Why did my extra lean ground beef turned brown?!
Answers: I purchased 1kg (2.2lbs) of extra lean ground beef from a grocery store and stored it in my freezer. A couple of days later it started to get brown spots. One week later the whole wad of meat turned brown, right through! I am not sure if this is normal but I was wondering if I could still cook it up and eat it?
Optimum surface color of fresh meat (i.e., cherry-red for beef; dark cherry-red for lamb; grayish-pink for pork; and pale pink for veal) is highly unstable and short-lived. When meat is fresh and protected from contact with air (such as in vacuum packages), it has the purple-red color that comes from myoglobin, one of the two key pigments responsible for the color of meat. When exposed to air, myoglobin forms the pigment, oxymyoglobin, which gives meat a pleasingly cherry-red color. The use of a plastic wrap that allows oxygen to pass through it helps ensure that the cut meats will retain this bright red color. However, exposure to store lighting as well as the continued contact of myoglobin and oxymyoglobin with oxygen leads to the formation of metmyoglobin, a pigment that turns meat brownish-red. This color change alone does not mean the product is spoiled.
No dont eat it throw it away..
If it turned brown in the freezer, that's no problem. The meat just doesn't have direct access to oxygen to keep it bright red. If you defrost it and it doesn't smell bad, it's fine to eat. This is very common.
It got rotten..don't eat that. Probably ur fridge temperature was not @ the right settings. Check it out.
I am not sure why it turns brown, but even right when you buy it if you break it open the middle will be brown. I have noticed this before when I buy lean meat. I never keep it around long enough for it all to turn brown but I shop at Publix and don't think I have ever bought lean meat that wasn't brown inside.
You probably can still use it. Did you rewrap it in an airtight wrap or did you put it in directly in the store package? Store packages aren't airtight, so your meat will turn brown quicker. That doesn't mean the meat is bad, but it won't be as fresh tasting as a tightly wrapped product. It's unlikely that it is "spoiled" though since you put it right into the freezer. So you should still be able to use it in something like a stew or tacos, etc., where the seasoning will hide any freezer taste.
Don't worry. This is perfectly natural for ground beef. Have you never noticed this color change before? What is happening is that the meat pigment is reacting with oxygen in the air. All meat even steak will turn brown (on the surface) in just a day in the refrigerator. I could give you the chemistry of the process but your probably not that interested in the technical details. I assure you that as long as you have not temperature abused the meat it will be fine. Go into any grocery store and observe the beef (if its not packaged) and you will see brown pigment. If it is packaged sometime they remove the oxygen that's why it's not brown in the package.
PhD Food Chemistry and Nutrition
That should not be a problem as beef turns grey/brwon as it ages. In fact, aged steaks are grayish in color (on the outside anyway). Defrost a cooking portion and smell /taste it. If it smells/tastes funny, then discard of course. If not, then it should be okay. However, if you are unsure, better throw it away. Best to be safe than sorry.
Go ahead eat it!!What are you so worried about your eating dead animal carcass the meat losing the red pigment color is common they make it that color so it looks more apatizing, if it smells bad, dont eat:)