I do this at home for 7-14 days in whole cuts I purchase from my butcher (they are sold in a vacuum sealed bag). Ground beef should be damp to the touch, but not slimy or sticky. Smell the beef to see if you notice a sour smell. It's not hard to tell when ground beef has gone bad. The beef is also purchased as ground beef in mass quantities by numerous well-known fast food chains around the world. Lately, I have been making it a point to smell my meat before I cook it because the store I usually go to has been selling bad meat. If it is turning slightly green discard it. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. This color is a result of the protein in meat called myoglobin, which turns into oxymyoglobin and produces a vivid red color when it comes into contact with oxygen. For ground poultry, it's 165 degrees. It can be used in so many dishes, from casseroles to tacos and everything in between. /r/Cooking is a place for the cooks of reddit and those who want to learn how to cook. If you want beef to turn back to its original dark read color try exposing it to air for about 15 minutes before cooking. In ground beef, the signs you'll detect will depend on how badly spoiled it is. But cooked ground beef will last you an entire week. Additionally, any ground beef that has turned green is definitely rotten. "Ground poultry is the most difficult to see (if it's fresh) visually. This is what a dry aged piece of beef should look like before trimming, New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast. You should cook or freeze your ground beef within two days of purchasing it. However, the USDA notes that the interior of packaged ground beef can be gray or brown while the surface is red; this is due to lack of oxygen penetrating below the surface of the meat and is not necessarily a sign the meat has gone bad. Second, the touch test. These signs could mean that there are pathogenic bacteria like salmonella or E. Coli contaminating your ground beef. But, color changes are not the most accurate way to tell if the steak is bad or not. It could go bad before it even browns, so that's why you need to eat it immediately," said Peisker. You really don't want to wait until it smells or shows signs of spoilage to discard it," Magoulas said. There is some debate if wet or dry is better, I don't know. Color: Ground beef that is gone bad may have a slightly flat gray color. It will certainly have an odor, but it should not be like a gag-inducing rotten meat odor. Fresh ground beef may have a mild iron smell, but if it starts to smell rotten (beef tends to get a funky sweet odor), you should err on the side of caution and throw it out. Is ground … I bought some ground chicken of this brand two days ago, today I opened it to cook, its still pink, very slimy, but it has a sweet smell. Keep cold foods below 40 °F (4 °C) and hot foods above 140 °F (60 °C). Beef that is red colored or even slightly brown (sign of lack of oxygen) is generally safe to consume. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOg28S7PoU8. Cook a pound of ground beef and a chopped onion together in a large skillet until the meat is brown, then add 2 (14-ounce) cans of stewed tomatoes, a cup of canned enchilada sauce, 2 teaspoons of ground cumin, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Fresh beef will have a slight smell, but beef starting to go bad will smell rotten or sour. 8.4K views I bought some ground beef 3 weeks ago. Post anything related to cooking here, within reason. To … Fresh beef will have a slight smell, but beef starting to go bad will smell rotten or sour. Also, you don't know how old the meat was when it was frozen. The most common sign people know to spot a spoiled steak is the change in color. With ground beef, don’t look at these. A dry aged steak should not have any mold. "You want to go by recommended storage times." If it feels slimy, it's starting to go bad. The color change is due to the formation of mold. Since our fridge is set at a colder temp, it still wasn't completely thawed when I took it out today...it was slightly soft to touch, but there were still some ice crystals in the package. reddit; linkedin; WhatsApp/span> Any ground meat should be used within one to two days of purchase, and cuts of beef within three to five days. Prepackaged ground beef develops a brown color on the inside because oxygen is not able to reach the center. Prepackaged ground beef develops a brown color on the inside because oxygen is not able to reach the center. Appearance no doubt plays a big part in what we think of as fresh, and in the case of red meat, you probably equate a bright-red color with freshness. There are three main ways to tell that ground beef is bad. Its not a 'rotten' kind of smell, just sweet. I'm helping out my dad run a Steakhouse and haven't gotten a real clear answer from him regarding the process of aging. What I'm mainly concerned about is serving it to customers and having them get sick from it. This is all typically cut off the meat before it is cooked. If there’s any hint of sour or rotten smell, go ahead and toss the beef. For ground beef or pork, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommends cooking it to 160 degrees. According to the USDA, ground beef has the reddish color on the outside because of the way oxygen interacts with the pigments in the meat. I believe it was called Porterhouse Rules. I just bought raw ground beef last night and stored it in the fridge until this morning when I made meatballs with it that are now cooking in the slow cooker on low for eight hours. You should read it to bone-up a bit on what you're doing in your restaurant and if something seems to deviate a lot from what is in the article, you may have a problem, http://www.seriouseats.com/2013/03/the-food-lab-complete-guide-to-dry-aging-beef-at-home.html. The flavour, texture and nutrient values go downhill till it is not worth eating. First, the sniff test. The health department does not allow food to be served in restaurants if it is more than 7 days old (if kept at 41 F.). Is that how they are supposed to be? Beef starts to change color when it is turning bad. Ground beef is a dinnertime staple around our house. However, the obvious way that you can tell that it is bad is when you find slimy film substances covering your meat. The consumers sickened in the e-coli contaminated beef recalled from Whole Foods