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[Deadly Cyclone]

Cooking GAF:

I am going to make two sirloin steak fillets tonight and they have only been in the fridge for three days and the bottom of them are brown, are they still good?

No metallic color to them and they don't smell bad, I just don't want food poisoning again.

 

[lastendconductor]

pics of said steaks would help

 

[surazal]

Discoloration is bad

 

[Narag]

Still good.

 

[Truant]

Discoloration is bad

I read somewhere that certain discolorated steaks tasted better.

 

[Eagle 209]

Should be fine. I've cooked steaks that were completely brown. The smell is the best indicator...and if it is too slimy.
Enjoy!

 

[Draft]

They're fine. The outside of a steak goes from beautiful red to nasty brown very, very quickly. But the inside takes quite a bit longer, and since you're going to sear the outside to a delicious golden brown anyway...

 

[Oli]

When it looks like this.

 

[jamesinclair]

Discoloration is bad

But brown is the natural color.

The red you see in most american steaks is food coloring.

Your meat is fine.

 

[Slayven]

Dry or wet aging. Some steak houses leave their meat laying around just for that effect.

 

[Chichikov]

Discoloration is bad

Wrong.
Meat changes its color during its aging process.
It’s true that aging beef in your fridge might not be the brightest idea and of course I cannot tell if the meat hadn’t gone rancid through the internet, but discoloration in and by itself is not a bad thing.
Quite the opposite actually, if the average American shopper was not so stupid about meat color it would’ve been easier to get a properly aged cut around here.

 

[tokkun]

The red you see in most american steaks is food coloring.

Citation needed.

 

[Sabre Fox]

What you have to look out for is the smell around the edges and if there is any green on it. Brown is okay and since you will be heating it, the lower end bacteria will cook out. Any hint of green or a slimy film on the edges is bad. Steaks usually can last 5-7 days in a good fridge before a concern can be had.

 

[Draft]

But brown is the natural color.

The red you see in most american steaks is food coloring.

Your meat is fine.

So if someone were to cut a big steak out of you, it would be brown?

 

[TurboLibre]

Steaks usually can last 5-7 days in a good fridge before a concern can be had.

How about if you freeze them? I'm clueless when it comes to cooking, so how long can you freeze chicken/steak/beef/sausages before they go bad? I get very paranoid with this kind of stuff.

 

[Medalion]

every thread is me with "pics?" even if it's not about girls, nice GAF! :lol

 

[Chris R]

If the meat has become stringy, smells bad, or has changed color it is bad.

Not really that hard to tell IMO.

edit: by change color I mean go from a dark red/pink to a grey/dull brown. Color is just the first indicator to me because the smell is behind plastic, but the texture/smell is what really gives it away.

 

[SRG01]

But brown is the natural color.

The red you see in most american steaks is food coloring.

Your meat is fine.

The hell? Red is the natural color of meat. Brown is caused by the slow oxidation of hemoglobin and iron within the meat.

PS. Bacteria only has a limited penetration depth into (fresh) meat. As long as it hasn't broken down by a whole lot, you should be fine!

 

[kamspy]

Instinct prevails in these situations for me.

Open it up, get a whiff of it, pick it up etc. If something doesn't jive, make a sandwich.

 

[lastendconductor]

How about if you freeze them? I'm clueless when it comes to cooking, so how long can you freeze chicken/steak/beef/sausages before they go bad? I get very paranoid with this kind of stuff.

If you have a good freezer, forever. Taste will get worse of course.

 

[TurboLibre]

If you have a good freezer, forever. Taste will get worse of course.

Good to know, thanks.

 

[jamesinclair]

Citation needed.

Red meat = enhanced color

"Shoppers typically check the color of steak or ground beef before buying it. Red-looking meat is regarded as a sign of freshness. But meat sold at some stores is packaged in a way that allows it to keep that fresh, red color not just for days, but for months.

The trick is packaging that locks out most oxygen, which can turn meat brown and eventually help it spoil. Instead, the package is filled with a variety of other gases and a tiny, non-toxic amount of carbon monoxide (CO), which reacts with the meat to keep it red indefinitely."

http://blogs.usatoday.com/oped/2007/10/our-view-on-foo.html

Or see here
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/21/national/21meat.html?_r=1

Meat, same age (2 weeks)



Fish = food coloring (dyes). Sorry for the confusion.