# Grrr...major chain store wrapped old hamburger with new



## Caslon (Jun 1, 2011)

What upset me was that this was a major supermarket chain around my county (Ralph's).  I had all the ingredients for something requiring ground beef.  I thawed it and went to crumble it for the recipe.  It was old grey hamburger inside with a thin veneer of fresh red hamburger wrapped around it. 

Since it's a major chain...what prompted their butcher to hide old hamburger. That directive must have come from his manager in that store.
He's only a butcher there. There's no incentive for him to do that.

I wish I could talk to the manager of whoever that guy was that told his butcher to wrap old beef with new beef (if he/she wasn't a party to it) and get his ass fired.

It ruined that evenings meal plan already underway.


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## Andy M. (Jun 1, 2011)

It's fairly common for a fresh package of hamburger meat to have a bright red exterior (caused by exposure to air) and a brownish interior.  That on it's own is not a sign of old meat.


Q *Why is the center of ground beef sometimes brown in color?* A In steaks and roasts packaged in overwrap  film, the color of the outside of the cut is bright red. Within the cut,  it is purple because there is no oxygen to cause the meat to "bloom"  (term used in industry to signify the conversion from the purple state  to the red state in the presence of oxygen).
 		In making ground beef, some air is introduced in the grinding  process. When ground beef is packaged in overwrap film, plenty of oxygen  is available to generate the bright red color of lean on the surface.  Because there is some, but not too enough oxygen deep within the  product, it causes the meat to turn brown. When the product is allowed  to come in contact with oxygen, it usually will bloom to the bright red  color like the surface.


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## Caslon (Jun 1, 2011)

OK...I suppose.  I usually don't see a mass of grey meat in the center of most 1 lb. packages of ground beef I buy.

If you don't mind...I reserve some suspicions.


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## babetoo (Jun 1, 2011)

i never, ever buy meat at ralph's. was disappointed to many times. vons is my choice. would like to buy at albertsons , but can't afford it.


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## Caslon (Jun 1, 2011)

babetoo said:


> i never, ever buy meat at ralph's. was disappointed to many times. vons is my choice. would like to buy at albertsons , but can't afford it.



Not to exclude others from around the world talking about our local major chain supermarket here, but during that same shopping trip at Ralph's, I bought a head of lettuce that was all discolored inside, I mean badly aged inside.


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## Caslon (Jun 2, 2011)

In the bigger scheme and everything...maybe just a thing that happened. Maybe the lettuce got to that store late, maybe the groundbeef needs airing.... 

I've noticed there are two types of hamburgers shown on shelves in store wrapped 1-2 lb packs. 
1.One major store you can tell their hamburger for sale has been thru  a meat grinder. You can see the meat ground meat.  
2.Another major chain sells store ground beef hamburger that is almost  "homogenized" looking.

My conspiracy theory is that you can hide bad hamburger in #2.


Nah...too much trouble.  But damn...that aired out hamburger didn't make me want to enthusiastically go ahead.  Grey hamburger.


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## Robo410 (Jun 2, 2011)

gray meat is also a sign of ammonia treatment to kill bacteria, (factory process) but that is unlikely in store ground meat.


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## Robo410 (Jun 2, 2011)

Since it was commented on, if the higher priced stores give you better quality, it's a bargain...you throw out less waste, getting more for your money. It could be cheaper actually.


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## babetoo (Jun 2, 2011)

that might hold true for meat and produce. but not for the everyday stuff, canned goods, brand ice cream. etc. besides vons has on line shopping and they deliver to my house, bring it in and separate perishables from staples. cost 7.00 on average for delivery. i have over $400 worth coming tomorrow. won't have to buy again for a month. well maybe milk. i don't drive so buying at more than one store, is simply not viable. you have a good point , however.


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## Sir_Loin_of_Beef (Jun 2, 2011)

This is why I buy all my meat from Omaha Steaks, all my seafood from a local fish monger, and all my produce from local farmer's produce stands.

Last week I opened a package of smoked salmon from Omaha Steaks. After removing the top slice, I found that there was a dark streak all along the top of every slice, but what really pissed me off was the first slice had been folded under to hide this streak! I sent an e-mail to Omaha Steaks telling them, not at all nicely, how disappointed I was. Within hours I received a return e-mail telling me that the entire cost of 2 boxes of smoked salmon, three 4oz packages per box, was being charged back to my credit card.


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## bakechef (Jun 2, 2011)

I don't go by color at all with ground meat, bright red exterior and dark interior is very common especially if it is packed tight in the package (no air getting inside the meat lump) I go by my nose.


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## betterthanabox (Jun 3, 2011)

I have really begun to think of grinding my own in the food processor.


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## FrankZ (Jun 3, 2011)

betterthanabox said:


> I have really begun to think of grinding my own in the food processor.



