Cooking can be a labor-intensive activity for some. Finding a recipe, preparing a list, getting the ingredients, all while trying not to burn the kitchen down in the process can put people off. Handling frozen meat is one such kitchen nightmare for many.
Fret not. Here are five easy-peasy-lemon-squeezy hacks to defrost meat. Hurry, find a paper and start taking down notes.
1. Place frozen meat under running water
It’s easier for frozen meat to plump up if it’s soaked in running water. Make sure the meat is wrapped with airtight plastic and placed in a container filled with flowing room temperature water. Check plastic for tears before wrapping to prevent contamination. Pro-tip is to replace water every 30 minutes, and you only have to do it twice as the whole process takes up to just an hour.
2. Soak meat in a mixture of water and vinegar
The acid content in vinegar is perfect to bring down the temperature of frozen meat. It also helps tenderize the meat by breaking down the connecting tissues found in them.
3. Sandwich the meat between two metal pots
Metal pots are good heat conductors. Fill the upper pot with lukewarm water, which adds pressure to the meat and increases its surface area thus speeding the rate of defrosting. If you don’t have enough metal pots, you can replace the bottom layer with a baking tin.
4. Soak in room temperature water
Always use lukewarm or room temperature water. You might be tempted to use hot water because the hotter the water, the quicker the meat defrosts, right? Wrong. Hot water results in uneven heat distribution, and will even cause the spreading of bacteria.
5. Place meat at the chiller section of the fridge
This is by far the easiest method to defrost meat but it requires early planning. You have to place the meat in chiller one day in advance prior to cooking. It’s also ideal to store it at the lowest level to avoid dripping of residual liquid onto other produces. Avoid freezing meat twice after defrosting.
