Chicken going off?

Soubrette

I agree with Swan as long as you let the chicken redefrost (??) in the fridge. I can only reiterate - it's been stored at a lower temperature than the one you would have originally been happy to eat it

However, if it's going to stress you out then I'd dump it

Sou

Swan_2

it seems that provided the defrosting's been done correctly, the not re-freezing issue has more to do with impairing the quality of the taste & texture, than safety


True or false: You can refreeze meat, poultry and other foods once they've been defrosted.
True. Once frozen food is thawed in the refrigerator, it is safe to refreeze it without cooking, although there may be a loss of quality due to the moisture lost through defrosting.

Repeated freezing and thawing can affect the texture, so the quality may not be as good, but as long as the food is thawed properly (so that any pathogens present don't multiply to dangerous levels), it is an acceptable practice, says Schaffner. However, if you refreeze foods that were left out or thawed incorrectly and have grown dangerous bacteria, you will be refreezing a dangerous food, cautions Keith R. Schneider, Ph.D., a professor of food science at the University of Florida in Gainesville.


source & full text ... Diet Detective

sallyrsm

I would eat it. Providing it's cooked properly and eaten piping hot you'll be ok. Plus if it's free range it'll be less likely to have salmonella in it than a cheap chook... Just don't cook it then save it for ages for sarnies etc...

sticher

I would have said don't eat it (and still probably wouldn't eat it), but that is an interesting point SWAN has made. I think I will look into the idea of refreezing more as logically it should be okay I suppose.

I did once hear on TV that it is okay to refreeze if there were still some ice crystals in the food.

I don't think though that there would be warnings on frozen food not to refreeze if it was only as case of lost quality though, would there?

teedy23

I would probably eat it but wouldnt have it on my conscience to tell someone else to do so.

the_cat

As a fairly healthy adult, I would eat it, but I definately wouldn't give it to a 3 year old or any other more 'at risk' person (child, elderly, poor health etc). Not worth the risks.....

Swan_2

sticher wrote: »

I would have said don't eat it (and still probably wouldn't eat it), but that is an interesting point SWAN has made. I think I will look into the idea of refreezing more as logically it should be okay I suppose.

I did once hear on TV that it is okay to refreeze if there were still some ice crystals in the food.

I don't think though that there would be warnings on frozen food not to refreeze if it was only as case of lost quality though, would there?

it was the logic that sparked my interest
if the chicken was considered ok to eat after storing at fridge temperature, why would it become dangerous after being held at a lower temperature?

I saw something about the ice crystals thing on one of the sites I was looking at earlier, can't remember which one now though

I take your point about the frozen food warnings
but imho I think the manufacturers are taking a pragmatic approach ... rather than complicate the issue by advising how to safely defrost & refreeze the many different ok products, & warn against the ones you absolutely shouldn't, they keep it simple & issue a blanket 'don't do it'

LittleTinker

It is perfectly ok to refreeze foods that have already been frozen and then eat them. The reason why it is discouraged is because of people's bad practices in the 'in between times'......for example, letting food defrost at room temperature. (then it wouldnt be a good idea to refreeze and eat)........If it were in the fridge it will be perfectly ok to eat. All freezing does is hamper quality.....it doesnt make bacteria suddenly appear :-))

pigpen

I would definitely eat it.. what a waste not too.. so long as it is cooked through properly it'll be fine.. it isn't like bacteria would have been able to breed while it was cold.. it was probably only the surface layers of water which was frozen anyway.

I defrosted a bag of chicken fillets inthe slowcooker last weekend... they were well and truly defrosted by the time I went to bed and I left them in there unfrozen and unchilled overnight and cooked them the next day... I don't think I'm dead!!

I do think most people over-react (should I say err on the side of caution???) when it comes to chicken caused by a lot of scaremongering.. I truly don't think the risks are as great as most people are led to believe.. I only know of 1 case of food poisoning from chicken.. and that was bought from a takeaway!!!

Swan_2

LittleTinker wrote: »

All freezing does is hamper quality.....it doesnt make bacteria suddenly appear :-))

:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl: very well put :T :T :T