Still good?

[Mr. S£im Citrus]

I took out some ground beef to thaw yesterday afternoon; now, because I'm impatient, and don't like to wait on my refrigerator to thaw food from the freezer, I put it in my kitchen sink to thaw more quickly. And then, because I'm a bonehead, I ended up going to bed and forgetting about it.

Is my beef still good?

 

[arwen undomiel]

I'd toss it, Slim. It's been out too long.

 

[funsc]

you can smell it and check if it is still good. it should be ok as long as the temperature lower than 70F and no sunshine on it directly

 

[Mr. S£im Citrus]

70°F? You did see that I'm in Virginia, right?

Throw it out, huh? Man, that stinks! Beef costs too much these days!

 

[6th]

70°F? You did see that I'm in Virginia, right?

Throw it out, huh? Man, that stinks! Beef costs too much these days!

Yes...70 degrees F. You hate heat, so I am guessing you keep yourself relatively cool. Is it still red in the middle? Smell it and see if it stinks. If it smells okay, then use it. If there is a sour smell to it at all...pitch it.

 

[Evenstar]

that must be thrown out. anything that spoils can only be in the danger zone for more then 4 hours must be thrown out. i'm not sure the exact temps, but it's something like 40-130 degrees F.

it's best to thaw in the fridge. yah it takes a while, but it's the safest bet.

 

[loopymitch]

Toss it, you can't always go by the smell. Salmonella sets in very quickly, I think it's within 6 hours at over 40 degrees.

 

[Bricklayer]

You know, if you cook it well enough you'll kill anything that might be growing even if it is going bad. But I certainly wouldn't trust that for a rare burger or anything.

 

[Mr. S£im Citrus]

....


I was going to make Hamburger Helper with it; I don't eat rare meat.

 

[Bricklayer]

....


I was going to make Hamburger Helper with it; I don't eat rare meat.

Well, like I say, if you cook it well enough, you could probably eat it even if it was covered in mold when you started. (well, maybe ). Then just a question of whether there is any funny flavor or not. Doubt it for something that was only out overnight. (But truth is I am vaguely squeamish about such things and might well throw it out)

 

[HndsmCelt]

Brick is almost right. Any bactria that grew would be killed by a high temp. (190 degrees F.) By the way one of the BEST sources of bactria in any home is the sink it's self. Viral contamination and prions however are not so eaisly destroyed, but in either case the thawing process would have no impact on the presence of Viral contamnats nor the presence of prions so as far as your concers go you COULD eat the meat IF you thougrley cooked he meat at high temp.

 

[Mr. S£im Citrus]

I'm not really concerned about anything coming from the sink; the meat was sealed in a plastic container which was, in turn, sealed inside a Tupperware container.

 

[VF21]

Did you eat it or throw it away?

 

[Mr. S£im Citrus]

Neither; I haven't made up my mind... I'm not afraid to eat it myself, but I'm a little worried about serving it to CJ, so I'm thinking about maybe cooking it and eating some night that he's not here.

 

[hoopsfan]

If it's been 2 days...I would definately chuck it.

 

[VF21]

Personally, I would probably open it, smell it and - if it didn't smell like road-kill - I would most likely use it for something like biscuits and hamburger gravy, where you cook the hamburger really well first.

But then, I've always been one to walk on the wild side...

 

[D-Mass]

I assume it's not still sitting in the sink...

 

[Mr. S£im Citrus]

Uh, no... It's been in the refrigerator since before I made the OP.

 

[VF21]

There was a website a while back that had the saga of a man who disliked his neighbor intensely. To frustrate the neighbor, the man took a steak, set it out - uncooked - well hidden in the man's back yard and waited for the inevitable. He even took pictures of the steak as it decomposed. AND he was pretty graphic in describing the various odors, aromas, etc. that prevailed. The neighbor searched his yard continually but was never able to find the source of the odors. He finally became convinced HIS neighbor - the person who had planted the meat - had killed something and hidden it in the area. The police were called, the website creator got pictures - right up until the cops knocked on his door with a search warrant. He eventually led them back into the neighbor's yard and showed them the now-liquefied steak.

Last entry on the website was something about facing some kind of charges. I haven't thought of that for a long time...

Just thought I'd share.

 

[loopymitch]

This thread is killing my appetite. What did you decide slim?

 

[RoyalDiva]

....


I was going to make Hamburger Helper with it; I don't eat rare meat.

Hamburger Helper ......oh, dear Slim, you need some decent cooking lessons.

But what I am talking about, I won't eat macaroni & cheese unless it's the cheap stuff that comes out of the Kraft box...

 

[tubiscus]

Personally, I would probably open it, smell it and - if it didn't smell like road-kill - I would most likely use it for something like biscuits and hamburger gravy, where you cook the hamburger really well first.

But then, I've always been one to walk on the wild side...

Never doubted the "Wild Side" VF, but your post about biscuits and gravy is making me awful hungry, and I'm getting ready for work.......I'll be thinking about this all night!!!! Hmmmmmmm maybe I can convince my beloved to have breakfast for dinner..........hmmmmmm

 

[Evenstar]

Hamburger Helper ......oh, dear Slim, you need some decent cooking lessons.

But what I am talking about, I won't eat macaroni & cheese unless it's the cheap stuff that comes out of the Kraft box...

i can help there

and i could teach you to make the best mac and cheese you've ever had