# I bought fresh ground beef, put it in the fridge, and now its brown **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 20, 2012, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-fresh-ground-beef-put-it-in-the-fridge-and-now-its-brown/613436 "2012-02-20T17:46:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-fresh-ground-beef-put-it-in-the-fridge-and-now-its-brown/613436/1 "2012-02-20T17:46:56Z")
I bought it about 4 days ago. It was your typical red-colored, fresh ground beef. I thought I was going to use it immediately but I ended not. So its been sitting in the fridge, not the freezer, for 4 days. Now its brown, almost like its been cooked. Is it bad? Can I still eat it? ---
**Author:** ![typoink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecb155/32.png) [@typoink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/typoink)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-fresh-ground-beef-put-it-in-the-fridge-and-now-its-brown/613436/2 "2012-02-20T17:48:50Z")
Probably fine to eat, unless it smells off. Browning is just oxidation; ground beef will always do that in a few days. ---
**Author:** ![Pitchmeister](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pitchmeister/32/3459_2.png) [@Pitchmeister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pitchmeister)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-fresh-ground-beef-put-it-in-the-fridge-and-now-its-brown/613436/3 "2012-02-20T17:49:43Z")
I wouldn’t eat ground meat that was older than one or two days, tops. Especially not if it’s changed color. Don’t risk it, it’s not worth it. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-fresh-ground-beef-put-it-in-the-fridge-and-now-its-brown/613436/4 "2012-02-20T18:01:59Z")
It may smell a bit off, but if you cook it thoroughly, it should be safe to eat. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-fresh-ground-beef-put-it-in-the-fridge-and-now-its-brown/613436/5 "2012-02-20T18:04:40Z")
What you’re seeing there is the oxidation of the iron in the muscle’s myoglobin - basically, your meat rusted. This would happen independently of any potential microbial action. In other words, this is in no way an indication of bacterial growth. Even perfectly sterile muscle tissue would do the same thing. I’d cook it up and eat it myself. And for the record, my BS degree was in microbiology. ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-fresh-ground-beef-put-it-in-the-fridge-and-now-its-brown/613436/6 "2012-02-20T18:05:22Z")
It is up to you. When in doubt, throw it out. (Myself, I’ve cooked brown hamburg because that was ALL there was for me to cook, and so far no one has died.) But when in doubt, throw it out. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-fresh-ground-beef-put-it-in-the-fridge-and-now-its-brown/613436/7 "2012-02-20T18:08:31Z")
Also, if you cut it in half, you’ll see that only the outer layer is brown. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-fresh-ground-beef-put-it-in-the-fridge-and-now-its-brown/613436/8 "2012-02-20T18:21:17Z")
I’d use it. Then again, my philosophy is that if I do not have some food induced enteritis every year or two, then I’m being overly cautious. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-fresh-ground-beef-put-it-in-the-fridge-and-now-its-brown/613436/9 "2012-02-20T18:23:16Z")
Its perfectly fine, but eat it within a few days. ---
**Author:** ![Laggard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9de053/32.png) [@Laggard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laggard)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-fresh-ground-beef-put-it-in-the-fridge-and-now-its-brown/613436/10 "2012-02-20T18:30:37Z")
At my parents grocery store they would grind fresh hamburger and then put in a full-service refrigerated case for customers to buy. it was never pre-packaged. Customers could get a quarter pound if they wanted. Anyway, after two hours in the case the hamburger towards the bottom would turn brown. I always figured it was because it was getting very little oxygen. There was nothing wrong with it. It was safe and tasted just like the red stuff. Some people though just could not be convinced that there was not anything wrong with it. ---
**Author:** ![Jasper\_Kent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a9a28c/32.png) [@Jasper\_Kent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasper_Kent)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-fresh-ground-beef-put-it-in-the-fridge-and-now-its-brown/613436/11 "2012-02-20T18:39:59Z")
I’ve been eating ground beef for over 50 years and never once got sick from it. (I’ve gotten food poisoning from various other things, though) The brownness is indeed oxidation. Odor is more a matter of opinion. If it smells downright \*\*rotten, \*\* I wouldn’t eat it. If it’s just “a little off” I’d cook it thoroughly. ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-fresh-ground-beef-put-it-in-the-fridge-and-now-its-brown/613436/12 "2012-02-20T18:52:23Z")
