A question about raw meat handling

[vball91]

As I was chopping up and portioning meat for freezing, I had a random thought. I know everyone says pre-ground meat from the grocery store is a no-no due to the increased risk of bacteria. However, since it seems like most people follow the buy fresh and freeze for 3 days rule, wouldn't that apply to ground as well? If we're relying on freezing to kill bacteria and most parasites, does it really matter if the meat was pre-ground? Or are we just being extra cautious?

 

[Willowy]

Freezing doesn't kill bacteria, just slows down their growth (stops growth while frozen, but they revive and start growing again as soon as thawed). Freezing does kill most parasites, but that's not really a problem in American commercial meat :dk:: I don't freeze meat if I'm going to feed it right away; the only reason I freeze it is for preservation.

Basically, if you buy a chuck roast and watch them grind it, that's fine. The main problem with buying pre-ground meat is that you don't know how they've handled it (they may not be too careful since most people are going to cook it) or how long it's been sitting around after grinding (oxidation destroys some nutrients), plus they may be adding something to it that you don't want in there (pink slime?).

 

[ldg]

Well, the main issue with grinding is oxidation of nutrients. If we buy commercial ground frozen raw, it's typically flash frozen as it's made. When we make our own at home, we freeze it as soon as we make the food. But ground in a supermarket was ground when? And it's sitting there in a refrigerated section. If we buy frozen ground, we have to dethaw it, make the food or portion it up, and refreeze a bunch of it...

Of course, the circumstances under which ground is ground is part of the concern as re: something like salmonella. But freezing doesn't kill salmonella. It kills various parasite/protozoans that may be in muscle tissue, but salmonella is in the guts of an animal, the part we don't feed.

 

[vball91]

Hmm, forgot about oxidation and pink slime. I knew there had to be good reasons, but I couldn't think of them this morning. Thanks!

 

[auntie crazy]

Yep, like Willowy and LDG said, the recommendation against purchasing pre-ground meat is all about the quality of the handling and ingredients. There are too many unknowns with both to make it a good idea.

You can grind at home, or have the shop's butcher grind your chosen chunk of meat to avoid those issues. (Or, of course, just cut the meat into mouse-sized pieces and let the kitty do the grinding.

)

AC

 

[vball91]

(Or, of course, just cut the meat into mouse-sized pieces and let the kitty do the grinding.

)

AC

I'm trying to get there. Right now Aria is not enjoying the larger chunks. She spits them back out.

 

[auntie crazy]

(Or, of course, just cut the meat into mouse-sized pieces and let the kitty do the grinding.

)

AC

I'm trying to get there. Right now Aria is not enjoying the larger chunks. She spits them back out.

It'd be so much easier if we could reason with them, wouldn't it?! Silly kitties.

Just a thought... have you tried long, very thin strips? Sometimes going from tiny pieces to very thin strips works better than slowly increasing the size of the tiny pieces.

AC

 

[vball91]

AC, I had read about that someplace else, so I am going to try long strips next. Thanks!