How Long to Safely Defrost Frozen Beef in a Fridge
- Ground beef tin be safely defrosted in the refrigerator, a basin of cold water, or in the microwave.
- Defrosting in the microwave is the fastest choice, but so you must cook the beef correct away.
- If you thaw ground beef in the refrigerator, it is prophylactic to refreeze again.
If you, like many other home cooks, go on a supply of ground beefiness in the freezer, you're likely familiar with the defrosting procedure — which means you're probably also familiar with the frustration that comes with forgetting to have the beef out of the freezer alee of time.
Defrosting ground beef properly ensures you steer clear from potential harmful bacteria. Dr. Darin Detwiler, a food regulatory expert and professor at Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts, says that "there will never be an cease to pathogens in our nutrient, but we tin can change the culture effectually the futurity of food condom."
The next time you lot need to bring your beefiness to room temperature, follow the methods beneath.
Method one: In the refrigerator
"The safest way to defrost footing beefiness is to do then in the fridge for at to the lowest degree 24 hours," Detwiler says. The refrigerator method is safest because it "keeps ground beef out of the danger zone, which refers to temperatures betwixt twoscore degrees Fahrenheit to 140 degrees Fahrenheit, where pathogens and bacteria can grow."
Detwiler says the fridge keeps the meat safely cool and warms it enough to fully defrost, which is crucial for "cooking the meat thoroughly to a temperature of 160 degrees Fahrenheit, which is required to impale any remaining pathogens."
To defrost ground beef in the refrigerator, place the bundle of frozen footing beefiness on a plate that'south big enough to catch any possible drippings from the meat as information technology defrosts. Next, place the plate on a low shelf in the refrigerator, which will help you lot "avoid the possibility of juices dripping onto other foods." The ground beef should remain in the fridge for at least 24 hours to fully defrost.
If you don't employ all of the defrosted ground beefiness right abroad, Detwiler says that it's safety to shop the leftovers back in the freezer as long every bit you lot do so within 48 hours of the original defrosting. Even so, for extra prophylactic insurance against pathogens and bacteria, Detwiler advises to cook the meat thoroughly before freezing it again.
Method ii: In cold water
If you lot need to defrost your ground beef and don't have a total 24 hours to wait, you can defrost it in a bowl of cold water. This method should take less than an hour, and it'southward safe equally long as the water is changed out as it warms to room temperature.
To defrost ground beef in cold water, make sure the beef is sealed in a leak-proof package, like a resealable plastic bag. "Prepare the plastic bag with the frozen meat in a sink or, preferably, in a large basin, cover with cold water, and counterbalance the package of meat down with something heavy," Detwiler says. The weighing-down keeps the meat submerged, which is essential to keep the meat at a safe temperature for even defrosting.
Leave the package submerged in cold h2o for 20 to xxx minutes. Later on that, you can "test" the meat's readiness by gently poking it with your fingers. If you lot feel ice crystals or stiffness, and then information technology needs more time (and a fresh circular of common cold water). Once the meat is thawed, take information technology out of the water bowl and cook immediately.
Method 3: In the microwave
For the quickest possible defrosting method, yous can defrost the ground beef in the microwave. This method yields condom-to-eat footing beef, but with one major caveat: you accept to cook it right away.
"Remove all packaging, and so identify the meat on a plate. Apply the microwave's defrost settings or gear up it at 50% power for 2 to three minutes, rotating and flipping the beef every xxx seconds, until it is fully thawed. Cook immediately and thoroughly to a temperature of 160 degrees Fahrenheit," Detwiler says.
1 important annotation: You shouldn't refreeze beefiness if you thaw it in the microwave. Because the meat is exposed to high temperatures (and has therefore spent fourth dimension in the danger zone), stashing it in the fridge to cook later isn't a safe move, either. Salve this method for when you're ready to get cooking immediately.
What to avoid
- Never thaw ground beef at room temperature. "Some people get out frozen meat out on the counter to thaw and volition get out it in that location for half-dozen to viii hours, thinking that this will definitely become the chore done. In reality, this allows it to get too warm and allows pathogens to grow," Detwiler says.
- Never thaw footing beef using hot water. Just equally thawing meat on the counter leaves information technology exposed to danger zone temps, then does thawing the meat in hot h2o. The sudden shock of hot h2o on frozen meat will accept negative effects on its texture, and equally the h2o cools down, the meat becomes vulnerable to unsafe temperatures. Plus, the hot h2o could begin to "cook" the meat, which gives you a totally inconsistent block of ground beef that's partially cooked on the outside and still frozen on the within.
- Don't keep ground beef in the freezer for longer than four months. Information technology's tempting to presume that ground beefiness can be kept in the freezer indefinitely. The USDA recommends using it within four months for the best quality, taste, and texture.
Insider's takeaway
Defrosting basis beef in the refrigerator is the safest selection, but information technology takes a full 24 hours. For faster results, submerge the frozen ground beefiness in cold water for one hour. The quickest method is the microwave method, which will defrost the ground beefiness in just a few minutes, merely you'll have to cook the meat immediately.
Source: https://www.insider.com/guides/kitchen/how-to-defrost-ground-beef
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