# How long does beef last until it spoils?



## fightingfury88 (Jan 24, 2006)

i've had some beef in my freezer for quite a while now, has ice all over it and has been in there for months.  is it okay for me to thaw it out and still eat it?  or is it spoiled by now?


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## Alix (Jan 24, 2006)

Are you talking 6 months or 60 months? Either way, its probably alright, but not going to be as tasty as it would have been a while ago. Do it in a soup,stew or pot roast or something slow cooked and you should be okay.


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## fightingfury88 (Jan 24, 2006)

Alix said:
			
		

> Are you talking 6 months or 60 months? Either way, its probably alright, but not going to be as tasty as it would have been a while ago. Do it in a soup,stew or pot roast or something slow cooked and you should be okay.


 

ummmm i have no idea..... i would say 12 months? lol. its hamburger meat. is it okay if cook it on the foreman grill?


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## Alix (Jan 24, 2006)

Sure, like I mentioned, it probably won't be as tasty as before, but it will be OK. I think I would make it into spaghetti sauce or chili or something instead of making burgers with it.


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## fightingfury88 (Jan 24, 2006)

Alix said:
			
		

> Sure, like I mentioned, it probably won't be as tasty as before, but it will be OK. I think I would make it into spaghetti sauce or chili or something instead of making burgers with it.


well im home alone with barely anything to eat and im not that big of a cook (just 17) and i was just searching the freezer for some food and found it....i think if i tryed to make spaghetti on my own i would burn the house down.


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## Alix (Jan 24, 2006)

Trust me, its easy. Have you got any tomato sauce? Either jarred or just plain stuff in a can? Just brown your beef in a pot on medium, add the sauce (and some spices if you don't have jarred sauce). Then, boil some water and do the noodles.


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## fightingfury88 (Jan 24, 2006)

Alix said:
			
		

> Trust me, its easy. Have you got any tomato sauce? Either jarred or just plain stuff in a can? Just brown your beef in a pot on medium, add the sauce (and some spices if you don't have jarred sauce). Then, boil some water and do the noodles.


i've got a big jar of prego and alot of tomato paste.  
do i have to use olive oil at the bottom of the pot when i brown the beef? 
sorry for the newbie questions im kind of new to this


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## Alix (Jan 24, 2006)

Is it lean beef or regular? If regular, then no oil. Lean might need a bit. Thaw it in the microwave a bit first. When it is all brown toss in the prego. Don't worry about the tomato paste.


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## fightingfury88 (Jan 24, 2006)

Alix said:
			
		

> Is it lean beef or regular? If regular, then no oil. Lean might need a bit. Thaw it in the microwave a bit first. When it is all brown toss in the prego. Don't worry about the tomato paste.


okay, how long do you think i should thaw it in the microwave?


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## Alix (Jan 24, 2006)

Um...on defrost for about 5 minutes or on high for one. Be warned though, if you do it on high it starts to cook a bit. Some folks don't like that much.

You might have an Auto Defrost function on there, check for that. It works the best.


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## fightingfury88 (Jan 24, 2006)

Alix said:
			
		

> Um...on defrost for about 5 minutes or on high for one. Be warned though, if you do it on high it starts to cook a bit. Some folks don't like that much.
> 
> You might have an Auto Defrost function on there, check for that. It works the best.


nope.  no defrost.  i'll just pop it in for a minute then
ill be back later and tell you how it came out, thanks alot.


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## Alix (Jan 24, 2006)

No problem, I'm here for a bit while the cake is in the oven.


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## CharlieD (Jan 24, 2006)

I think I’ve told this story already, but let me repeat it anyway. I was in the Soviet Army from 1979 till 1981. The standard army (I believe any army) practice is that you use the stored supplies and replenish them with the new, fresh products, meat included. Well, so was the practice then anyway. Meat came on the base as a whole cow stamped with a date when it was frozen. Guess what date that was. You’ll never guess. Okay, I’ll add the best supplies went to elite battalions, the ones that did real rigorous training; I was in Engineering battalion, so no real fighting or even training. Did not even see the gun, did a lot of shoveling though. Anyway, back to meat. Have you guessed the year yet? I’m going to post an answer a bit latter, see if anybody will guess, in the mean time I want to tell you just one thing, your beef is fine.


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## Alix (Jan 24, 2006)

Charlie, I'm guessing 1960 something.


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## CharlieD (Jan 24, 2006)

I'm here too, if you need more help.


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## CharlieD (Jan 24, 2006)

darn you are so close, I have to give up the truth. 1957-1958-1959 respectivelly.


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## Alix (Jan 24, 2006)

LMAO! Charlie that is hilarious! OK, now I will share one with you. My Mom has a 30 cubic foot freezer that she has owned for roughly 50 years. They moved here about 35 years ago and I know for sure it was cleaned out THEN. I have been trying to get her to clean everything out of it and toss it out for ages. In the process of "using up" all the stuff in there I found a chicken that looked like it had been cryogenically frozen it was so solid. The label on it was from a store that closed in the 80's. HOWEVER...I happen to know their food floor closed MUCH earlier than that, in the 70's. We thawed it and stewed it, it was fine. LOL. What the heck, what doesn't kill us makes us stronger right?


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## CharlieD (Jan 24, 2006)




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## fightingfury88 (Jan 24, 2006)

i guess i didnt thaw it long enough because when i started browning it, i had to use a knife to break the beef apart. also some liquid (probably the water stilli n the beef) formed at the bottom of the pot but i drained it out. im just about to add the sauce now....

also how long is it supposed to take (normally, not when frozen) to brown beef on a medium heat?


