defrosting a chicken

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar

so I forgot to take the full chicken out of the freezer last night to defrost

is there any way I could defrost it in the next 5-6 hours? or should I just pick something out of the freezer I can defrost in the microwave

physioman

when i defrost chicken fillets quickly i put them in a bowl pour in boiling water and works fine. So maybe a large bowl and boiling water and leave sit for an hour. Change water if it gets too cool.

abouttobebanned

Big difference between fillets and a whole chicken.

Go buy a new chicken. Don't risk it. Seriously.

gigawatt

i did this last week, left it in the sink in hot water for an hour to get things going and put it in the oven for about an hour longer than usual on a slightly lower temp. turned out fine!

Acoshla

Do you just want to roast it? I'd do that from frozen and as mentioned leave it in longer.

John Mason

Just asked my mammy, and she said you cant cook a two legged animal from frozen.

4 legged animals are okay

EDIT: she just also told that vegetables grown underground should be cooked with a lid on but vegetables grown overground, should be coooked without a lid!!!!!!!!

The Hill Billy

All I will say in this regard is that I would consider some of the above advice not to be best practice in relation to good food hygiene.

The safest option in this case is to get a fresh chicken or cook something else.

boodlesdoodles

Food should only be defrosted in cold water, never hot, when you're stuck. I think it would be best to get something else or buy another chicken. I wouldn't fast defrost a whole chicken ever.

Kimia

Defrosting in boiling water? :eek::eek: So unsafe.

I don't understand the panic about defrosting and chicken in general - there seems to be a thread every week about it and old wives tales.

Just cook it from frozen. The only thing you need to ensure is that it's cooked through (no pink). The way you can tell with a whole chicken is if the leg is easy to pull off and the juices run clear. It just needs an extra 30 mins or so.

Faith

Do not ever defrost anything in hot or boiling water.

If you're in a rush, you can submerge it in cold water. That speeds up the defrosting process.

@Kimia - You could cook it from frozen, but in order to get it cooked all the way through, the outside of it would be beyond edible I'd imagine. It would be cooked on the inside and burnt to shíte on the outside. Unless you cooked it at a lower temp, and then it would need longer than an extra 30 mins. It's just not worth it IMO. Easier to make something else than to risk a disaster! The fuss is that if you fúck up, very serious food poisoning can occur.

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar

forgot I made this thread

I just threw some of everything I had in the fridge together with some rice. quick fry steak with some fried onions/mushrooms and steamed carrots/broccoli/celery. Ended up lovely, definitely going to be mixing all these together again in the future.

Kimia

Faith wrote: »

Do not ever defrost anything in hot or boiling water.

If you're in a rush, you can submerge it in cold water. That speeds up the defrosting process.

@Kimia - You could cook it from frozen, but in order to get it cooked all the way through, the outside of it would be beyond edible I'd imagine. It would be cooked on the inside and burnt to shíte on the outside. Unless you cooked it at a lower temp, and then it would need longer than an extra 30 mins. It's just not worth it IMO. Easier to make something else than to risk a disaster! The fuss is that if you fúck up, very serious food poisoning can occur.

You're absolutely right and I realised that 30 minutes would definitely not be long enough, as you would definitely have to lower the heat so that the outside wouldn't burn.

It's just the assumption that it's the actual process (and not the bacteria from the inside of the chicken not cooking) that is the danger. It's hysteria - some people genuinely believe that even if a chicken breast is cremated inside and out, if it was cooked from frozen, it's automatic food poisoning. Nuts.

gigawatt

can someone please answer this question?
what is the big deal about defrosting in hot water?and why is it ok to defrost in cold water?
if the chicken is going in an oven where its going to be cooked for about 2 hours at 180-220oC what does it matter? bacteria are dead once the temp goes above 100oC. after 2 hours the temp inside the cavity of the bird would be above 100oC
and could someone who is a chef or something please answer this giving a logical explanation. please please no old wives tales or hearsay!! :-)

the beer revolu

gigawatt wrote: »

can someone please answer this question?
what is the big deal about defrosting in hot water?and why is it ok to defrost in cold water?
if the chicken is going in an oven where its going to be cooked for about 2 hours at 180-220oC what does it matter? bacteria are dead once the temp goes above 100oC. after 2 hours the temp inside the cavity of the bird would be above 100oC
and could someone who is a chef or something please answer this giving a logical explanation. please please no old wives tales or hearsay!! :-)

I think the issue is not just the live bacteria but also toxins that bacteria can secrete which will not be destroyed by cooking.

