Is my meat safe to cook?

[Jovin]

Last night I put out a package of frozen ground beef and forgot it. I was trying to let it thaw out before using it for today. I'd taken it from the freezer and put it in the bottom of my fridge on Thursday night, and it was so frozen Friday afternoon, that I put it back in the freezer and didn't use it...I made something else for supper.

Last night I put it out about 11 pm or so, and it was in it's original wrapper and in a plastic grocery bag around it too. I forgot it in the drainer at my sink and didn't get it till 8:30 am this morning. It was totally thawed and lots of blood drained to the end of the package (It was sitting diagonally in the drainer.)

I refrigerated it imediately and don't know if I can use it tonight or not? What do you think?

 

[Barb L.]

Was it still cold to the touch, if so should be ok, if warm or smelled off -Pitch !

 

[SizzlininIN]

Most of the stores around here put out meat thats been already frozen and is thawed out quite a bit only for buyers to take them back home to refreeze. Thats why I like to go to this one store that cuts their meats fresh.

If the meat you found was still very cold to touch then I'd say its okay to use but give it a sniff and let your nose tell you. If the meat had warmed up by the time you found it then I wouldn't take the chance.

 

[Uncle Bob]

Miss Jovin...

If it "smells" ok...I might give it a go cooked well done!
If in doubt....throw it out!!!

 

[GB]

You are going to get 2 answers. There are those who will say they have done this a million times and never had a problem. You will then get those that say it is not safe to eat and why take the chance.

I am in the second camp. I equate it to driving without a seatbelt. You could do that for 40 years and never have a problem, but that one time you do get into an accident you will be wishing you had that belt on.

Toss the meat and stay safe. It just is not worth the risk.

 

[Snoop Puss]

I'd go along with SizzlinIN and GB. If it felt fridge cold when you found it in the drainer, fair enough. Otherwise, in the bin. Better safe than sorry, especially if you'd be cooking it for kids or anyone who was elderly or frail.

 

[BreezyCooking]

Nine hours or so isn't that long for something that was still frozen. I'm of the "I do that all the time" camp - & I do. I would definitely use it, but as others have posted, this is always going to be a contentious subject with diehards in both camps. It's definitely going to have to be your decision.

 

[auntdot]

I sorta straggle the fence here, shoulda been a politician I suppose.

Yeah - the Auntdot ticket - that sounds good.

Sorry, off track. I am usually in the use it category, and probably would. Definitely would were it still cold.

But I toss in the comfort factor - and that is do you feel comfortable eating it?

If not, toss it out.

Have tossed out a number of items we just would not feel happy eating, even though I was sure they were OK.

If the integrity of the item is in question, to the dump it gets toted.

With that wishy washy answer I feel I should be elected thread president.

LOL, and take care.

 

[VeraBlue]

Sorry to say, but you should have put it in the garabage. Ground beef is handled many times at the butcher's shoppe. First, it comes in whole, then it's placed on a cutting board where it's broken down, then it goes to a grinder, where it's ground. Then, it's packaged and weighed. From live cow to your refrigerator there are at least a dozen different ways the meat could have come in contact with bacteria (slaughterhouse, truck, cutting board, grinder, handlers, etc...) in addition to what would normally multiply on the beef. As soon as your package thawed to 40 degrees that was when you had to cook it, or refrigerate it (you never should have defrosted on the counter in the first place, the ease of slipping into a danger temp. zone is great).

The meat can only safely be above 40 degrees for 2 hours. After that, it's not safe for consumption. The fact that ground beef is handled so much more than a simple steak or roast makes it that much more dangerous.

Lots of people will tell you to smell it. You cannot always rely on smell. It's more about time and temperature when it comes to proteins and other potentially hazardous foods. I hate throwing food away, but no amount of money is worth the illness you are probably facing.

Always defrost in the fridge or in the microwave (only if you are going to cook immediately).

The preceding was a free announcement from your local food safety and sanitation faery

 

[Happy@Cooking]

I hate to waste food. but to be on the safe side, I would toss it.

 

[Jovin]

as I said,

I DID try to thaw it out in the fridge first, but it was still frozen the next day.

Okay, I guess the majority opinion is that I ditch it. I DO appreciate everyone's opinion, and thank you so much.

Jovin

 

[GB]

Always defrost in the fridge or in the microwave (only if you are going to cook immediately).

Or cold water. Cold water is a surprisingly fast and safe way to defrost. As a matter of fact, if you put the same item to defrost in a 500 degree oven or under cold water it wouls actually be the cold water one that defrosted first.

 

[VeraBlue]

Or cold water. Cold water is a surprisingly fast and safe way to defrost. As a matter of fact, if you put the same item to defrost in a 500 degree oven or under cold water it wouls actually be the cold water one that defrosted first.

Positively, I agree with that...I didn't mention the cold water in this case because it's rather impossible to defrost ground beef under running water.

 

[VeraBlue]

I DID try to thaw it out in the fridge first, but it was still frozen the next day.

Okay, I guess the majority opinion is that I ditch it. I DO appreciate everyone's opinion, and thank you so much.

Jovin

Your safest option, in this case, was to leave it in the fridge, and eat it the next day.

 

[GB]

Positively, I agree with that...I didn't mention the cold water in this case because it's rather impossible to defrost ground beef under running water.

I do it all the time because my meat is sealer in a foodsaver bag so I know no water will get in. You could use a large zip lock bag though. A pound a ground beef would easily fit in a gallon size bag and keep the water out.

 

[ChefJune]

The very fact that you asked the question indicates to me that you're unsure... and, as always, when indoubt, throw it out.

Vera painted a very descriptive picture of the journey ground meat takes from coe to your table... too many chances for germs to grow in that thawed out meat sitting in your drainer....

I hope you threw it out!

 

[Constance]

I've always thawed my burger on the counter, and never had a problem with it. You just have to use a little common sense.

I've also accidentally left it out all night. If I were you, I'd break it open and give it a good sniff. Keep in mind that raw meat and blood do stink. That doesn't mean they are rotten.

We now have one of those aluminum thawing trays, which makes anything thaw in half the time.

 

[GB]

You just have to use a little common sense.

The problem with that advice is that common sense means something different to everyone. To me, common sense would dictate that getting food poisoning because your food sat out in the danger zone is not worth the $3 that you spent on the meat. Not to mention that the meat can be dangerous to eat and not give off any bad smell at all.

You can do something like this a million times with no ill effect, but that one time that you do get sick I promise that you will never ever do it again.

 

[GB]

Here is an article from the USDA. Below is a snippet from the article.

Uh, oh! You're home and forgot to defrost something for dinner. You grab a package of meat or chicken and use hot water to thaw it fast. But is this safe? What if you remembered to take food out of the freezer, but forgot and left the package on the counter all day while you were at work?

Neither of these situations are safe, and these methods of thawing lead to foodborne illness.

 

[Jovin]

Again, thank you all...

I really DO appreciate the time you've all taken to advise me and state your differing opinions. That's why I like this site so much.

Also, I have a question about the cold water thawing thing. I understood that you should use warm water when thawing frozen food out that way. Is this something new?