Power outage/frozen meat

food-safetyfrozen

We were on vacation for a week. The neighbor said we were out of power the whole time. We have a chest freezer full of beef. It thawed but remained in the freezer unopened the whole time. Is the meat bad if it is thawed but still cold? Can we refreeze it and eat it?

Best Answer

You may be able to salvage some or all of it if the meat was still cold enough to contain ice crystals, otherwise I'm afraid it's a total loss. There is a guide here.

If you do have to discard it, check with your homeowner's insurance company. They might cover the loss.