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## GB (Jan 24, 2006)

it should not take a very long time normally. 4 or 5 minutes maybe.


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## fightingfury88 (Jan 24, 2006)

oh and when i add the sauce i should already have the beef off the stove right?


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## GB (Jan 24, 2006)

Add the sauce right to the beef.


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## fightingfury88 (Jan 24, 2006)

GB said:
			
		

> Add the sauce right to the beef.


okay.  how long should i let that sit on the stove?


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## Alix (Jan 24, 2006)

Just turn the stove down to low and add the sauce, let it simmer for a bit while you cook the pasta.


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## GB (Jan 24, 2006)

At that point you are basically just heating up the sauce to a comfortable temp. Once it is hot enough for you then your are ready to serve it.


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## Piccolina (Jan 24, 2006)

Welcome to DC fightingfury! I think you're doing good so far  I know that you mentioned earlier that you don't have much in the kitchen, but do you have any cheese to top the pasta with (or stir it into the sauce)?


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## fightingfury88 (Jan 24, 2006)

Piccolina said:
			
		

> Welcome to DC fightingfury! I think you're doing good so far  I know that you mentioned earlier that you don't have much in the kitchen, but do you have any cheese to top the pasta with (or stir it into the sauce)?


 
thanks
yes i have cheese but i prefer not to use it (kind of a health nut)  but i may add  just a little parmesan (spelling?) cheese to the spaghetti once its done


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## BigDog (Jan 24, 2006)

fightingfury88 said:
			
		

> thanks
> yes i have cheese but i prefer not to use it (kind of a health nut) but i may add just a little parmesan (spelling?) cheese to the spaghetti once its done


 
What's wrong with cheese? I can see over indulgence being bad due to fat content, but controlled portions of cheese are quite healthy I thought . . . . . well, may not processed, but natural . . . . . . .


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## CharlieD (Jan 24, 2006)

don't forget to seson it, salt pepper, etc.


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## BigDog (Jan 24, 2006)

CharlieD said:
			
		

> don't forget to seson it, salt pepper, etc.


 
True, true. At least where I get my groceries, they don't come pre-seasoned.  

Must shop at a similar store as Emeril!


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## fightingfury88 (Jan 24, 2006)

BigDog said:
			
		

> What's wrong with cheese? I can see over indulgence being bad due to fat content, but controlled portions of cheese are quite healthy I thought . . . . . well, may not processed, but natural . . . . . . .


 
yea thats true
well i just added salt and pepper to the sauce and am boiling the pasta on high.  how long should i boil the pasta?


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## Piccolina (Jan 24, 2006)

fightingfury88 said:
			
		

> yea thats true
> well i just added salt and pepper to the sauce and am boiling the pasta on high. how long should i boil the pasta?


 It should probably say on the back of the package, but a good estimate for many pastas 7-8 minutes. This varies a lot depending on the type of pasta being cooked though. Just pop a piece out if you're curious, let it cool off for a moment and taste it - if you like the consistnacy it's ready. If not give it a little longer and try a piece again


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## mudbug (Jan 24, 2006)

This thread is really fun to read - a work in progress.....

FF88, I'd say about 10 minutes (you're almost there) on the pasta.  Dip into your pot and take out a couple of strands and eat them.  Are they too chewy?  Let it go for another couple minutes.  Keep testing and tasting.  The throwing-against-the-wall trick to see if the pasta sticks doesn't really work.


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## Piccolina (Jan 24, 2006)

mudbug said:
			
		

> This thread is really fun to read - a work in progress.....
> 
> FF88, I'd say about 10 minutes (you're almost there) on the pasta. Dip into your pot and take out a couple of strands and eat them. Are they too chewy? Let it go for another couple minutes. Keep testing and tasting. The throwing-against-the-wall trick to see if the pasta sticks doesn't really work.


 I agree Mudbug, I came in a bit late (Alix had gotten FF88 off to a terrific start!) and it's really cool to help FF88 prepare his meal. 

Lol, it doesn't work (throwing against the wall) - you're right - but it can be fun


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## Gretchen (Jan 24, 2006)

No, no, not on high. Dependin on how much it is (1-2 #) thaw 5 minutes on power 3. If you are going to make spagetti, you can start browning it ina a pan.


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## fightingfury88 (Jan 24, 2006)

haha well everythings done......and here are the results

the sauce was too watery (?? i dunno what happend there)  i like the sauce to be thicker (should i add more tomato paste/sauce?)

meat was chewy (i wont wait a year to cook my meat next time)

well i learned alot today thanks to you guys, i thought i would be making a burger on the foreman grill but ended up making spaghetti  (how did that happend?)   i definitely will cook spaghetti some other time and fix up some of these errors.  

i thought i would be a member here just to ask if it was okay to eat some beef thats been in the freezer for one year, but i will use these forums to my advantage now.  thanks alot to everyone that helped.


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## Alix (Jan 25, 2006)

Hey fightingfury, that is what we are here for! Ask away, there is generally someone around who can answer questions. And to answer your questions, Yes if the sauce is too watery add tomato paste, or if you have the time, just let it simmer slowly some of the liquid will dissipate as steam. As to the chewy meat, well, that is likely partly the microwaves fault too. But hey, you got some spaghetti out of the deal so it is all good!

Glad your cooking experiment went well. Let us in on your next round.


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## CharlieD (Jan 25, 2006)

Hey and thank you for posting results. i just hate not knowing what happens in the end. 

Oh, and welcome to DC


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