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Warning - Mechanically tenderized meat

Skiddymarker
Skiddymarker Posts: 8,522
Recently saw a label advising of mechanical tenderization on some steaks at a US Costco. As Travis recently went thru a bout of "intestinal discomfort" thought that these articles might be appropriate. It would appear that in the US the labels might not be in place everywhere, if I read it correctly. Might be wise to ask. 

Delta B.C. - Whiskey and steak, because no good story ever started with someone having a salad!

Comments

  • Little Steven
    Little Steven Posts: 28,817
    I soooo want one of those!

    Steve 

    Caledon, ON

     

  • travisstrick
    travisstrick Posts: 5,002
    edited June 2013
    Discomfort doesn't come close.
    Be careful, man! I've got a beverage here.
  • lousubcap
    lousubcap Posts: 32,167
    @LS-poor man's version is the Jaccard.  Probably achieve the same effect.
    Louisville; Rolling smoke in the neighbourhood. # 38 for the win.  Life is too short for light/lite beer!  Seems I'm livin in a transitional period.
  • yzzi
    yzzi Posts: 1,843
    I appreciate you sharing this. I never seem to read anything but the price and weight on those labels.
    Dunedin, FL
  • JRWhitee
    JRWhitee Posts: 5,678
    Thanks Skiddy I am like yzzi only look at price and if it is prime or choice.
                                                                
    _________________________________________________
    Don't let the truth get in the way of a good story!
    Large BGE 2006, Mini Max 2014, 36" Blackstone, Anova Sous Vide
    Green Man Group 
    Johns Creek, Georgia
  • Little Steven
    Little Steven Posts: 28,817
    lousubcap said:

    @LS-poor man's version is the Jaccard.  Probably achieve the same effect.

    Oh I have jaccards I just want a big one

    Steve 

    Caledon, ON

     

  • Skiddymarker
    Skiddymarker Posts: 8,522
    I use a Jaccard, have two of them, 15 and 45 knife. You have to be careful what you use them on, the instructions are very clear. I think the bigger concern is buying a steak or roast that has been "knifed" and you don't know about it. If you cook to <135 or so you could be at risk.  
    Delta B.C. - Whiskey and steak, because no good story ever started with someone having a salad!
  • Eggcelsior
    Eggcelsior Posts: 14,414
    Good Guy Costco, protecting consumers as usual!
  • Austin  Egghead
    Austin Egghead Posts: 3,966
    Will be reading labels very carefully. If I have to cook a $$ cut of meat to 160, I might as well make jerky. Will be talking with the butcher in Westphalia about how he processes the meat.
    Thanks for the links
    Large, small and mini now Egging in Rowlett Tx
  • SoCalWJS
    SoCalWJS Posts: 407
    Will be reading labels very carefully. If I have to cook a $$ cut of meat to 160, I might as well make jerky. Will be talking with the butcher in Westphalia about how he processes the meat.
    Thanks for the links
    That's what I was thinking too when I read the article and saw the Costco photo...would be a waste to cook a steak to 160
    South SLO County
  • Mickey
    Mickey Posts: 19,669
    Aw crap
    Salado TX & 30A  FL: Egg Family: 3 Large and a very well used Mini, added a Mini Max when they came out (I'm good for now). Plus a couple Pit Boss Pellet Smokers.   

  • Austin  Egghead
    Austin Egghead Posts: 3,966
    ..."A Costco spokesman told us all of its beef is tenderized by machines except for filets and flank steaks."
    I think that spokesman needs to visit with the butcher department. I just bought a boneless rib roast and it was not mechanically tenderized. I may have to re-think my meat buying at Costco.
    Large, small and mini now Egging in Rowlett Tx
  • Skiddymarker
    Skiddymarker Posts: 8,522
    ..."A Costco spokesman told us all of its beef is tenderized by machines except for filets and flank steaks."
    I think that spokesman needs to visit with the butcher department. I just bought a boneless rib roast and it was not mechanically tenderized. I may have to re-think my meat buying at Costco.
    Good point. Funny, flank is the reason I bought a Jaccard a few years ago. At my local Costco (Washington State) the labels for everything other whole fillets, has the tenderized label. A rib roast (bone attached) had the label but was not mechanically tenderized. Very possible the retailers are simply being safe, advising everything to be tenderized. Makes it difficult to by that roast and cook it rare.....
    Delta B.C. - Whiskey and steak, because no good story ever started with someone having a salad!
  • dlk7
    dlk7 Posts: 1,053
    I'm guessing everything should be fine if you Sous Vide the steak first at 134 F for a couple of hours.

    Two XL BGEs - So Happy!!!!

