foods, raw meats, and vegetables each have different handling and cooking requirements. Frozen foods typically need to be thawed before reheating, raw meats must be cooked to specific internal temperatures to ensure safety, and vegetables do not have the same temperature requirements as RTE foods since they are not ready to eat in their raw form. Therefore, the focus on RTE foods specifically addresses the proper reheating process to ensure safety in food service practices.