Yesterday evening, my brother called me and told me that my friend had went online to do some research on how long meat should be out to thaw on the countertop.
The info found was then printed and placed on top of the package of hot dogs that my brother had out on the counter thawing out. it was a large package of them - larger than the normal package that usually has up to eight franks.
This raises my question as to how long meat and other foods can be left out to thaw, and the method used to do it.
The info obtained by me suggests 3 methods for thawing out foods for cooking or otherwise.
They are as follows;
1. Refrigerator thaw;
Which usually takes up to about 24 hours from start to finish for small 1 - 5-lb packages. Longer for things like turkeys, hams & roasts.
2. Cold water method;
This method is said to be shorter than thawing out things in the fridge. The frozen meat is said be able to absorb warmth in the cold water, thereby allowing a faster method, provided the water is changed every 30 seconds.
Also, the meat has to be in a water-tight bag, such as a FoodSaver bag that the meat was vacuum sealed in before freezing or a Ziploc bag.
3. Microwave method;
I NEVER use this method - simply because the meat tends to start cooking prematurely around the edges, so that one, I don't use. I'm not good at doing that anyway.
Which method do YOU use? Or is there another method that's safe?
One more thing; The recommended or suggested room temp for thawing is supposed to be about 40 degrees F.. Anything higher that that is supposed to be considered dangerous. And the kitchen DOES get hotter during the summer months, as opposed to room temps in the winter.
http://cooking.stackexchange.com/qu...a-problem-with-defrosting-meat-on-the-counter
The info found was then printed and placed on top of the package of hot dogs that my brother had out on the counter thawing out. it was a large package of them - larger than the normal package that usually has up to eight franks.
This raises my question as to how long meat and other foods can be left out to thaw, and the method used to do it.
The info obtained by me suggests 3 methods for thawing out foods for cooking or otherwise.
They are as follows;
1. Refrigerator thaw;
Which usually takes up to about 24 hours from start to finish for small 1 - 5-lb packages. Longer for things like turkeys, hams & roasts.
2. Cold water method;
This method is said to be shorter than thawing out things in the fridge. The frozen meat is said be able to absorb warmth in the cold water, thereby allowing a faster method, provided the water is changed every 30 seconds.
Also, the meat has to be in a water-tight bag, such as a FoodSaver bag that the meat was vacuum sealed in before freezing or a Ziploc bag.
3. Microwave method;
I NEVER use this method - simply because the meat tends to start cooking prematurely around the edges, so that one, I don't use. I'm not good at doing that anyway.
Which method do YOU use? Or is there another method that's safe?
One more thing; The recommended or suggested room temp for thawing is supposed to be about 40 degrees F.. Anything higher that that is supposed to be considered dangerous. And the kitchen DOES get hotter during the summer months, as opposed to room temps in the winter.
http://cooking.stackexchange.com/qu...a-problem-with-defrosting-meat-on-the-counter
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