How long can ground beef be kept in the fridge?
I bought fresh, extra lean, ground beef on friday and forgot it at work in the fridge. I bought more saturday for dinner and forgot to freeze the beef I bought friday and its still in the fridge. Would it be okay to still use? Or should I toss it? Its a total of 5 days now.
9 Comments
heatmattOctober 27, 2011
okay, I think I will toss it....Thanks everyone!
boulangereOctober 27, 2011
Yes, 3 days is conservative, 5 days is on the outside. Fresh or not fresh honestly doesn't matter, as long as the meat had consistently been kept outside the TDZ, temperature danger zone of above 41 degrees. Seriously, in a grocery store, they likely receive ground meat in large "chubs" which they break down into consumer-sized packs. And all that after considering how long you may have had it outside refrigeration during the trip home. When in doubt, throw it out. And consider it cheap insurance.
meganvt01October 27, 2011
I think the smell test can be more than a little subjective, depending on how sensitive your nose is. I have a super sensitive nose and I can smell ground beef turning after 3 days for sure (my husband on the other hand would go 10 days probably). Kansas State has a good guide http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/store/ksu_refrig_freeze.pdf and they suggest 1- 2 days. Based on the potential hazards in ground beef generally, I'd go on the safe side and toss the meat.
boulangereOctober 27, 2011
Agree with sam1148. Give it the smell test. When in doubt, throw it out. Consider it cheap insurance.
Sam1148October 27, 2011
Smell it. That's the best way to tell. It should be okay if it was actually fresh. (which is rare for ground beef at a supermarket).
If it smells okay. brown it up and freeze it instead of freezing raw. Use that for chili, pasta, tacos etc.
If it smells okay. brown it up and freeze it instead of freezing raw. Use that for chili, pasta, tacos etc.
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