Cooking Temperature Log Sheet: Free UK Template

Cooking and hot holding temperature log (free UK template)

This log covers the four hot-food checks in one sheet: cooking, cooling, reheating and hot holding. Each entry shows the food reached a safe temperature, and what you did when it did not.

Use the free printable sheet, or the LogBooks Hub version, which records the time automatically and prompts for a corrective action when a reading fails.

How often: Every time you cook, cool or reheat a high-risk dish such as meat, poultry, rice or sauces, and at regular set times while food is in hot holding (for example every two hours).

Printable A4, no sign-up or email needed.

What to record

Date and time of the check

The food or dish, and the batch if you cook more than one

Which stage: cooking, cooling, reheating or hot holding

The core temperature, taken with a clean, disinfected probe in the centre or thickest part

For cooling: the time it started cooling and the time it went into the fridge

What you did if the food did not reach a safe temperature

Initials of the person who checked

A filled-in example

Sample entries only, to show the level of detail an inspector expects.

Example Cooking, cooling, reheating and hot holding log entries
Date	Time	Food	Stage	Temp (°C)	Action taken	Initials
05/10	11:40	Chicken curry	Cook	78	None needed	JS
05/10	12:30	Chicken curry	Hot hold	67	None needed	JS
05/10	14:30	Chicken curry	Hot hold	59	Reheated to 80°C, back in bain-marie (once only)	AK
05/10	15:10	Beef stew batch	Cool	6 at 16:20	Split into shallow trays, fridge at 16:20	AK
06/10	12:05	Beef stew portion	Reheat	79	None needed	JS

Why this log matters

Thorough cooking kills harmful bacteria, and keeping food hot or cooling it fast stops survivors growing. There is no specific law requiring a cooking log, but you must keep records of your food safety checks and how you put things right (GOV.UK). The SFBB "Prove it" method asks you to use a disinfected probe to show your methods work.

Safe temperatures

Stage	Target	Source
Cooking	Core of 75°C for at least 30 seconds, or 70°C for 2 minutes, 80°C for 6 seconds, 65°C for 10 minutes, 60°C for 45 minutes	SFBB Cooking safely
Hot holding	63°C or above (legal requirement)	SFBB Hot holding and Prove it
Hot food on display	Out of hot holding for up to 2 hours, once only	SFBB Hot holding
Cooling	As quickly as possible, then into the fridge at 8°C or below	SFBB Chilling down hot food
Reheating in Scotland	Core of at least 82°C, unless that would spoil the food	Food Standards Scotland CookSafe

In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, reheated food must reach a safe temperature in the centre, using the same time and temperature combinations as cooking. Reheat only once. SFBB does not set a fixed cooling time, so decide your own time limit, write it on the sheet and check you meet it.

What to do if a reading fails

Cooking or reheating too low: cook for longer and probe again. Use smaller batches or different equipment if it keeps happening.
Hot holding below 63°C: reheat until it is a safe temperature and put it back once only, or chill it down safely and reheat it later. If you cannot do either, throw it away.
Displayed hot food past two hours: reheat and return to hot holding, chill it to 8°C or below, or throw it away.
Cooling too slowly: re-cook it if appropriate, or throw it away. Then change your method: smaller portions, shallow trays, stirring, or a blast chiller.

Write down what went wrong and what you did. The digital log asks for this whenever a temperature is below target, so the record is never left half-finished.

Common mistakes

Probing the edge of a dish instead of the centre or thickest part

Writing 75°C for everything without actually probing

Putting cold food into a bain-marie to heat it up, when hot holding equipment is only for keeping hot food hot

Reheating the same food more than once

No time recorded for cooling, so nobody can tell how long the food sat out

The easier way: keep it on your phone

In LogBooks Hub this log reminds staff when it is due, stamps each entry with who and when, can hold a photo as evidence, and goes into your audit pack PDF in one click. It is one of 90+ ready-made logbooks, from £30 a month. Works on any device in the browser, or grab the iPhone or Android app.

Frequently asked questions

What temperature should food be cooked to in the UK?

The Safer Food, Better Business pack gives safe time and temperature combinations for the centre of the food: 75°C for at least 30 seconds, 70°C for 2 minutes, 80°C for 6 seconds, 65°C for 10 minutes or 60°C for 45 minutes. Food Standards Scotland's CookSafe gives 75°C or above as an example for poultry, rolled joints and minced meat. Whole cuts of beef or lamb served rare are an exception if the outside is fully cooked.

What temperature should hot food be held at?

Hot food must be kept at 63°C or above if you are not serving it straight away. You can take food out of hot holding to display it for up to two hours, once only. After that, reheat it until steaming hot and return it to hot holding, chill it quickly to 8°C or below, or throw it away.

What temperature should food be reheated to?

In Scotland, reheated food must reach at least 82°C in the core, unless that would spoil it. In that case Food Standards Scotland suggests a time and temperature combination such as 70°C for 2 minutes. In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, reheat until the centre reaches a safe cooking temperature, and reheat only once.

How quickly should cooked food be cooled?

The SFBB pack says to chill cooked food that you will not serve immediately as quickly as possible, then put it in the fridge. It does not give a fixed time. Set your own time limit, write it on your log, and use smaller portions, shallow trays, stirring or a blast chiller to meet it. If food has not cooled safely, re-cook it or throw it away.

How do I check my probe thermometer is accurate?

Put it in iced water and then boiling water. In iced water it should read between -1°C and 1°C. In boiling water it should read between 99°C and 101°C. If it is outside these ranges, replace it or send it back to the manufacturer for calibration. If the manufacturer gives no schedule, SFBB suggests checking about once a month.