Example of where there is nothing wrong with defrosting in boiling water:
Frozen sausages - pop them into boiling water for ten minutes or so and then cook them straight away - no problem.

Defrost something in boiling water and let it sit around for a few hours - problem.

It is crazy to saw never defrost something in boiling water but it may be a good rule of thumb if you know nothing about food handling.

Faith, if you cook something from frozen, do you think everything magically goes from -18deg to a safe 71deg? The meat will gradually warm up, same as it would in boiling water, but this is safe as long as the time scale is reasonable.

Faith

gigawatt wrote: »

can someone please answer this question?
what is the big deal about defrosting in hot water?and why is it ok to defrost in cold water?
if the chicken is going in an oven where its going to be cooked for about 2 hours at 180-220oC what does it matter? bacteria are dead once the temp goes above 100oC. after 2 hours the temp inside the cavity of the bird would be above 100oC
and could someone who is a chef or something please answer this giving a logical explanation. please please no old wives tales or hearsay!! :-)

Several reasons. Heat causes bacteria to grow. Defrosting something in warm water promotes bacterial growth which is dangerous. Defrosting something in boiling water means that the chicken starts to cook immediately. The danger is that people who don't know any better see that the outside is done, don't check the inside properly which is still raw and eat it and get sick. Secondly, if the outside of the chicken is cooked before it even goes into the oven, it'll be incinerated by the time the inside of the chicken is cooked - assuming the person is switched on enough to leave it in there until the inside is actually cooked. Theoretically, you won't be in danger if you defrost in warm water and immediately cook for the right length of time, but you'd want to be very sure you know what you're doing. Safety reasons aside, the cooking process starts in warm water and you'll be left with areas that are horribly overcooked afterwards.

Defrosting in cold water is suitable because the water is above freezing, but not warm enough to promote bacterial growth. It speeds up the process without any danger.

Faith

the beer revolu wrote: »

Faith, if you cook something from frozen, do you think everything magically goes from -18deg to a safe 71deg? The meat will gradually warm up, same as it would in boiling water, but this is safe as long as the time scale is reasonable.

I don't understand what your point is. Of course there'll be a period where bacterial growth is possible during cooking while the temperature rises, but ensuring everything is cooked thoroughly negates this. The difference is that in boiling water, the outside cooks while the inside stays frozen. If you're cooking something from frozen for a long time, you need to decrease the temperature and increase the cooking time to have it evenly cooked.

If you can find me a source from a reputable Food Safety Authority that says the defrosting in hot water is safe, then great, I'd love to read it. But for now, I'll just quote the United States Department of Agriculture Food Safety and Inspection Service:

http://www.fsis.usda.gov/factsheets/big_thaw/index.asp wrote:

Uh, oh! You're home and forgot to thaw something for dinner. You grab a package of meat or chicken and use hot water to thaw it fast. But is this safe? What if you remembered to take food out of the freezer, but forgot and left the package on the counter all day while you were at work?

Neither of these situations is considered safe, and these methods of thawing may lead to foodborne illness. Raw or cooked meat, poultry or egg products, as any perishable foods, must be kept at a safe temperature during "the big thaw." They are safe indefinitely while frozen. However, as soon as they begin to thaw and become warmer than 40 °F, bacteria that may have been present before freezing can begin to multiply.

Perishable foods should never be thawed on the counter, or in hot water and must not be left at room temperature for more than two hours.

Even though the center of the package may still be frozen as it thaws on the counter, the outer layer of the food could be in the "Danger Zone," between 40 and 140 °F — temperatures where bacteria multiply rapidly.

When thawing frozen food, it's best to plan ahead and thaw in the refrigerator where it will remain at a safe, constant temperature — at 40 °F or below.

