Frozen Meat

Meats to be frozen should be wrapped tightly in aluminum foil, heavy plastic bags, or freezer paper and stored at or below 0^oF (-18^oC). It is a good idea to first trim meat of bone and fat and to divide it up into individual servings before wrapping and freezing it.

Most beef cuts can be kept frozen for six to twelve months, but ground beef should be frozen for no longer than about three months. The colder temperatures reached by commercial freezers for at least 20 days at 5^oF (-15^oC) can kill T.spiralis. If not frozen to this degree, pork should always be cooked to the recommended temperature of 160^oF (71^oC). Wrappers often hide the identity of their contents, so the packages of frozen foods should be labeled and dated. It is better to make more frequent purchases than to freeze meat for extended periods of time, which can reduce its quality.

The texture and flavor of thawed meats will be adversely affected if they are refrozen. Freezer burn, caused by loss of moisture from the frozen food’s surface, can result if meat is stored longer than the recommended storage time or when it is wrapped in materials that are not vapor-proof or are punctured. The dehydration of freezer burn causes a discolored surface on the meat that becomes very dry, tough, and somewhat bitter in flavor when cooked.