How long does frozen meat keep?

lifesachallenge

Hi All

I am not neurotic about use by dates, but how long is safe for meats to be frozen then used from a small chest freezer..

I have some sausage meat and some duck lurking in the bottom from last Nove/Dec and was thinking about defrosting and cooking ( using everything up in freezer and not buying anything this month)

Is this safe, or is not worth the risk - sausage meat was only 50p in clearance when I bought it!!

MATH

I don't consider that old for frozen meat. (But then I'm sure I have some Wooly Mammouth Steaks lurking in the icy depths) Defrost it and give it a good sniff, your nose will soon tell you if it has gone off.

Queenie

I agree with MATH - you need to use all your senses:

Sight
Touch
Smell
and common!

It's the only way to know for sure.

But, if in doubt ... throw it out! I have used up meats that I'd forgotten about and we've all been fine (they could have lurked in there anywhere from between 9 - 18mths )

Ted_Hutchinson

I'd happily use stuff which isn't more than a year old. It may have been better eaten sooner but I'm certain it won't harm you. You may need to cook it in a tasty sauce or season it well to make up for the loss of quality in taste but I'm sure that nutritionally it will be perfectly OK.

black-saturn

If you are in doubt don't eat it. I did that with some sausage meat once and ended up violently ill for days afterwards

squeaky

Your manual should tell you how long it is safe to keep food in your freezer. There are no details on times but some general info on eatwell.gov

http://www.eatwell.gov.uk/keepingfoodsafe/storing/

Debt_Free_Chick

Provided your freezer is working correctly, the meat should be perfectly safe. Remember that the guidelines for sell-by, use-by dates are cautious .. to prevent someone getting sued

Freezing is a form of preserving. Bacteria cannot grow in the subzero temperatures in the freezer. However, they can be preserved and can "wake up" once you thaw the meat, so it's the thawing and subsequent preparation/cooking that you need to be careful with.

The worse thing that can happen to meat frozen for too long is freezer burn .. the edge of the meat looks dry & pale. There's nothing wrong with it, but it will be tough & tasteless. Just trim it off. Most freezer-burn occurs during the intial freezing itself - damage that can be avoided by using the fast-freeze option.

Your meat will be no more contaminated than it was on the day you froze it - provided your freezer is functioning correctly.

lifesachallenge

Thanks all - Ill let you know how I get on..........

Xbigman

I found that if I defrosted lamb and cooked it, it would sometimes be a bit smelly. But if I cooked from frozen it was ok. Cooking from frozen works if only just pass the use by date. If well past its date then defrost and sniff as already suggested.
Regards




X

Purdy_1

I have some stewing steak in my freezer that I froze 8.11.05. How long does meat keep once frozen?

calleyw

According to this website

Raw beef joints, steaks 12 months and raw beef mince 10 months.

Defrost and use your own senses to tell. If you don't like the look, smell or texture then bin it.


Yours

Calley