Direct answer
The key ServSafe temperature anchors are 41°F or lower for cold holding, 135°F or higher for hot holding, 145°F, 155°F, and 165°F for common cooking rules, and 135°F to 70°F to 41°F for cooling.
Core chart
Memorize the numbers as a system so scenario questions become easier to solve.
- 41°F or lower: cold holding for TCS food.
- 135°F or higher: hot holding for TCS food.
- 145°F for 15 seconds: seafood, steaks, chops, and eggs for immediate service.
- 155°F for 17 seconds: ground meat and injected meat.
- 165°F for 15 seconds: poultry, stuffed foods, and reheated TCS food for hot holding.
- Cooling: 135°F to 70°F within 2 hours, then 70°F to 41°F or lower within 4 more hours.
Exam trap
Many missed questions happen because learners know the final number but forget the context. Always ask whether the question is about cooking, holding, cooling, reheating, or receiving.
For example, 165°F can appear in poultry cooking and in reheating TCS food for hot holding. The right answer depends on the task named in the scenario.
Practice prompts with answer cues
Use these prompts to check whether you know the rule or only recognize the chart.
- A container of cooked soup is 80°F after 2 hours: the first cooling checkpoint failed.
- Raw chicken is cooked to 155°F: do not confuse poultry with ground meat.
- Cold TCS food is delivered at 46°F: treat it as a receiving decision, not a later storage fix.
- A pan of reheated chili will be hot-held: identify reheating for hot holding before choosing 165°F.