Thanksgiving and Christmas are the most popular times that fresh turkeys are cooked for a celebration meal. With so many birds sold over the festive period, it is inevitable that some bad ones may slip through the supply chain. In this article we will explain how you can tell whether your turkey is likely to be safe to go ahead and cook, or if you may want to return the bird to the supplier for a refund. So how can you tell if a turkey is safe to eat? A whole fresh turkey that is ready to cook should be clean and healthy looking, with very little odor. The skin…
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Pork Smells Bad – Is It Safe To Eat?
Sometimes pork can have a smell to it that makes you consider whether it is safe to eat, or whether it has gone bad. So how do you tell if pork is bad? Fresh pork should have a white fat covering and pink flesh with little to no smell. If the fat is yellow looking, and the meat is turning grey, then the meat is starting to spoil. If the meat is sticky to the touch or has an off putting smell, then it should not be eaten as it has spoiled. This article will explain when the pork can be saved and is safe to eat, and when you…
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Lamb Meat Smells Bad – Is It Safe To Eat?
You’ve gone to the refrigerator to get ready to cook the lamb meat that you have been storing, but now it doesn’t smell so appetising. Depending on how often you cook lamb, you may be left unsure as to whether the meat is still safe to cook, or if it has spoiled and needs to be thrown away. So how can you tell if the lamb has gone bad? Fresh lamb meat will have a light pink to dark red flesh with a creamy colored fat covering and a slight gamey odor. Lamb that has spoiled will have a greyish tinge to the flesh and the fat will be dry…
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Chicken Smells – Is It Safe To Eat Or Has It Gone Bad?
Chicken is probably the most often eaten meat around the world today. With the leaness of the breast and the versatility of the meat, it is consumed in vast quatities around the globe. One down side to chicken is that it can spoil much quicker than other types of meat, and people are never quite sure just how fresh their meat is, or whether the smell that it is giving off means it has gone bad. So if chicken smells, does it mean it has gone bad? Fresh chicken will always have a slight odor to it, even when it is at its freshest, however it will not be an…
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Vacuum Sealed Meat Smells Bad When Opened – Is It Safe To Eat?
Much of the meat sold in grocery stores today has been vaccum packed. This not only protects the meat from contaminents, but also provides a longer shelf life to the product. However, upon opening the vacuum sealed meat it can often have an unusual smell. This smell may be absolutely normal, or the meat may be spoiled. Let’s examine how you tell the difference, Why does vacuum sealed meat smell strange once opened? Vacuum packed meat is sealed in a pouch that has had the oxygen removed. The natural juices within the meat can start to discolor and develop a tangy odor during storage. This odor is released when the…
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Is It Safe To Part Cook Chicken And Finish Cooking Later?
We all lead busy lives and so welcome short cuts that make our lives that little bit easier. So you may be wondering if it is OK to get ahead with your meal plans and part cook some chicken to finish cooking later and save time. Is it safe to part cook chicken and finish cooking later? NO! Part cooking chicken to finish at a later time should never be done. Part cooked chicken is a breeding ground for food borne pathogens that can cause food poisoning, and even result in death. Continue reading if you want to know exactly why you should never part cook chicken to finish cooking…
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Meat With Freezer Burn Is Safe To Eat
As freezer owners, we are all guilty of throwing things in and forgetting about them. Every once in a while we will come across a package that we no longer recognise and thaw out to see what we have. Upon thawing, we find that it’s some special offer meat we bought a year ago but now it is discolored and freezer burnt. So now we are asking ourselves……. Is it safe to eat meat that has freezer burn? Yes, it is safe to eat meat that has freezer burn, providing the meat has not spoiled. Freezer burn will affect the taste and texture of the meat, but will not make it…
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Differences Between A Turkey Crown, Butterfly & Spatchcock Turkey
When is comes to buying turkey, there are different cuts that you may not be familiar with. This article will explain what each cut is, and how they differ from each other. So what is the difference between a turkey crown, butterfly and spatchcock turkey? A turkey crown is when the legs have been removed from a whole turkey, leaving you with the bone-in breast. A turkey butterfly is the same as the crown, but has had all the breast bones removed. A spatchcock turkey is a whole turkey that has been split down the back and flattened out like a book. We will now look at each of these…
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21 Thrifty Meat Tips – Saving You Money on Meat
Meat is the highest part of the food budget in most households, and so money saving tips on buying meat cheaper are always welcome. Well, we have 21 tips that will help you do just that! 21 Thrifty Meat Buying Tips to Save You Money Buy cheaper cuts Buy bigger cuts and trim yourself Buy a whole animal Do the cutting yourself Buy in bulk with Family or Friends Ask for bones – butchers pay to have these taken away Learn what is trim and what is waste Look at $/kg Learn different cut names Add fillers like lentils/beans/oats/veggies Cut down meat portion size – 6oz steak instead of 8oz…
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Lamb Chops – The Different Types Explained With Pictures
If you are planning to try the lamb for the first time, you might wonder where the lamb chops come from, and what they taste like. Lamb has a unique flavor that is complimented by the use of many different types of herbs and spices. This makes it a favorite meat for chefs to use when making special recipes. But what are lamb chops? Lamb chops are cuts of lamb obtained from young domestic sheep aged typically under 1 year old. The chops can be cut from the shoulder, loin, ribs and rump of the animal, and are cooked and served with the bone intact. Due to the size of…
