Is this food okay to eat?

[TdeV]

Pork Belly which is vacuum sealed and was sous-vide-d for 48 hours. It's been sitting in the fridge for a few months, not in the meat drawer (which is close to freezing).

 

I was thinking of putting it (still wrapped) in the Anova Oven at sv temperatures to get warm, and then opening the bag.

 

If it still smells okay, can we eat it?

[Kerala]

What temperature was it cooked at?

[KennethT]

Also, what was its storage temperature?  If your meat drawer is close to freezing, what is the temperature of the area where the pork belly was stored?

[Kerala]

Generally, at the end of these kind of thoughts, I bin the food in question as it's just not worth the risk of even a day's D+V.

[kayb]

OK...I have one similar. Bought four pork chops at the meat market, back around Memorial Day. Not frozen. Local slaughterhouse/processor. Local hogs. Brought home, separated, SV'd 8 hours at 145F. One package I immediately put in freezer. Other has been in the fridge since, so 3-ish weeks. Still in SV bag. Fridge temp is 38F. Safe?

 

[KennethT]

46 minutes ago, kayb said:

OK...I have one similar. Bought four pork chops at the meat market, back around Memorial Day. Not frozen. Local slaughterhouse/processor. Local hogs. Brought home, separated, SV'd 8 hours at 145F. One package I immediately put in freezer. Other has been in the fridge since, so 3-ish weeks. Still in SV bag. Fridge temp is 38F. Safe?

 

At 38F I'd say not. 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

I keep vacuum sealed pasteurized proteins in the refrigerator for a few weeks.  Even I would worry after "a few months".

 

[TdeV]

The pork belly was sous-vide-d for 48 hours at 146°F. My fridge temperature is 44°F.

 

[gfweb]

Probably OK. But one cannot be certain.

 

You could better your chances by re-SVing it.

 

But still....

[Duvel]

Let’s approach this scientifically: with the given time & temperature, and a properly sealed bag, plus ideal cooling & storage the probability of having active bacteria (Listeria, Clostridium, …) present in the bag is very low. At your fridge temperature and given the anaerobic environment, growth will be slow, but is possible. Overall, sufficient bacterial contamination is unlikely.

 

A potential resulting poisoning from ingestion, will have a serious (major) if not severe (catastrophic) outcome.

 

Applying a general risk matrix will give you:

 

 

This will leave you at a high risk, per definition in need for fail-proof mitigation. I would assume you don’t have that (e.g. a willing taster), so I suggest to abstain from consumption.

 

 

Edited June 23, 2021 by Duvel (log)

[TdeV]

Decisive, @Duvel!

[weinoo]

16 hours ago, Duvel said:

This will leave you at a high risk, per definition in need for fail-proof mitigation. I would assume you don’t have that (e.g. a willing taster), so I suggest to abstain from consumption.

 

Even more succinctly, when in doubt...etc. etc.

[kayb]

OK. I'm chunking them. Dammit, this is twice I've done this.