ISO: Thawing Meat Safely?

[Pat58]

I never freeze meat, but my supermarket had such a sale on pork tenderloins I had to take advantage. Question: I plan to cook it next week but need input on how to thaw the meat safely. I really don't want to use the microwave, I'm afraid it will cook in there. Would also appreciate advise and/or links re: freezing other types of meats. Thank you!

[ElinorC]

I prefer defrosting meat in the refrigerator for about a day. Leave the wrapping on the meat and place on a plate so that the juices don't drip over everything.

[HARRYET]

I defrost meat on the counter for a short period of time then place in the refrigerator, because I find when I place frozen meats in the refrigerator they take a long time to thaw, just last night I placed frozen chicken in the refrigerator about 8:00 and this morning at 10:00 it was still rock solid, so I had to nuke it so I could start my dinner for today! I don't like to nuke my meats, because they always start to cook on me. Good luck Ann

[Liz K]

Recently on the tv show Good Eats (Food Network) they discussed the best way to thaw meats. The preferred method is to put the meat (wrapped in plastic) in cool water, changing the water as it warms.

[Vanessa]

I thaw all my meats using the water method. Most of the time I put my meats in freezer bags therefore when thawing I use my stockpot and summerge the bag with meat inside in COLD water. I make sure and change water. I thaw turkey, pork, meat, etc this way all the time.

[Marcie]

On the subject of frozen food, why can't you freeze, thaw, then refreeze food? Is it a safety issue or just something that would affect food quality?

[Vanessa]

Marcie
Its a safety issue. Once you thaw you should not refreeze again unless it has been fully cooked.

[kentgirl]

These rules of thawing meat are taken directly from one of my cookbooks. I've never taken the time to read these, so I learned something new. Personally, I have always thawed my meat in cold water, or if I'm in a hurry, in the microwave.

· Completely thaw meat or poultry before grilling so it cooks more evenly.
· Use the refrigerator for slow, safe thawing. Foods defrosted in the refrigerator can be refrozen before or after cooking.
· Microwave defrost only if the food will be placed immediately on the grill or in the oven.
· Meat in airtight packaging may be defrosted in cold tap water, changing the water every 30 minutes so it continues to thaw.
· Foods defrosted in the microwave or by the cold water method should be cooked before refreezing because they may potentially have been held at temperatures above 40 °F allowing harmful bacteria to grow

[Kerri]

Actually, it is a quality issue. There might be safety concerns also, depending on how you handled the food. Freeze/thaw is a pretty brutal process which can affect the composition of certain items. Ice crystals melting and reforming, stuff like that.