\u00a9 2023 wikiHow, Inc. All rights reserved. Red meat and steak can last on the fridge for 3-5 days. Spoiled ground beef is dangerous to eat because it may contain pathogenic bacteria, which are responsible for foodborne illnesses. Meat can be stored in the fridge for up to four days before it begins to spoil. Wet and juicy is OK, but you never want your meat to be slimy to the touch," advised Peisker. Some butchers like to age the meat by hanging (see our article here about aged beef) it prior to packing. Wash drawers or racks in a similar way and replace them in the freezer. Therefore, even though spoilage bacteria wont make you sick, you should always discard spoiled ground beef to avoid consuming disease-causing microorganisms. Salmonella and E. coli can also cause intestinal bleeding, resulting in bloody diarrhea. Believe me, food poisoning is very unpleasant and can even be fatal, its just not worth the risk. Additionally, FuriousGrill.com also participates in other affiliate programs, and we sometimes get a commission through purchases made through our links. If you dont plan to cook anytime soon, place it in the fridge or freezer. Do this gently in a bowl of water and try not to splash the water as you may inadvetently be spreading bacteria if the meat juices to work surfaces in the area. Spoiled ground beef develops a telltale rancid smell that indicates its dangerous to eat. Smell fresh seafood while you are at the supermarket to compare its smell. Ground beef is commonly used to make burgers, meatballs, and sausage, as well as tacos, lasagna, and savory pies. If you're ever unsure about how long meat is good after defrosting, the best thing to do is to check the package. I hope that you will get value from the information provided and I thank you for taking the time to visit. However, heat isn't a guaranteed way to prevent food poisoning. If your ground beef has a sticky or slimy texture when raw or cooked, it has most likely gone bad. If it seems okay, use your fingers to test the texture. This is the reason why you should not rinse chickens etc under a running water tap! The Mayo Clinic says that food poisoning can cause symptoms such as abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, fever, diarrhea and other gastrointestinal issues. If you get a sour odor from a piece of meat, you need to be careful. As meat goes bad, it usually takes on grayish undertones. However, a sticky or slimy texture either when cooked or raw may indicate the presence of spoilage bacteria. Slimy or Sticky. Cooked beef also smells sour and foul when its no longer good to eat. What Happens if You Cook a Spoiled Steak? You should also avoid eating meat that has a grayish or greenish color, or which is past its expiration date. The best thing to do when you put the meat in the fridge, is to write the use-by-date if it isnt already written on the package. Getty Images. The texture of your meat is also indicative of whether or not it's gone bad. Yes, but only if you defrosted the meat in your refrigerator. Even with all the strict measures in place to ensure that quality is maintained throughout the whole meat processing procedure, ocassionally a bad piece of meat makes its way into the system and it is nobodys fault. If you defrosted the meat in a bowl or water or in the microwave, it's no longer safe to refreeze. The USDA says that food can technically be kept at zero degrees Fahrenheit indefinitely. If youre not sure whether your ground beef is still good, lean close and smell it. This image is not<\/b> licensed under the Creative Commons license applied to text content and some other images posted to the wikiHow website. Keep in mind that the freezer will not make the meat last forever but just for a few weeks or months. As long as you know the signs and are on the lookout for spoiled food, you can keep yourself safe while eating and handling meat! Air Exposure The second reason that causes food spoilage is air exposure. Can I Get Sick From Eating Bad Meat Even After Cooking It? All rights reserved. If any of these symptoms are present, the meat should not be eaten. It might also be on the mushy side. Not all microbes are dangerous. Be sure to carefully read the product label when buying ground beef. However, it can play an important role to determine if the meat is fresh or not. She holds a BASc in Culinary Arts and Food Service Management from Johnson and Wales University. Symptoms include fever, vomiting, stomach cramps, and diarrhea which may be bloody (9, 10, 11). Dont leave the meat at room temperature for a long period of time as it increases the risk of spoilage. It accounts for about 62% of all beef sold in the United States (1). We use cookies to make wikiHow great. Ground beef stored at room temperature for more than two hours activates harmful bacterias. A green or brownish color on the surface is a clear sign that the meat is bad. Take the breading or glaze off of cooked poultry served at a restaurant to examine its color. Luckily these types of instances are very rare, but they do happen and I mention them just to illustrate that it is