What is the shelf life of refrigerated chicken?

In a refrigerator

Ready (boiled, fried, baked)

Regardless of the method of heat treatment (frying, stewing, baking in the oven, boiling), it should be stored in the refrigerator for no more than 24 hours. To do this, you first need to cool the container with food and only then put it on the shelf of the refrigerator. You can also use airtight storage containers to prevent the penetration of foreign odors.

Thawed

A thawed carcass should be used in cooking within 12 hours after complete thawing. Repeated freezing is strictly prohibited, since under the influence of low temperature fluctuations, muscle fibers are destroyed and chicken loses its nutritional properties.

Raw

The following types of containers are usually used to place raw chilled chicken in a refrigerator:

Airtight container or vacuum bag.
Glassware.
Store tray with cling film.

The whole carcass is stored for no more than 5 days at a temperature of -2 to +2 °C. The freshness area of the refrigerator is perfect. Parts of the carcasses must be consumed within 2 days. After the specified time, it is better not to freeze the product.

Smoked

Very often, raw materials are used to prepare smoked chicken, the shelf life of which is coming to an end. This is how manufacturers try to reduce their financial losses. Therefore, it is recommended to carefully choose a hot-smoked product or smoke the bird yourself at home.

Factory products in sealed vacuum packaging are stored until the date indicated on the label. If the seal has been broken, the dish should be consumed the next day. Initially, try not to purchase goods in places with possible violations of storage organization (markets in the summer, small retail outlets where the goods could be stored).

If you smoked the product yourself, the carcass was well warmed up inside, and the raw materials were fresh enough, you can safely place the food in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

In broth or soup

Broth or soup made from chicken meat can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 2 days, just like boiled chicken. It is important to remember that during cooking, harmful substances are released into the water, so after boiling it is better to drain the water. The “second” broth is considered safer and healthier, especially for people with gastrointestinal problems.

Soup made from a farm product, the origin of which you are sure of, will be aromatic, mild in taste and will retain its nutritional properties for up to 36 hours at a temperature of +2+4 degrees.

Grill

The shelf life of grilled chicken in the refrigerator is no more than 2 days. In this case, you need to pay attention to the date and time of preparation of the dish. The sooner it was prepared, the sooner the food should be consumed. After just a few hours, the poultry meat becomes tough and loses its original taste. It is optimal to place the product in an airtight container with a lid, since the specific smell can be absorbed by other products located in the refrigerator. Before serving, make sure that the dish has not spoiled.

Pickled

The shelf life of marinated chicken directly depends on the ingredients included in the marinade. If it is based on natural preservatives (vinegar, herbs and spices, salt, lemon juice, soy sauce, brine, vegetable oils, onions), then poultry meat will retain its nutritional value at a temperature of +2+4°C for 72 hours. Fermented milk products, beer, and mineral water added to the marinade reduce the duration of placing raw materials in the refrigerator to a day. It is not recommended to use utensils made of wood and aluminum to store such semi-finished products.

By-products

Fresh chicken by-products are often used in cooking: stomachs, liver, hearts. As a rule, they are not subjected to long-term storage, since such raw materials are a breeding ground for the proliferation of pathogenic organisms and bacteria. The shelf life in the refrigerator should not exceed 18 hours. It is better to either immediately prepare food from offal, or freeze it if heat treatment is not possible in the near future.

How long do we store raw chicken?

First of all, remember that chicken meat lasts longer once the bones are removed from it. Poultry meat disappears much faster with bones.

— When the temperature inside the refrigerator is from +7 to +10 degrees, raw chicken meat can be stored in it for a day and no more.

— When the temperature in the chamber is from +4 to +7 degrees, then the chicken can be stored for a maximum of a couple of days.

— When the temperature is +4-0 degrees, you can store chicken for three days.

— When the temperature is from zero to -2 degrees, the shelf life is extended to four days.

When the task is to keep chicken meat fresh for two days, you need to buy only the freshest poultry. And in the refrigerator you need to set the temperature to about zero.

