Meat Storage questions

[oldramon]

i'm curious what the rules are for storing meat -- pork and beef, specifically. i bring them home from the store, and often put them in the fridge, and i'm not sure if this is something i should do, unless i intend to cook those things that day, so they just stay in there for the week as needed, but if that were dangerous or unhealthy, i would not want to do that.

i'm also curious how throughly you should wash meats before cooking ? i often give them a good rincing, but i do not dwell on making them clean before cooking, and am not sure if this is safe.

 

[Andy M.]

I would keep meats in the fridge for 4-5 days. Any longer and I would freeze it.

I never wash meats, poultry or fish. The USDA recommends against it too.

 

[oldramon]

oh, wow. never put meat under water to wash ? is that correct ?

 

[Andy M.]

oh, wow. never put meat under water to wash ? is that correct ?

Yes.

 

[oldramon]

i wont wash meats if i am cooking ever in the future, it occurs to me though, that i ought to share this with my mother, who always washes meat, so i am curious as to the reasoning behind that whole bit is. she is old fashioned, so i will have to give her a good reason if she is to ever change her ways.

thank you

 

[Bigjim68]

I buy meat in fairly large quantities and generally cook for one or two. Unless I am going to use it within a couple of days, it is portioned into single servinge and frozen. I do not like to leave the meat in the styro and plastic packages with the liquds, and dry it with paper towels before freezing.

 

[Andy M.]

I was considered wise to wash meats to get rid of any contaminants present from the processing. USDA tests have shown this only serves to spread any contaminants that may be present to other areas and does not remove them from the meat.

Any bacteria present on the surface of a piece of beef or chicken, etc. will be completely detroyed by the cooking process. Unless you see visible non-meat stuff on your food, washing is not recommended. If you do see non-meat stuff on your purchased meats, shop elsewhere.

 

[Claire]

I occasionally rinse a chicken, but don't any other meat. Any fresh meat I buy goes into the freezer if I'm not going to eat it within 3 days. I guess the bottom line for me is if I'm not going to eat it tomorrow or the day after, I freeze it.

 

[mcnerd]

i wont wash meats if i am cooking ever in the future, it occurs to me though, that i ought to share this with my mother, who always washes meat, so i am curious as to the reasoning behind that whole bit is. she is old fashioned, so i will have to give her a good reason if she is to ever change her ways.

Tell her that scientific research and improved technology in making better testing equipment were the reasons for the change in attitude....and it is.

In fact in 1990 all "canning" instructions, books, and recipes had to be reprinted because of new knowledge about bacteria spores, molds, fungus and yeasts that cause spoilage in our foods, especially the biggy one, Botulism. People today still don't believe how serious it is.

 

[anatogonon]

After buying meats and fish from the grocery or market I wash it before I store it inside the freezer , and when I'm about to cook some of it I don't wash it anymore.

 

[mozart]

As Andy said, washing meat only serves to spread the contamination around to the sink, counter, sponge, dish cloth and anywhere else water can splash in your kitchen. It is an emotional feel good practice with no purpose.

If you see some extraneous material from processing on the meat surface, use a paper towel to wipe it off.

As for freezing, I use the sell by date and add a day or two tops and then use or freeze. In reality, no one knows an exact number of days because it really goes back to when the meat was first processed and we don't know that.