Happy Birthday. Who doesn't like chicken. You've heard this Salmonella stuff before. Scare tactics. Good scare tactics. Now lets get down to business. You need a clean sink and an adjacent chicken station. Make a chicken zone.
1. Get paper towels and a good open garbage can.
2. Clean up all sinks and counters before doing anything - this means NO other objects may be nearby.
3. Pick the whole chicken package up by the seam, use shears to cut across the plastic and pull out the chicken and remove it to the pot or cutting board in the chicken zone. Toos the plastic into the open garbage can. Treat purchased parts with the same respect.
4. Wash your hands. Use soap. And a paper or dedicated towel to dry. Sing Happy Birthday to yourself while you wash. This is how long it takes if you are not used to it. When you have this down, you will occasionally be able to work with a chicken hand and a clean one, but this is unrealistic. Get used to singing and feling your fingers squeaky clean and you'll know you are done.
5. Every single time you complete any step wash your hands. Assume everything you touch is contaminated. Wash and sing the song - even if its in your head...
6. Don't let anything else come into the chicken zone, ever.
7. Wash anything that has come into the mix - counters and all - as soon as possible.
7. When absolutely done, wipe and dispose of paper towels first, then first and second sponges and first and second dish towels Then place the sponges in a microwave before the dishwasher. Wash the towels in a washing machine and dry for future use.