In the freezer

If you need to freeze chicken, it is best to portion the product into containers and place it in the freezer, having previously labeled it. Subsequently, it will be convenient to defrost each portion separately as needed. Since frozen meat begins to dehydrate when exposed to low temperatures, it is best to use it by adding it to soups and salads.

The storage period in the freezer depends on the temperature set there: .

-12 °C - from 2 to 4 months;
-18 °C – up to 8 months;
-25 °C - up to 1 year.

How to extend shelf life

When the chicken is cooked, its shelf life increases for several hours. The freezer maintains freshness longer. At -12 degrees, you don’t have to worry about food for 4 months. Chicken fillet will last 8 months at a temperature of -18 degrees. It can be stored for 1 year when deep frozen, after which the taste deteriorates. Chicken retains its properties when kept at standard storage temperatures and placed in high-quality packaging.

Benefits of chicken fillet:

Contains protein, vitamins.
Helps strengthen tissues in the body.
Gives a healing effect.
Protects against diseases.
Carnosine promotes rejuvenation of the body, nourishes muscles, brain cells, and visual organs.

Due to these qualities, chicken broth is often used for viral diseases.

Harm of chicken:

There is too much fat in the skin, which is converted into cholesterol. It is recommended to trim the skin during cooking.
Low-quality meat often causes salmonellosis.

After heat treatment and proper cutting, it will be possible to get rid of harmful properties. Oily skin is often trimmed; high-quality heat treatment helps get rid of bacteria and dirt. After cooking, be sure to wash your hands, all cutlery, cutting board, and other utensils.

Using chicken fillet:

Production of meat products on an industrial scale.
Catering organization.
Simple home cooked food.

To prepare a delicious dish, you need to choose the right ingredients. Buy only from trusted sellers who do not try to sell expired goods. Poultry that goes on sale from poultry farms is marked by Gosvetnadzor. Employees note the production date and sales deadline.

Only carcasses with such marks can be sold on the market. The oval marks should be on the outer thigh or neck. From the veterinary service, sellers receive documents indicating the maximum period for sale. It is necessary to carefully examine and even smell this product.

Packaged carcasses must be whole; the presence of pink ice inside is unacceptable, this indicates multiple cycles of defrosting and freezing. A good bird's skin is clean and pink without any blood damage. Stale fillets can be identified by their slippery, sticky surface and unpleasant odor.

If you press your finger on the loin, the dents on fresh produce are immediately restored. Freezing is done once; sometimes unscrupulous sellers fill everything with water and then place it in the freezer. A crust of ice appears, weight is added, and the buyer overpays.

Recommendations:

Wrap in a paper towel treated with vinegar, wrapped in stretch film, sent to a cold place, does not spoil for 7 days.
The breast can be stored for 5 days if you salt and pepper it and place it in an airtight package.
Enameled dishes are treated from the inside with vinegar, the carcass is placed there and covered with a lid, it will last for 5-6 days.

At room temperature

A finished chicken dish (boiled breast, baked in cream or foil, pate, galantine, roll, chicken fillet chops, pilaf, shawarma) can be kept at room temperature for only a few hours (no more than 4). This situation is due to the rapid growth of bacteria and the acceleration of decay processes in a warm environment.

A raw carcass will last no more than 120 minutes at +22°C. To extend the time, place it in the coolest and darkest place in the apartment. Storage in vacuum bags placed in ice water is allowed, but care must be taken that the water does not have time to heat up. A balcony (in cooler months) or a basement will also be a great place to store supplies. Adding natural preservatives (salt, lemon, vinegar) will preserve the nutritional value for 12-24 hours.

Methods of use

Chicken is rightfully one of the most popular meat products. You can prepare dozens of dishes from chicken meat to suit every taste. Let's talk about the simplest and most famous parts of chicken, from which various dishes are prepared: chicken legs, chicken fillets, chicken hearts, wings, liver, breasts, legs, minced meat.

Several basic cooking methods can be mentioned - in the oven, in a “sleeve”, in foil, shish kebab, chicken broth, in pots, boiled, pilaf, salads, pies, rolls, grilled and many others.

