Recall ordered: Chicken tikka masala product may be contaminated with listeria

Sukhi’s Gourmet Indian Foods of Hayward is recalling about 264 pounds of chicken tikka masala products that may be contaminated with listeria.

The chicken was used in one of the company’s ready-to-eat meals. The item is an 11-ounce frozen microwaveable sealed container of “Sukhi’s CHICKEN TIKKA MASALA with NAAN BREAD & BASMATI RICE.” It has a “use by date of 11/07/2018 and lot number 83790.”

The problem was discovered by the Alameda district office of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. A sample of the product was collected by the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service personnel on Nov. 7. The sample was confirmed to be positive with Listeria monocytogenes on Nov. 13.

So far, there have been no confirmed reports of people being sickened from eating the product. Listeria can cause listeriosis, a serious infection that primarily affects older adults, persons with weakened immune systems, and pregnant women and their newborns. Less commonly, persons outside these risk groups are affected.

Symptoms of listeriosis are fever, muscle aches, headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance and convulsions, sometimes preceded by diarrhea or other gastrointestinal symptoms.

Federal food safety officials and the company are concerned that some of the product may be frozen and in consumers’ freezers.

Consumers who have purchased these products are urged not to consume them. These products should be thrown away or returned to the place of purchase.

This story was originally published November 14, 2017 at 3:09 PM with the headline "Recall ordered: Chicken tikka masala product may be contaminated with listeria."