How to thaw frozen ground beef fast

It's always a smart idea to keep your freezer stocked with frozen chicken breasts and sausages (hello, easy weeknight chicken dinners), well-marbled steaks and all the ground beef and turkey you can fit for homemade meatballs or burger recipes. And if you know how to defrost meat fast (and safely, too!), you can achieve a home-cooked meal on a weeknight in very little time.

But what if you need to defrost steak in a hurry? What if that chicken breast didn’t completely thaw overnight? What if you’re just really hungry? No worries, there are a few methods to speed up the process and defrost any cut of meat quickly. Here are answers to all your questions about how to defrost meat.

What's the safest way to defrost meat?

The absolute best method for defrosting meat safely is overnight in the refrigerator until it is completely thawed. Once thawed, ground meat, poultry, and seafood can keep well in the refrigerator for an extra day or two, while red meat (beef, pork, lamb, and steak) stays good for three to five more days. While opting to defrost meat in the refrigerator does require advance planning, it gives you the extra bonus of being able to refreeze it safely (though you may experience some loss of quality).

Can you defrost meat in cold water?

In just about an hour’s time, this method will quickly and properly defrost meat without a microwave, though it does require you to be more hands-on. Place your frozen cut of meat in a resealable plastic bag, squeezing out as much air as possible. Fill a large bowl with cold water and submerge the bag in the water. Change the water every 30 minutes to ensure that it stays cold and continues to thaw the meat. Smaller cuts of meat, poultry or seafood (about a pound) can thaw in an hour or less, larger quantities (three to four pounds) may take two to three hours. Estimate about 30 minutes per pound for thawing whole frozen turkeys. We don’t recommend refreezing that meat once it’s been thawed, unless you cook it first. Tip: Use your thawed meat to make big batches of soup and stew recipes!

What's the fastest way to defrost meat?

Learn how to defrost meat in the microwave and you can have prepped protein in under 10 minutes — really. This method works best for smaller cuts of meat that will be cooked all the way through after thawing, like chicken breast for a chicken stir-fry or ground beef for tacos. Read up on your microwave’s instruction manual to learn the best way to defrost a specific cut of meat according to the microwave’s settings. If your microwave doesn’t have a “defrost” setting, set it at a lower power level and run in short bursts until the meat is thawed. Be careful though, cooking at too high a heat or for too long can actually cook the meat instead of defrosting. No matter what, as soon as you’re done thawing, cook the meat right away.

Is it ever OK to cook frozen meat?

When you’re really in a pinch, you don’t have to thaw frozen meat before cooking. Believe it or not, it’s safe to cook fresh-out-of-the-freezer blocks of ground turkey, solid cuts of chicken, and bricks of ice-cold steak. The meat will take longer to cook (about 50 percent more time), and it’s not ideal for achieving golden-crispy skin or a perfect sear. However, it’s an option that’s always there for you — even when perfectly thawed protein isn’t.

Just avoid cooking frozen meat in the slow cooker — it can spend too much time thawing and become unsafe to eat.

Is it OK to thaw meat on the counter?

While there are sources that claim you can thaw frozen meat in hot water or simply leaving it out on the counter, the USDA says this isn’t safe. Any piece of thawed meat should not be left at room temperature for more than two hours. If the meat begins to thaw and it becomes warmer than 40 °F, bacteria that may have been present before freezing may start to multiply.

Samantha (she/her) is an editorial assistant in the Good Housekeeping Test Kitchen, where she writes about tasty recipes, must-try food products and top-tested secrets for home cooking success. She has taste-tasted hundreds of products and recipes since joining GH in 2020 (tough job!). A graduate of Fordham University, she considers the kitchen to be her happiest place.

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Freezing and thawing meat is convenient and economical for most households. However, the process of thawing out these products to cook can be a major stressor.

The biggest thawing event of the year takes place (and considerable refrigerator space) during the days leading up to Thanksgiving. But we are not here today to talk turkey. With the average family of four consuming over 100 lbs. per year, we are here to talk ground beef. We are joined by Trevor Craig, a Food Microbiologist at Microbac. Among his extensive experience, Trevor spent four years in food ingredient research and development with a focus on ingredients that reduced bacterial growth and increasing bioavailability in human and animal feed. In this interview, Trevor delivers his subject matter expertise to ensure safety and reduce food spoilage when handling and preparing frozen ground beef.

Q&A With Microbac Food Microbiologist Trevor Craig

Q: Please detail the step-by-step instructions for defrosting ground beef using the refrigerator

A: Frozen meat can be placed in your refrigerator and allowed to thaw. Most ground meat will only take 12-24 hours to be thawed enough for cooking.  Large amounts might need about 2-3 days to thaw. I recommend placing your thawing meat in a second container or towards the bottom of your fridge so that as it thaws, nothing drips on anything below. While you’re likely to cook the meat to levels that allow safe consumption, meat drippings (and bacteria) can drip on foods that may not be cooked or contaminate your surfaces.

Q: Please detail the step-by-step instructions for defrosting ground beef using cold water

A: If you can’t wait a day to thaw, you can place wrapped ground beef into cold water. Be careful by using sealed packages and not paper, as leaking or dissolving or packages will contaminate the water. Keeping the water running can be wasteful, so placing frozen ground beef in a bowl of cold water is effective. Change the water about every 30 minutes and most products will be thawed in just a few hours. Never use warm water to thaw meat, as it provides a perfect environment for bacteria to grow. Make sure that the container with water and meat is left in the sink and off counters to help control any potential splashes that could contaminate surfaces.

Q: Please detail the step-by-step instructions for defrosting ground beef using the microwave

A: This is a little trickier depending on your microwave. Most microwaves have a defrost setting or button, so you can use that. The key here is to use low power setting for short bursts until thawed. Most meat needs about 8 minutes per lb but that can differ by microwave or cut of meat. Microwave thawing can also be difficult, as it can cause more delicate meats to get mushy and can cause some “cooking” that will affect your final meal.

Q: Can you safely refreeze meat after it’s been thawed?

A: A tricky question. If you thaw meat in the refrigerator for a day, then yes – you can refreeze meat. Thawing in water or the microwave should be used immediately. Meat that has been thawed for several days is not recommended to go back into freezers. Usually, the refreezing process will cause adverse effects in the taste and texture of the product. Freezing is not a sterilization method for bacteria – it will not kill all the bacteria or pathogens in a product. If a product is put into situations where bacteria counts can rise, they will remain high even after refreezing.

Q: What’s the biggest mistake that people make when trying to thaw ground beef and how can it be avoided?

A: Probably the biggest problem is people assuming that freezing will completely kill bacteria. While freezing might kill off some bacteria, most bacteria and pathogens will be stalled out and not continue to grow. The other issue is placing meat out at room temperature on a counter or using warm water to thaw. These conditions are perfect for bacteria to replicate and can contaminate the product and your kitchen surfaces. Once a countertop is contaminated, it is not hard for it to be transferred to other surfaces, foods, and eventually to humans. It may be a hassle and harder to plan ahead to thaw meat properly, but a late dinner is much better than a serious illness or even death due to E. coli, Salmonella, or Listeria.

Q: In addition to your professional expertise as a Food Microbiologist at Microbac Laboratories, can you recommend additional resources to all the parents with younger children and to those folks that are more vulnerable to the dangers of consuming frozen ground beef that is not prepared properly?

A: The CDC and USDA – Food Safety and Inspection Service provide a lot of detailed guidance, which is my primary source of direction when I prepare my own food in the kitchen and on the backyard grill.

From farm to fork, Microbac helps our clients manage food quality and safety risks to protect consumers.

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