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Wouldn't the food need to warm up to room temperature before bacteria would breed like crazy? If you defrost it from frozen to cold-but-defrosted, shouldn't you

Wouldn't the food need to warm up to room temperature before bacteria would breed like crazy? If you defrost it from frozen to cold-but-defrosted, shouldn't you be ok, even if the surrounding air is room temperature?

dustintrex 5y ago
The issue is the timing. If you defrost in the fridge, it will eventually reach ambient temperature, but that's still safe. If you defrost on the counter, it will briefly be cold-but-defrosted, but rapidly progress to room-temperature-petri-dish.
bambax 5y ago
> If you defrost it from frozen to cold-but-defrosted, shouldn't you be ok, even if the surrounding air is room temperature Yes, that's my point. If you defrost in the fridge it's ok. If you defrost at room temperature then it's dangerous. It's not extremely dangerous. Many people do it every day and don't die. But it's better not to.
- baobabKoodaa 5y ago
  No, what I meant was, if you defrost it at room temperature, it will not instantly warm up to room temperature - it will slowly warm up. You're not forced to leave it on the counter until it reaches room temperature, you can choose to use it before that point (even though it is surrounded by room-temperature air). It's possible to have a less-than-room-temperature fish inside a room that is in room temperature.
sbierwagen 5y ago
The bacteria on the surface of the meat will hit room temperature in a few minutes, long before the entire piece is thawed all the way through. So it gets an hour head start.
- nelgaard 5y ago
  No, it will not. But it depends on the shape of the meat. So if you are not monitoring the surface temperature, go with cold water or the fridge.
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
- gambiting 5y ago
  By that logic no one could ever safely eat steak tartare, which obviously you can without any issue. There will be bacteria growing in the surface, but unless someone fucked up somewhere along the way, they won't be harmful.

dustintrex 5y ago

The issue is the timing. If you defrost in the fridge, it will eventually reach ambient temperature, but that's still safe. If you defrost on the counter, it will briefly be cold-but-defrosted, but rapidly progress to room-temperature-petri-dish.

bambax 5y ago

> If you defrost it from frozen to cold-but-defrosted, shouldn't you be ok, even if the surrounding air is room temperature Yes, that's my point. If you defrost in the fridge it's ok. If you defrost at room temperature then it's dangerous. It's not extremely dangerous. Many people do it every day and don't die. But it's better not to.

baobabKoodaa 5y ago
No, what I meant was, if you defrost it at room temperature, it will not instantly warm up to room temperature - it will slowly warm up. You're not forced to leave it on the counter until it reaches room temperature, you can choose to use it before that point (even though it is surrounded by room-temperature air). It's possible to have a less-than-room-temperature fish inside a room that is in room temperature.

sbierwagen 5y ago

The bacteria on the surface of the meat will hit room temperature in a few minutes, long before the entire piece is thawed all the way through. So it gets an hour head start.

nelgaard 5y ago
No, it will not. But it depends on the shape of the meat. So if you are not monitoring the surface temperature, go with cold water or the fridge.
deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
gambiting 5y ago
By that logic no one could ever safely eat steak tartare, which obviously you can without any issue. There will be bacteria growing in the surface, but unless someone fucked up somewhere along the way, they won't be harmful.