The Covid-19 pandemic has caused almost everyone to do more home cooking, and more food shopping to go with it. Which means we’re all storing more food in our pantries, refrigerators and freezers. So it’s a good time to remember some food storage safety advice.
Hamburgers are an American staple, especially during the summer grilling months. If you’ve bought ground beef to make them, or bought them already made, how long can they be kept? Some people think once you freeze food, it can stay in the freezer indefinitely.
Well, not exactly. This piece in Myrecipes.com suggests four months is the amount of time you can keep ground beef in the freezer. If you bring it home from the store and stick it in the fridge, don’t leave it there more than a day, two at the most, the article notes (I’d say a day tops to be safe).
I usually immediately divide a one-pound pack into four burgers, wrap them in some type of cling wrap, and freeze them.
If you’re not sure if some ground beef you have is spoiled, smell it, the piece notes, along with some other steps.
“When in doubt, throw it out. Spoiled ground beef, even if it’s cooked all the way through, is never safe to eat. It may contain harmful bacteria that cause foodborne illnesses. If you’ve eaten spoiled meat, you may experience fever, vomiting, stomach cramps, and diarrhea,” the piece states.
You’re all dealing with enough now, you don;t need those problems too.
The No Salt, No Fat, No Sugar Journal 