ServSafe Food Handler: Cooking temperatures Questions
A food handler on the line checks that food reached its minimum temperature for the required time. These are the numbers to know for the quiz.
19 questions in this topic. The quiz draws 19 at a time. Free, with no sign-up.
Cooking temperatures practice quiz
- 19 questions · 30 minutes · pass mark 75%
- Answers and explanations are shown at the end, with every question to review.
Local requirements and delivery can differ, so check what your state or county asks for.
What a food handler must do
- Cook poultry and stuffed food to 165°F for under 1 second.
- Cook ground meat to 155°F for 17 seconds.
- Cook fish and intact meat to 145°F for 15 seconds.
- Cook raw eggs that are cooked to order to 145°F for 15 seconds.
Source: FDA Food Code 2022, 3-401.11
5 sample cooking temperatures questions and answers
5 of our 19 questions, with the answer and why.
1. Under the ordinary poultry cooking standard, which internal temperature must chicken reach throughout the food?
Answer: 165°F (74°C), instantaneous
- A) 135°F (57°C) for 15 seconds
- B) 165°F (74°C), instantaneous (correct answer)
- C) 155°F (68°C) for 17 seconds
- D) 145°F (63°C) for 15 seconds
Why: Poultry must reach at least 165°F (74°C) instantaneously under the ordinary method. The 155°F (68°C) standard applies to other specified foods, not ordinary poultry.
Source: FDA Food Code 2026, 3-401.11(A)(3)
2. A breakfast team cooks a batch of raw eggs for later hot holding rather than in response to individual orders. Which standard applies?
Answer: 155°F (68°C) for 17 seconds
- A) 155°F (68°C) for 17 seconds (correct answer)
- B) 145°F (63°C) for 15 seconds
- C) 135°F (57°C) for immediate service
- D) 140°F (60°C) for 10 seconds
Why: Raw eggs outside the individual-order immediate-service category use the 155°F (68°C) for 17 seconds method or an allowed equivalent. The lower immediate-service method does not apply to this batch.
Source: FDA Food Code 2026, 3-401.11(A)(2)
3. A kitchen makes stuffing containing raw fish. Which cooking target is listed for that stuffing?
Answer: 165°F (74°C) throughout, instantaneous
- A) 165°F (74°C) throughout, instantaneous (correct answer)
- B) 145°F (63°C) for 15 seconds as for a plain fillet
- C) 135°F (57°C) throughout, instantaneous
- D) 150°F (66°C) for 10 seconds
Why: Stuffing containing fish is in the 165°F (74°C) instantaneous category. The plain-fish method does not apply to this stuffing.
Source: FDA Food Code 2026, 3-401.11(A)(3)
4. Fresh carrots are cooked for ordinary hot holding, with no special packaged-food instructions involved. What minimum cooking temperature applies to this plant-food method?
Answer: 135°F (57°C)
- A) 135°F (57°C) (correct answer)
- B) 125°F (52°C)
- C) 130°F (54°C)
- D) 120°F (49°C)
Why: The plant-food hot-holding cooking method specifies 135°F (57°C). A lower warm temperature does not meet that method.
Source: FDA Food Code 2026, 3-401.13
5. An infrared thermometer shows a chicken portion's surface temperature. Why does that reading alone fail to verify its internal cooking temperature?
Answer: Infrared thermometers are inappropriate for measuring internal cooking temperatures
- A) Infrared thermometers are inappropriate for measuring internal cooking temperatures (correct answer)
- B) Infrared devices always report a colder temperature than the food's center
- C) Any surface temperature automatically equals the center temperature after browning
- D) An infrared reading becomes internal if it is taken from farther away
Why: A surface reading from an infrared device does not establish the internal cooking temperature. The guidance does not establish a universal direction or size of surface-to-center error.
Source: FDA Food Code 2022, Annex5, Assessing cooking temperatures
Keep practicing
Cooking numbers are easy to mix up, so practice them along with other food handler test questions on temperature.
Want a full 40-question paper? It is on the Food Handler Plan, $2.99 a month. compare the three monthly plans.
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