I agree it’s _probably_ fine, but give it a good smell and if it smells even a bit like ammonia or old socks chuck it. ---
**Author:** ![Taomist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/53a042/32.png) [@Taomist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taomist)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-fresh-ground-beef-put-it-in-the-fridge-and-now-its-brown/613436/13 "2012-02-20T18:57:20Z")
The flip side is that we had some leftover ground beef in the fridge that I pulled out the other day to use. It’d been wrapped tight in a freezer bag, so it still looked great, nice and red. I was surprised, as yeah, it tends to go brownish usually after a day or two, but as stated above, that’s no biggie. I smelled it…WOW. Yeah…colour is NO indication of edibility, lol. It was definitely off, which shouldn’t have been a surprise; I just forgot that it’d been TWO weeks since we’d made spaghetti, not just a few days. \>.\< ---
**Author:** ![Mtgman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5a626/32.png) [@Mtgman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mtgman)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-fresh-ground-beef-put-it-in-the-fridge-and-now-its-brown/613436/14 "2012-02-20T19:08:50Z")
Slightly aged ground beef is what the dish of chili was invented for. Find a good recipe for some Texas red and give your gastro-intestinal tract something to worry about aside from bacteria and their byproducts. Enjoy, Steven ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-fresh-ground-beef-put-it-in-the-fridge-and-now-its-brown/613436/15 "2012-02-20T19:14:09Z")
If your ground beef _doesn’t_ turn brown in your fridge, it’s a pretty good bed your grocery store’s supplier has gassed it with a mixture of nitrogen, carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide at some point. It’s considered harmless, and it drives out the oxygen in the package so the meat stays pink. [http://www.redbookmag.com/health-wellness/advice/fear-our-food-6](http://www.redbookmag.com/health-wellness/advice/fear-our-food-6) ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-fresh-ground-beef-put-it-in-the-fridge-and-now-its-brown/613436/16 "2012-02-20T19:23:56Z")
Ground beef oxidizes easily because of the large surface area, and unlike other meats should be tightly wrapped with plastic to keep air off and maximize freshness. But a simple change in color would only produce a barely discernable change in flavor. It is an indication that the meat has been around for a few days, and it’s time to use it. As always, you take a risk with undercooked ground beef because pathogens normally found only on the surface of meat that would be killed by cooking may remain active in the interior of ground beef. ---
**Author:** ![VOW](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/vow/32/3043_2.png) [@VOW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VOW)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-fresh-ground-beef-put-it-in-the-fridge-and-now-its-brown/613436/17 "2012-02-20T19:31:19Z")
My rule of thumb for ANY meat or dairy product is to smell it. If you can get your nose even CLOSE to the product, it’s fine. Seriously. Once you’ve smelled BAD meat, you’ll know exactly what I mean! Ground meat usually has a bit of a slimy texture, so mere touch won’t tell the whole story. And yes, the brown color is normal and safe. A very slight GREENISH tinge is the color to worry about! The nose knows. ~VOW ---
**Author:** ![PlainJain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/5daacb/32.png) [@PlainJain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PlainJain)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-fresh-ground-beef-put-it-in-the-fridge-and-now-its-brown/613436/18 "2012-02-20T20:43:51Z")
It’s good. I frequently eat ground beef that’s been in my fridge for a week. Done it all my life, never gotten sick from it. The brown is normal. ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-fresh-ground-beef-put-it-in-the-fridge-and-now-its-brown/613436/19 "2012-02-20T20:46:21Z")
I wouldn’t hesitate to use it as long as it doesn’t smell bad. If it was covered and at proper temperature for only a few days it’s going to be fine (unless it was contaminated when you bought it). ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-fresh-ground-beef-put-it-in-the-fridge-and-now-its-brown/613436/20 "2012-02-20T21:13:04Z")
Eat it. It’s fine. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-bought-fresh-ground-beef-put-it-in-the-fridge-and-now-its-brown/613436.md?page=2)