OK to use Pork Shoulder past Sell by Date?


 
D

D Jennings

TVWBB Fan
A couple weeks ago I bought a couple cryovac pork sholders at Costco. Got home and tossed in frig. to smoke the next day. Due to a couple minor emergenies they did get done. Pulled them out of frig. today to rub and smoke tomorrow. I noticed the date on packaging: Packed on 5/5/07 : Sell by 5/8/07. It's now 5/18/07, should they still be ok?
 
Yes but to alleviate any odors, rub the entire butt with a generous amount of baking soda. Then rinse. Odors should be gone thereafter.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by tjkoko:
Yes but to alleviate any odors, rub the entire butt with a generous amount of baking soda. Then rinse. Odors should be gone thereafter. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

eeeuuuwww. That doesn't sound good at all.
 
Better safe than sorry especially with an affordable cut of meat like butt. Personally, I would throw it out... thats much better than throwing it up!

Tony
 
Of course all is well--there is no logical reason why it wouldn't be. Good show. Bet it was tasty!
 
they should have a use by date instead of a sell by date. but from what i hear the cryovac butts and such can be used up to 3 weeks or more after the sell by date. many people wet age briskets for 2-4 weeks after purchase.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Tony C.:
they should have a use by date instead of a sell by date. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>Sell-by dates on meats tell you nothing. A use-by date, though it sounds good, can't be reliably generated because there are no reliable predictive models to do this. Cryo'd red meats last quite a while if kept fridged--many weeks.
 
I wet age all of my cryo'd red meats for approx 2 weeks. I think it really makes a difference too.

But I also ask for them out of the box.
 
Though the relative youth of pork, veal and lamb makes aging unnecessary they have good shelf life if cryo'd. Beef is another story and wet-aging is beneficial. If you can find out the pack date on the case the meat was shipped in you can wet-age 4-6 weeks from that date no problem. Again, the sell-by date doesn't tell you a thing as it is determined by the store and can be changed anytime (there are no federal laws regarding sell-by dates for red meats). The pack date is, by law, required to be stamped on all shipping boxes.

Check that the cryo is intact and check it daily during aging to be sure that it is undamaged. (If you find damage at any point and it appears that air might be able to enter then either cook the meat or re-wrap/re-vac it and freeze it.)
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content"> Originally posted by tjkoko:
Yes but to alleviate any odors, rub the entire butt with a generous amount of baking soda. Then rinse. Odors should be gone thereafter.


eeeuuuwww. That doesn't sound good at all. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

To Jerry N.:

Don't knock it until you've tried using baking soda. The baking soda won't impart any flavor to the meat. But it neutralizes the acids that cause the odors of older age and it'll do the same task for your smelly shoes. Chemistry, you know?
 
what is wet aging? How do you do it? Will it improve thw flavour of, say, a piece of lamb which hasn't been hung long enough to tenderise and gain flavour?

Thanks,

Andrew
 
I go by this simple formula. If it smells bad, throw it out. If it doesn't smell bad, then fire it up and eat it.

I rarely pay attention to sell by dates.
 
Wet aging is the process of vacuum-packing whole meats, or primal or sub-primal cuts, ckeeping them cold in a fridge, and allowing a period of time to pass so that natural enzymes in the meat will tenderize the muscle fibers.

The enzymatic activity is the same as in dry aging but, unlike dry aging, there is no moisture loss or shrinkage. Because of the lack of moisture loss, wet-aged meats do not undergo the concentration and development of flavors for which dry-aged meats are well known.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">If it smells bad, throw it out. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
That's okay-as far as it goes. Though smell can inform you of the presence of spoilage organisms (and is usesful in this regard, especially for items that will not be cooked), vacuum-packed meats frequently have an odor when removed from the package due to the lack of oxygen. This odor should dissipate on its own (rinsing briefly in cold water can speed dissipation) as the meat is exposed to air for a bit.

As I've noted many times, malodor can indicate the presence of spoilage organisms but spoilage organisms rarely cause illness--they cause quality problems of off-odors and poor taste. Pathogenic and toxigenic bacteria--those responsible for food-borne illnesses (like E. coli, Salmonella, Listeria, et al.)--cannot be detected by smell no matter what their concentration.
 
I'd like to know more about wet aging meat.

a. How subtle are the results?
b. Can this be used on all meats?
c. How long is the aging process?
d. Can the original cryovac packaging be used? If so, how do you know how long the meat has already "aged"?
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Robert Shackelford:
I'd like to know more about wet aging meat. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

a. How subtle are the results?

<span class="ev_code_GREEN">If the meat hasn't aged at all then not very. There is a noticeable improvement in tenderness and texture. Not flavor though--for that one needs to dry age.</span>

b. Can this be used on all meats?

<span class="ev_code_GREEN">All red meats yes. It is not worth doing on meats that come from young animal, notably young lamb, most pork, etc. </span>

c. How long is the aging process?

<span class="ev_code_GREEN">4-6 weeks from the pack date. Less is fine if need be.</span>

d. Can the original cryovac packaging be used? If so, how do you know how long the meat has already "aged"?

<span class="ev_code_GREEN">It is best to use the original packaging as then one is assured there has not been air exposure since packaging which would screw up the process.Check it to be sure that it is airtight as best you can--and then check it daily. If it becomes apparent that the meat is getting exposre to air--even a tiny hole is a problem--either cook the meat immediately or remove it from the package, re-vac or re-wrap, and freeze.</span>

<span class="ev_code_GREEN">You should find out the 'pack date' when you purchase the meat. It is stamped on the side of the shipping case the meat was packed in at the plant. IT IS THE ONLY DATE WORTH KNOWING. Ignore ANY dates that appear on the cryo itself.</span>
 
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