this month likely could not smell, see or taste the bacteria. The Use-By Date Has Passed The last thing you want is for your favorite food to make you sick. According to the USDA, ground beef has the reddish color on the outside because of the way oxygen interacts with the pigments in the meat. If your meat looks like meat when it is defrosted with no dried out brown grey spots is is fine. The smell is caused by the gases produced by the bacteria. All charitable donations are paid by GreaterGood.org to benefiting organizations as a grant. In general, restaurants follow a 3 day rule (especially for meat). Press J to jump to the feed. Ground beef may change color due to multiple factors, including temperature, light, … I believe that is an indication of too much humidity, or not properly dried. If you have mold veins running through the whole primal of beef however when you cut into it, not just on the surface, that is BAD. If the inside of your ground beef is gray, it’s probably because it hasn’t been exposed to oxygen. If you’ve ever opened a package of ground beef and wondered if it’s gone bad, you’re not alone! Hamburger, on the other hand, can contain organs as well as muscle, and while it can only have up to 30% fat, more fat can be added after processing to “beef it up” so to speak. Also, if you find yourself with ground meat that has gone past the sell by date by more than a day or two, just cook it (but never cook it if it smells bad). It's been in your refrigerator too long . ©2020 Great Life Publishing and GreaterGood. Fresh ground beef is usually cool to the touch, smooth, and slightly damp. Ground beef is as versatile as it is inexpensive – or, at least relative to other cuts of meat. David Burke's in Chicago dry age up to 75 days and you can see in this video there is no mold on the beef, though 15% will have to be trimmed regardless. When this smell is present, the beef is not safe for consumption by humans or animals and should be discarded immediately. Not so fast! If you have mold veins running through the whole primal of beef however when you cut into it, not just on the surface, that is BAD. Fresh beef will have a slight smell, but beef starting to go bad will smell rotten or sour. Dry aging beef it's normal to have discolored edges, a tough rind, and surface mold. There are lots of videos on the process of dry aging--an easier, and probably safer method is a vacuum sealed wet age. Finally, ground beef can change color when it spoils, going from the familiar rust-red color (produced by iron, the same ingredient that gives blood its color) to a flat gray color. They also get extremely discoloured on the edges, and it appears to have a sort of mold growing on them. Not at all! I would YouTube it or look on food network. Prepackaged ground beef develops a brown color on the inside because oxygen is not able to reach the center. For example, if steak has changed from the bright red color it originally was when first purchased to a black or green color, this is a sign that the beef is bad. First, the sniff test. Have you ever chopped up a package of ground beef only to find that the inside is a brownish-gray color? In regards to prepping it for consumption, am I to just trim the mold off? Check the color. Recognizing that your meat is bad when it is cooked already is not easy. Be sure to store the beef in your fridge or freezer right away. Sure, you hate to throw away meat, but it’s not worth the risk of food poisoning. I put it in the freezer as soon as I got home. Wait, aren’t these the same thing? The smell is produced from gases made by some of the bacteria on your beef. So if you didn't get to the grill when you thought you would, cook the … This color change occurs as the bacteria break down the iron compo… It also really shouldn't happen if you're not fucking something up. This is all typically cut off the meat before it is cooked. Kenji at the food lab has a good article on Dry Aging beef at home with a lot of good pictures and explanations. Here are three ways to tell if your beef is expired. Is it still safe to cook? I'm not an expert on the matter at all, but I have seen an episode where Alton brown had sat a cut of steak out for quite some time to age it. “It’s caused by air coming in contact with the surface of the meat. It says its use or freeze by date is the 22nd, but the sweet smell worries me. If it does have stuff like that it is safe but won’t be tasty. However, bacteria like salmonella, e. coli, listeria and others are undetectable potential health threats even on ground beef that's not otherwise spoiled. Raw ground beef will last 1 or 2 days past the sell-by date if constantly refrigerated. Dry aging beef it's normal to have discolored edges, a tough rind, and surface mold. Freshly ground chicken or turkey will have a light pink hue and virtually no smell. Anytime cooked meat feels a bit slimy, or damp, it is a sure sign that the meat is bad. However, if all or a lot of the meat has turned gray, it’s best to check for freshness using one or both of the following methods. The foam/plastic containers may help with extending the life of the ground beef, but it is more important to look at the “packaged on” date. Dry aging steaks (you should be doing whole cuts, and not individual steaks if you are running a steakhouse) removes moisture from the meat, which concentrates the smell. How to Tell if Beef Is Bad. If the inside of your ground beef is gray, it’s probably because it hasn’t been exposed to oxygen. It also really shouldn't happen if you're not fucking something up. If you are de-frosting the beef, it’s best to do so in the refrigerator instead of the microwave, or worse, letting it sit out on the counter. Picked up some ground beef at the store. Ground beef can only be made from skeletal muscles, and it can only contain up to 30% fat in total. The odor of bad ground beef is cloying, sickeningly sweet and musty. If something … Smell the beef to see if you notice a sour smell. Some of the steaks smell horrible. “Freezer burnt beef has dry spots on it that look greyish or brown,” Qassim says. The slime on the surface is caused by the buildup of bacterial cells. The smell is produced from gases made by some of the bacteria on your beef. Sight: Use your sense of sight to determine bad steak color. Bad sign? If it smells funky or off, it's spoiled. 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