    Waunakee, WI

  • nolaegghead
    nolaegghead Posts: 42,102
    from Douglas Baldwin:

    While there are a lot of different food pathogens that can make you sick, you only need to worry about killing the toughest and most dangerous. The three food pathogens you should worry about when cooking sous vide are the Salmonella species, Listeria monocytogenes, and the pathogenic strains of Escherichia coli. Listeria is the hardest to kill but it takes fewer Salmonella or E. coli bacteria to make you sick. Since you don’t know how many pathogens are in your food, most experts recommend that you cook your food to reduce: Listeria by at least a million to one; Salmonella by ten million to one; and E. coli by a hundred thousand to one. You can easily do this when you cook sous vide: you just keep your food in a 130°F (54.4°C) or hotter water bath until enough bacteria have been killed.

    How long does it take for you to reduce, say, Listeria by a million to one? Your water bath temperature is very important: when cooking beef, it’ll take you four times longer at 130°F (54.4°C) as it does at 140°F (60°C). What you are cooking is also important: at 140°F (60°C), it’ll take you about 60% longer for chicken as it does for beef. Other things, like salt and fat content, also affect how long it takes; but these difference are small compared with temperature and species.

    Since sous vide cooking in a water bath is very consistent, I’ve calculated the worst-case cooking times so you don’t have to. My worst-case cooking times are based on the temperature, thickness, and type of the food and will give at least a million to one reduction in Listeria, a ten million to one reduction in Salmonella, and a hundred thousand to one reduction in E. coli:

    • Table 3.1 has the pasteurization times for fish;
    • Table 4.1 has the pasteurization times for poultry; and
    • Table 5.1 has the pasteurization times for meat (beef, pork, and lamb).

    Thick pieces of food, like a rib-roast, take much longer to cook and cool than thin pieces of food: a steak that is twice as thick takes about four times longer to cook and cool! So unless you are cooking a rib-roast for a party, you should cut your food into individual portions that can be cooled quickly and easily. It’s important that your pouches of food do not crowd or overlap each other in your water bath and are completely under the water; otherwise my tables will underestimate the cooking time.

    If you’re not going to eat all your food immediately, then you need to know that some bacteria are able to make spores. Spores themselves will not make you sick, but they can become active bacteria that could. Cooking to kill active bacteria like Listeria, Salmonella, and E. coli will leave these spores unharmed. If you keep your food hot, then the spores will not become active bacteria. But when you cool your food, the spores can become active bacteria: if you cool your food too slowly or store it for too long, then these active bacteria can multiply and make you sick. To keep these spores from becoming active bacteria, you must quickly cool your food – still sealed in its pouch – in ice water that is at least half ice until it’s cold all the way through. You can then store your food in your refrigerator for a few days or freeze it for up to a year. Table 1.1 has approximate cooling times in ice water based on thickness and shape.

    If you want to learn more about food safety, please continue reading below; see my book Sous Vide for the Home Cook; the excellent free guide by Dr Snyder; the FDA’s food safety website; or your local health and human services department.

    Cooling Time to 41°F (5°C) in Ice Water
    ThicknessSlab-likeCylinder-like Sphere-like
    5 mm5 min3 min3 min
    10 mm14 min8 min6 min
    15 mm25 min14 min10 min
    20 mm35 min20 min15 min
    25 mm50 min30 min20 min
    30 mm1¼ hr40 min30 min
    35 mm1½ hr50 min35 min
    40 mm1¾ hr1 hr45 min
    45 mm2¼ hr1¼ hr55 min
    50 mm2¾ hr1½ hr1 hr
    55 mm3¼ hr1¾ hr1¼ hr
    60 mm3¾ hr2 hr1½ hr
    65 mm4¼ hr2¼ hr1¾ hr
    70 mm4¾ hr2¾ hr2 hr
    75 mm5½ hr3 hr2¼ hr
    80 mm3½ hr2½ hr
    85 mm3¾ hr2¾ hr
    90 mm4¼ hr3 hr
    95 mm4¾ hr3½ hr
    100 mm5 hr3¾ hr
    105 mm5½ hr4 hr
    110 mm6 hr4½ hr
    115 mm4¾ hr
    Table 1.1: Approximate cooling time from 130–175°F (55–80°C) to 41°F (5°C) in an ice water bath that’s at least half ice. (My calculations assume that the food’s thermal diffusivity is 1.1×10-7m2/s and the ice water bath has a surface heat transfer coefficient of 100 W/m2-K. For more details, see Appendix A.)

    ______________________________________________
    I love lamp..
  • Ragtop99
    Ragtop99 Posts: 1,570
    SoCalWJS said:
    Will be reading labels very carefully. If I have to cook a $$ cut of meat to 160, I might as well make jerky. Will be talking with the butcher in Westphalia about how he processes the meat.
    Thanks for the links
    That's what I was thinking too when I read the article and saw the Costco photo...would be a waste to cook a steak to 160
    Agree.  It would cause me to eat far less steak, either because I don't want to ruin a decent steak or it forces me a find a butcher and buy higher priced meat.
    Cooking on an XL and Medium in Bethesda, MD.