Thawing pork belly

Clusterbuster

I got a couple of 4 lb. pork bellies at Sam's a few days ago but had to freeze them. About how long should it take to thaw them and will taking it past their use/freeze by date by a couple of days matter? I think I froze them on the day it said to use/freeze them.

bgebrent

You should be fine food safety-wise.  It’ll thaw overnight or 10-12ish hours in the fridge.

Clusterbuster

Thanks for the info. I'll probably go for it next weekend.

gdenby

Use by/freeze by dates on meat can indicate a possible hazard, tho' they are usually set to expire when the meat is still fine, not going brown, or drying out. I've only once had meat "marked down" that was inflating its package after 36 hours in the 'fridge.

If you have any concern, you might start prepping them when they are still partially frozen. Less likely to have any viable growths, and easier to cut if you need to do that. While its generally better to have all of a piece the same temp before cooking, you can start when the surface is warm enough to score and/or rub spices into it.