Undoubtedly: the best taste will have a dish in the preparation of which a freshly processed chilled chicken carcass was used. When choosing, it is important to know the distinctive features of fresh products, how they differ from frozen and then thawed.

How to determine delay

In order to understand whether chicken has gone bad , you need to consistently evaluate the main organoleptic properties:

The color of the muscle fibers should be pink/pale pink for the raw product and white for the finished product. Gray color, the formation of white or green plaque, yellow spots indicate damage.
A pungent odor mixed with rotten eggs, ammonia, and acid is characteristic of a rotten dish.
Elasticity. When pressed, the meat should return to its shape fairly quickly. If this does not happen, and there is a sticky texture with a slimy coating, then the product is considered unsuitable.
Taste. The finished chicken should not be sour.

If at least one of these properties is suspicious, refuse to eat it.

Can you freeze fried chicken?

Freezing is a great way to preserve prepared foods for a long time, and fried chicken is no exception, but has some special features:

You need to fry a very fresh product. If raw meat has been left in the refrigerator for more than 24 hours, and then fried and frozen, then such preparation will quickly deteriorate after defrosting.
The chicken must cool completely at room temperature after heat treatment. Otherwise, condensation will form during freezing, which will not only reduce the taste of the product, but also shorten the shelf life of the poultry.
Before putting it in the freezer, the product must be packaged in hermetically sealed bags or containers that will not allow air to pass through and the chicken will not be saturated with the smell of the freezer.

Frozen chicken can be stored for no more than a month, as the meat loses moisture and becomes increasingly tough and tasteless. Proper defrosting is also important - the meat is transferred from the freezer to the refrigerator and waited for complete thawing. In this case, the product will lose a minimum of moisture and retain its taste and aroma.

Sources

https://rem.ninja/kuhnya/hranenie/svezhey-i-ohlazhdennoy-kuritsy.html
https://eda-land.ru/kurica/skolko-hranit-v-morozilke/
https://dr-znai.com/skolko-mozhno-xranit-kuricu-v-xolodilnike.html
https://profhranenie.ru/skolko-khranitsya-zharenaya-kuritsa-v-kholodilnike
https://ProHranenie.ru/produkty/myaso-ptitsa-ryba/kuritsa.html
https://mschistota.ru/storage/skolko-xranitsya-zamorozhennaya-kurica.html
https://GdeHranit.ru/myaso/skolko-hranitsya-v-holodilnike-zharenaya-kuritsa.html

Recommendations and lifehacks

When purchasing finished or raw products, adhere to the following recommendations:

Carefully study the labeling and expiration dates indicated by the manufacturer.
Assess the integrity of the packaging.
When purchasing carcasses at the market or from farmers, inquire about the availability of appropriate sanitary documentation.
Remember that spices and spices can drown out the taste of a spoiled dish. Buy ready-made food with caution.
Externally, the carcass must be bloodless, clean, without foreign inclusions, odors, or blood clots.
Small parts deteriorate faster.
Adding salt extends the shelf life.

Gorloder: boiled recipe, canning

For preservation, you can use the following recipe.

Interesting: Frozen dumplings shelf life

tomatoes - two and a half kilograms;
apples - half a kilo;
sweet pepper - half a kilo;
garlic – one hundred and twenty grams;
dill - fifty grams;
vinegar - two large spoons;
hot pepper – one hundred grams;
parsley - fifty grams;
sunflower oil - one glass;
black pepper and salt to taste.

Sterilize and heat the container before storing.
Wash vegetables under running water.
Remove seeds and core from peppers and apples.
Cut the tomatoes into cubes.
Grind the remaining ingredients in a blender or meat grinder.

Pour the resulting mass into a container, add vinegar, spices and vegetable oil. Place the pan over medium heat and cook for at least 2 hours. Dill and parsley can also be ground in a blender or finely chopped, then added to the sauce before the end of cooking.

The hot seasoning is poured into jars and rolled up.

Jars can be stored in a pantry or basement.