F R E E Z E R T O G O U R M E T
From Freezer to Fork
Whether your beef is delivered to your front door or you are picking it up from the butcher, keeping your steaks, roasts, and ground properly stored ensures lasting tenderness and flavor. Here are some of our best suggestions and tips for properly storing your premium beef so that its is always ready and fresh when you need a quality meal.
Keep It Cold
Our processors will package and freeze your beef share in their commercial freezers. Unlike residential freezers, which freeze more slowly, these commercial units quickly freeze the beef, preserving the meat's cellular structure and moisture. Once flash frozen and delivered it is up to your freezer to keep the beef cold. Beef that is stored properly will last a year before it begins to loose some of its freshness.
To preserve your beef make sure that your freezer stays at zero degrees or below. Chest freezers are optimal for storage, as they provide ample room and consistent temperatures. Avoid freezers with defrost cycles, as this will lead to larger ice crystals forming, which reduces the freshness of the beef.
To preserve your beef make sure that your freezer stays at zero degrees or below. Chest freezers are optimal for storage, as they provide ample room and consistent temperatures. Avoid freezers with defrost cycles, as this will lead to larger ice crystals forming, which reduces the freshness of the beef.
Paper or Vacuum Seal
You have two options when it comes to packaging your beef share: paper or vacuum seal. The standard processing fees cover the cost of paper packaging, which has been used for generations to protect meat during storage. The downside to paper packaging is its vulnerability to air, which over time will allow moisture to escape from your beef cuts in the freezer. This drying out will not happen overnight, and in a really cold chest freezer with a good seal, this drying will not happen in the first year.
Vacuum sealing your beef share assures that no air will touch the meat, keeping it's natural moisture where it is meant to be, on your plate. Having your beef vacuum sealed will be particularly important if you are using a freezer with a defrost cycle that occasionally raises above freezing to prevent ice build up. While there is a slight up-charge from the processor for the vacuum sealing, this packaging is one of the best ways to protect the quality of your beef share over time.
Vacuum sealing your beef share assures that no air will touch the meat, keeping it's natural moisture where it is meant to be, on your plate. Having your beef vacuum sealed will be particularly important if you are using a freezer with a defrost cycle that occasionally raises above freezing to prevent ice build up. While there is a slight up-charge from the processor for the vacuum sealing, this packaging is one of the best ways to protect the quality of your beef share over time.
Thawing
SMALL CUTS Thawing beef is all about bringing the meat to room temperature quickly, while preventing the growth of harmful bacteria. Here are two methods for smaller cuts, which we usually judge to be an inch or less in thickness.
1. HOT WATER BATH Place your vacuum sealed beef cut or cuts placed into zipper-lock bags into a very hot water bath (140 degrees). Your beef will thaw within 12 minutes, while preserving its integrity and preventing harmful bacterial growth.
2. CAST-IRON OR STEEL PAN Place your beef cut onto a cast-iron or steel pan at room temperature. The metal's rapid heat transfer safely thaws the meat in about an hour.
1. HOT WATER BATH Place your vacuum sealed beef cut or cuts placed into zipper-lock bags into a very hot water bath (140 degrees). Your beef will thaw within 12 minutes, while preserving its integrity and preventing harmful bacterial growth.
2. CAST-IRON OR STEEL PAN Place your beef cut onto a cast-iron or steel pan at room temperature. The metal's rapid heat transfer safely thaws the meat in about an hour.
LARGE CUTS Large roasts and steaks are best thawed in a refrigerator. Allow one day for every four pounds. If your large cuts are vacuum sealed you an place it in a large bucket of cold water, and set it in a refrigerator. Plan on thirty minutes of defrosting for every pound; a four pound roast will take about 2 hours.