There are three safe ways to thaw food: in the refrigerator, in cold water, and in the microwave.

gigawatt

Faith wrote: »

Several reasons. Heat causes bacteria to grow. Defrosting something in warm water promotes bacterial growth which is dangerous
Theoretically, you won't be in danger if you defrost in warm water and immediately cook for the right length of time, but you'd want to be very sure you know what you're doing. Safety reasons aside, the cooking process starts in warm water and you'll be left with areas that are horribly overcooked afterwards.

Defrosting in cold water is suitable because the water is above freezing, but not warm enough to promote bacterial growth. It speeds up the process without any danger.

thanks for that, :)I can now see the logic behind it and why a lot of people would have concerns, in general I am very sure of what I'm doing when I'm cooking which is why I couldnt see the issue with cooking from frozen, or defrosting in warm water and popping straight into a hot oven. I do a lot of cooking and read a lot of practical cookery books etc I have also studied microbiology and I have done haccap courses etc so I was confused by the differing opinions on this as I was sure that it could be done safely!

Faith

If you know what you're doing and you're sure you're being safe, then do. But as moderators of this forum, we need to be aware that a lot of people reading this won't have the first clue about safety and could potentially make themselves very sick. It's our job to ensure that nobody puts themselves in danger as a result of something they've read here, which is why one of the mods always posts in threads like this about the safe ways to defrost, and why you shouldn't risk the dangerous ways .

gigawatt

the beer revolu wrote: »

I think the issue is not just the live bacteria but also toxins that bacteria can secrete which will not be destroyed by cooking.

Example of where there is nothing wrong with defrosting in boiling water:
Frozen sausages - pop them into boiling water for ten minutes or so and then cook them straight away - no problem.

Defrost something in boiling water and let it sit around for a few hours - problem.

It is crazy to saw never defrost something in boiling water but it may be a good rule of thumb if you know nothing about food handling.

Faith, if you cook something from frozen, do you think everything magically goes from -18deg to a safe 71deg? The meat will gradually warm up, same as it would in boiling water, but this is safe as long as the time scale is reasonable.

thanks a mill for that its confirmed what I was thinking about the whole issue. I hadnt really thought about the bacterial toxins so its a good point.:) Although is it only botulism that secretes toxins that cause illness? I thought the rest of them salmonella/e coli etc cause illness by invading the gut as such. and botulism is rare enough usually only found in canned or bottled goods not on my chicken! I dont want botulism from my chicken noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo...........:)

rubadub

irishbird wrote: »

Just asked my mammy, and she said you cant cook a two legged animal from frozen.

4 legged animals are okay

Thats an odd "rule", how fast stuff defrosts is usually to do with the size and thickness of the meat. Like a boneless chicken fillet which is butterflied before freezing will defrost quicker than a thick chicken fillet on the bone.

A 10kg ham is from an animal with 4 legs

http://recipes.wikia.com/wiki/Christmas_Ham

If ham is frozen, thaw it in its plastic package, for 3 days in the refrigerator for a 7 kg ham, 5 days for a 10 kg ham. A 10 kg ham is considered better-tasting as the pig has gotten bigger.

Now common sense should prevail but these "rules" often have the original reasoning left out, or over time the real reasoning gets left out like Chinese whispers -like the recent thread about warning not to mix milk from 2 different cartons in your breakfast cereal.

joolsveer

Q. How should frozen food be defrosted?

Ideally, frozen food should be covered and defrosted overnight in a suitable container, such as a plate or dish, in the fridge. Large items like turkeys may take longer then one night – allow one day for each 5 pounds of weight. Be careful when defrosting raw meat that the drip does not contaminate cooked/ready-to-eat foods.

Only defrost food in a microwave if you are planning to cook the food immediately after it has thawed. This is because some areas of larger food items may begin to cook during the defrosting process, raising the temperature to a point where bacteria can grow. Always check your microwave manufacturer’s handbook for guidelines on defrosting.

http://www.fsai.ie/faq/domestic.html#domestic_freezing

I know people who look askance if it is suggested to them that defrosting a chicken by leaving it overnight on the draining board is dangerous.