You still need to start with good meat.  

I have been doing my own with Lucille and it is a lot of fun.


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## betterthanabox (Jun 3, 2011)

FrankZ said:


> You still need to start with good meat.
> 
> I have been doing my own with Lucille and it is a lot of fun.



Why would I grind bad meat if I was trying to get away from the gross meat at the store... silly!!


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## dcSaute (Jun 3, 2011)

I'm sure confused....

per post #2, oxygen is needed to make the meat turn red.

then there's the debate about using carbon monoxide gas inside the wrap to preserve the red color and deceive consumers.

so,,,, how's this work?  a little oxygen makes it turn from purple to red, too much oxygen / too long an oxygen exposure makes it turn from red to brown coma again?  say whot?  so you inject carbon monoxide and that keeps the exterior red - which was orginally purple - but with the flood of carbon monoxide hasn't been exposed to oxygen to make it turn red coma coma coma in the first place.

or does the grinder automatically route the "red beef" to the output and route the "purple beef" to the ??(trash?)

our store grinds its own ground beef - the machine's right there - you can watch it if you catch the right time.  the stuff coming out of the grinder is red(dish) - it is not blueish, it is not purplish - it looks like fresh red bloody ground meat.  they put in on a plastic tray with a diaper underneath, wrap & seal, weigh & label.  there's no nothing injection of anything - ground beef, plop on tray, trays sits on table, wrap in plastic, heat seal on hot platter.  not even an mystic shaman in sight.

I've bought ground beef where it's pink/red all through, and I've bought ground beef where the middle has gone brown - same store, same label.

something in "all this" is not adding up to common sense.  perhaps I'm just beef-dense?


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## Bolas De Fraile (Jun 4, 2011)

What a splendid name for supermarket (Ralph's) we only have one supermarket in the UK named after a human being.
More reasons to shop at Morrison's catchy don't you think.
I have a mincer but when I was mincer less I would pick the meat I wanted minced, then ask the Morrison's butcher(Einstein, he moved with the speed of light)  to mince over to his mincer and get mincing.


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## Caslon (Jun 4, 2011)

Bolas De Fraile said:


> What a splendid name for supermarket (Ralph's)



hehe, ya i thought of that too, and I'm in the US.  
It's a major chain here with modern strores.


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## Sir_Loin_of_Beef (Jun 4, 2011)

In California we have Ralph's (Ralph was their last name) Von's, and Albertson's (also last names). We also used to have Hughes (not related to Howard though). Of course Ralph's in owned by Kroeger (another last name, I believe) and Von's parent company is Safeway. Back when these grocery stores were opened, people weren't afraid to put their own name on their businesses.


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## Caslon (Jun 4, 2011)

Sir_Loin_of_Beef said:


> In California we have Ralph's (Ralph was their last name) Von's, and Albertson's (also last names). We also used to have Hughes (not related to Howard though). Of course Ralph's in owned by Kroeger (another last name, I believe) and Von's parent company is Safeway. Back when these grocery stores were opened, people weren't afraid to put their own name on their businesses.




I like that joke or observation where you know you're entering the southern US by the names of supermarkets.


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## meatroast (Jun 15, 2011)

*Chopped meat dark in center*

Chopped meat will turn dark in the center due to the lack of air (oxygen) that gets to the meat under the surface. Leaner grinds will also turn more quickly along with tighter packaging also contributing. If the chopped meat is caught lightly (minimal resistance) and kept fluffy as it comes out of the grinder it will not darken as quickly in the packages. If you ever have purchased any meat product that has more than one steak in a package and they touch, you will notice a discoloration where the two pieces overlap or touch each other. This is the same effect when chopped meat is pressed together. Meat on top of Meat. The leaner the grind..., the more meat involved and the quicker the darkening. Also the longer you hold it before freezing the more it will discolor inside. Smell it..., you'll know if it's bad.


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## TomatoMustard (Jun 21, 2011)

I've had ground beef turn grey rather quickly in the fridge.. how can you tell when it's bad and when it's just.. grey?


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## Andy M. (Jun 21, 2011)

Smell


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## Sir_Loin_of_Beef (Jun 21, 2011)

I opened a package of ground beef from Omaha Steaks Sunday after thawing and sitting in the refrigerator for three days. It was a little bit brown on the outside, but still red in the middle.


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## buckytom (Jun 22, 2011)

yup, same for me ( but not with silly overpriced omaha).

ground beef tends to grey from the outside, with pink/red meat still in the center.

what does that mean as far as the grind goes?

i worry not, though, as i go by my nose. it hasn't failed me yet.

beef freshly ground is made into medium rare to medium burgers. beef that's grey'd a bit is crumbled and deeply browned into chili or meat sauce or the ilk.


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