possible for a piece of meat to spoil through no fault of human error. Cooked meat leftovers: 2-3 months Place the foods you will be keeping inside a cooler or plastic storage bag together, which will help them stay cold. Even though storing steak in the refrigerator can slow down the spoiling process and help you store it for a couple of days, still, the meat will not stay fresh forever. You may also notice some discoloration, as the meat will appear darker than normal. Hot dogs can be kept in the fridge for one to two weeks. If the meat has been frozen for longer than the recommended time period for its . If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. How long the meat was left to hang prior to being butchered and packed can also affect the shelf life of the vacuum sealed meat. The Salmonella and the E. coli are destroyed when the meat reaches a 150F temperature. A spoiled steak will have a potent scent that no longer smells like usual raw meat but has an ammonia-clad aroma, somehow like a cheesy-like smell. For example, if the use-by-date is on 1st of July, you can get the steak on freezer by 28th of June, which will give you a 2-3-day window to get the steak thawed before it could spoil. Take a cooler along to the store with you with a few ice blocks inside. On the other hand, pathogenic bacteria are dangerous, as they can lead to food poisoning. Even though some bacteria are killed with heat, a couple of them will survive freezing or heat, making the meat unsafe to be consumed. Last Updated: November 27, 2022 This is the last thing you want as it comes with the risk of making you sick or even die from food poisoning. Wash the meat and pat it dry. The surface of the meat will have a sheen to it, and the slime may have a yellowish hue when it catches the light. Dont eat expired or unrefrigerated meat. The FDA states that: Meat that is left at 40 degrees F for longer than this amount of time will slowly start decomposing. If your steak is bad, it will often look and feel slimy and slippery to the touch. I will just say that, although the smell of vacuum packed meat can seem a little funky, it is rarely an overwhelming smell or so strong that you are disgusted by it. discovered a "tunnel" of gray beef inside the bright red. If you have decided that you would like to buy your meat from an independent butcher shop, meat market or farm shop, then you may we wondering what attributes make a good one to use. This article has been viewed 515,308 times. "All beef, including ground beef, is a deep purple until it hits oxygen . Our experts continually monitor the health and wellness space, and we update our articles when new information becomes available. Also, if the ground beef has any areas that are tinted white or blue, this can indicate . For instance, an animal may have had an injury that has caused an growth to form deep inside the meat. Here are the health effects of red meat, including possible benefits and downsides of adding it to, Improperly cooked meat can harbor harmful bacteria. When doing the smell test, make sure to not press your nose against the meat but just simply cup your hand near the meat and move it towards your face and see if you can smell anything. Throw your meat away if it has a bad odor, especially if the meat's expiration date has passed. Conclusion. The consent submitted will only be used for data processing originating from this website. An example of data being processed may be a unique identifier stored in a cookie. Also, within 30 minutes of opening, any smell should have all but disappeared. Its important to safely handle and store all types of meat. Though the scent of fresh ground beef is barely perceptible, rancid meat has a tangy, putrid odor. When in doubt about a meat's color, throw it away. Whole meat cuts (chops, roasts) will remain useable for another 3-5 days in the refrigerator before cooking. If after 30 minutes the meat appears to be a grey or brown unnatural color, and is still giving an offensive odor, then the meat has probably spoiled. Meat defrosted in the refrigerator can be re-frozen without cooking, although some quality may be lost. I looked it up to see if it was safe to eat. Fresh ground beef should have a relatively firm consistency that breaks apart when you squeeze it. If this happens for a long time, your meat will turn rotten and smelly. It may not be safe to eat. Opened it, began making patties, and. Luckily, both raw and cooked ground beef display obvious signs when they go badand were here to show you exactly what those signals are. If the steak is spoiled, then it will have a sticky and slimy surface. A spoiled steak will have a potent odor that no longer smells like raw steak but instead has an ammonia-clad aroma. If the use-by-date has passed, then it is a clear sign to help you tell if the steak is bad or not. Send back spoiled meats if it is served to you at a restaurant. Read more: 11 Food-Safety Mistakes You Don't Know You're Making. Fresh, raw ground beef should be red due to its levels of oxymyoglobin a pigment formed when a protein called myoglobin reacts with oxygen (3). If you are in a hurry, here it is a short list of the signs to have in mind to find out if the meat is safe to eat or not: Lets jump to each one of them and get into more details: This is pretty straightforward for most people. To destroy these bacteria and reduce your risk of food poisoning, cook ground beef thoroughly and use a meat thermometer to verify that its internal temperature reaches 160F (71C) ( 3 ). How long does ground beef last in the fridge? If the product has been out of the cold chain for more than 30 minutes, or stored at a temperature above 5oC / 40oF then this can allow bacteria to multiply. Much of the meat sold in grocery stores today has been vaccum packed. However, if your nose tells you it isn't spoiled, put them in ice cold milk in the . A Look at the Science, Meat Temperature: A Guide to Safe Cooking, Eating Meat for Weight Loss? The interior of raw ground meat may be greyish brown due to a lack of exposure to oxygen. However, if the smell you are getting during cooking is less than mouth watering, in fact it is rather off putting, then this is another sure sign that you probably shouldnt be eating it. If the smell is strong and off putting, and doesnt reduce after 30 minutes of airing, then you may need to look a little more closely to make sure it is not spoiled. This image is not<\/b> licensed under the Creative Commons license applied to text content and some other images posted to the wikiHow website. A sell-by date tells the retailer how long a product can be displayed for sale. If raw chicken is gray, green, or any color other than . Once you have patted the meat dry with paper towels, allow the meat to sit out at room temperature for up to 30 minutes prior to cooking. When the steak has gone bad, different kind of bacteria is grown. Sometimes, rubbing the pork in vinegar also helps get rid of the egg-y smell. The sell-by-date is the date that the store needs to sell the meat. If your meat is slimy or sticky, your meat has likely become contaminated by some sort of microbe. Freezing food can even help destroy certain parasites. Handling and storing ground beef properly reduces your risk of foodborne illnesses. In the butchery trade we have the saying If In Doubt, Throw It Out! and this would serve you well in your kitchen too. Check the meat for a foul smell. Smell is the first indicator followed by color. Salmonella and STEC are the most common bacteria associated with food poisoning from ground beef. Feel the chicken. wikiHow, Inc. is the copyright holder of this image under U.S. and international copyright laws. Larger cuts or whole birds (like a turkey) take about 24 hours per five pounds to thaw. A few simple techniques, including looking for changes in color, odor, and texture, can determine whether your ground beef has gone bad. Meanwhile, the expiration date also labeled as best before tells you when the product is likely to start going bad. Can you tell me if it is bad or not? The following are four ways to tell if meat is spoiled: Offensive smells, off colors, slimy texture, and bad odor. An air hole can occur for reasons such as the original heat seal not being strong enough to fully seal the bag, a slight crinkle in the bag when it was sealed, a minute hole in the pouch that was used prior to sealing, or a minute hole being pierced sometime after sealing. The mold has started to grow and it is unsafe to be consumed. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Keep it in a bag on the lowest shelf to prevent its juices from leaking. That course, "I took some hamburger out of the freezer to make for dinner, and after it'd been thawed and cooked, it had a funny, "I get concerned when I buy hamburger that is red in the store, get it home and it is brown inside. Anything more than that, it is not safe. Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered. "If the meat is sticky or super slimy, throw it away. Generally speaking, most cuts of beef, lamb, pork, and cooked meats can last 8-12 months in the freezer. It only takes one refrigerator or refrigerated delivery truck to have a unit that is not staying cold enough, to allow spoilage to start to occur. The meat will also have returned to a more normal looking color by this point. We have all salivated at the smell of chicken, beef or lamb roasting in the oven. Thank you. Do not taste questionable meat to check if it is spoiled. This way fewer bacteria are grown. You dont want animals rooting around in your trash and snacking on recalled meat. We and our partners use cookies to Store and/or access information on a device. Read more: Food Poisoning Culprits: Sprouts and 7 Other Risky Foods. If you notice colors like brown, yellow or green instead of the red, pinkish meat color, then your steak is spoiled. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/8\/83\/Know-if-Meat-Is-Bad-Step-1.jpg\/v4-460px-Know-if-Meat-Is-Bad-Step-1.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/8\/83\/Know-if-Meat-Is-Bad-Step-1.jpg\/aid9447533-v4-728px-Know-if-Meat-Is-Bad-Step-1.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":546,"licensing":"