Sainsbury's (edit: and now Lidl) vacuum packed beef mince ... What do people think ?

dealyboy

It has been on the shelves for a couple of weeks now and I must say it doesn't look appealing, but is it any good?

Sainsbury's say that there's no difference in the quality, but customer feedback begs to differ ...
Sainsbury's defends vac-pack mince after complaints - BBC News

edit: Lidl from next year ... Lidl next to vac pack mince despite Sainsbury's 'mush' complaints - BBC News

I haven't tried it, has anybody here?

sarah1972

I vac pac all my meat before freezing, it lasts longer, less packaging and no freezer burn 

theoretica

Depends how you cook it - wanting this to cook into nice neat strings seems like it is doomed to failure.  Using it as an ingredient in meatloaf, pie, meatballs, burgers, sauce... and expecting it to be in tiny pieces and it looks like it will cook fine.  Maybe it just needs a change in name to change expectations - ground meat, maybe, rather than mince meat. 

MattMattMattUK

dealyboy said:

It has been on the shelves for a couple of weeks now and I must say it doesn't look appealing, but is it any good?

Sainsbury's say that there's no difference in the quality, but customer feedback begs to differ ...
Sainsbury's defends vac-pack mince after complaints - BBC News

I haven't tried it, has anybody here?

I have tried it, totally fine, no issues whatsoever. Of course if you are one of those people who flops the pack of mince in a pan and expects it to cook will have issues, but if you pay attention and move it around as any normal person would do it cooks perfectly fine. I also agree with their comment about it fitting better in the freezer, it takes up half to a third of the space of the old style packs.

sammyjammy

Its great from an environmental point of view, especially now we can recycle soft plastics.  I haven't tried it yet but can't imagine having any issues with it that would stop me buying it and yes it fits in the freezer brilliantly!

YoungBlueEyes

I've not seen it in the flesh but I think I'd lift a pack if I saw it.

It's probably just a matter of cooking it properly, maybe need a bit more forking to separate it into strings. I think it's a good idea, and would be good for sliding straight into the freezer. 

dealyboy

Thanks Matt ... (@MattMattMattUK)

MattMattMattUK said:

dealyboy said:

It has been on the shelves for a couple of weeks now and I must say it doesn't look appealing, but is it any good?

Sainsbury's say that there's no difference in the quality, but customer feedback begs to differ ...
Sainsbury's defends vac-pack mince after complaints - BBC News

I haven't tried it, has anybody here?

I have tried it, totally fine, no issues whatsoever. Of course if you are one of those people who flops the pack of mince in a pan and expects it to cook will have issues, but if you pay attention and move it around as any normal person would do it cooks perfectly fine. I also agree with their comment about it fitting better in the freezer, it takes up half to a third of the space of the old style packs.

... what about the taste and what % fat do you use?

I cook curries and especially enjoy the sauce mix influenced by the fat.

YoungBlueEyes said:

I've not seen it in the flesh but I think I'd lift a pack if I saw it.

It's probably just a matter of cooking it properly, maybe need a bit more forking to separate it into strings. I think it's a good idea, and would be good for sliding straight into the freezer. 

@YoungBlueEyes ...  thought I wouldn't notice that eh?

MattMattMattUK

dealyboy said:

Thanks Matt ... (@MattMattMattUK)

MattMattMattUK said:

dealyboy said:

It has been on the shelves for a couple of weeks now and I must say it doesn't look appealing, but is it any good?

Sainsbury's say that there's no difference in the quality, but customer feedback begs to differ ...
Sainsbury's defends vac-pack mince after complaints - BBC News

I haven't tried it, has anybody here?

I have tried it, totally fine, no issues whatsoever. Of course if you are one of those people who flops the pack of mince in a pan and expects it to cook will have issues, but if you pay attention and move it around as any normal person would do it cooks perfectly fine. I also agree with their comment about it fitting better in the freezer, it takes up half to a third of the space of the old style packs.

... what about the taste and what % fat do you use?

I cook curries and especially enjoy the sauce mix influenced by the fat.

Seems to taste the same, same texture, cook the same etc. no difference in the end result. 

I almost always use the 20% fat and then drain the fat off when cooking, the cost of lean meat after fat draining is far lower than the net cost of 12%/10%/5% options. 

dealyboy

Thanks for that Matt ...

BTW have you noticed that increasing pricing of meat minces does not necessarily follow decreasing percentages of fat, what with price matches and discounts. I noticed it first some weeks ago on lamb mince but I think I saw it this morning on beef mince when I was buying my whisky ... or maybe not. Edit: link to Sainsbury's minces https://www.sainsburys.co.uk/shop/gb/groceries/meat-fish/mince#langId=44&storeId=10151&catalogId=10241&categoryId=275324&parent_category_rn=13343&top_category=13343&pageSize=60&orderBy=FAVOURITES_ONLY|TOP_SELLERS&searchTerm=&beginIndex=0&hideFilters=true

Edit: It looks like this story is now across all the MSM.

Nelliegrace

Does vacuum packing mince mean it can be older when it is bought? Or does it mean that it won’t smell bad immediately. I feel wary of mince since the latest scandal, where bad meat was mixed in with fresh meat to disguise it. 

MalMonroe

I don't eat meat so nothing looks good to me! 

But my daughter has had some and really couldn't tell the difference. Made it into her usual chilli and enjoyed it.. It's just the packaging that's changed and it's supposed to be better all round. (Environment, storing, etc.)  She always has the 5% fat one and has no grumbles as yet.

Customer feedback may persuade them to change it back, though. 

Has anyone noticed that most humans are resistant to change at first? It's a natural phenomenon. Same thing happened with decimalisation, which I thought (and still think) was a great idea. Everything in tens. Couldn't be easier.