poor man's breast filets

galoisien
Fri, 29 May 2009 02:40:13 +0000

Okay how much does refrigerator defrosting cost you in decomposition time? (The clock gets moving again…)

The thing is my supermarkets always like to sell their chicken 3-5 days before the sell by date, and within 2 days of the sell by date I can already notice slight signs of decomposition (the tendons are a little softer and easier to cut, etc., the skin is slightly slightly more watery). Usually my standard treatment when I notice this is to wash the meat again. I’m just worried that if I spend so much time defrosting I might be pushing the preservation a little.

Also what is the most cost-effective way of marinating chicken? I just discovered the power of wine vinegar (I’m using it for vindaloo) … well not by itself, but when I followed a recipe to add it to fried onions and allow it to boil off, I think I detected isoamyl acetate :D; didn’t seem too bad at 2.99 a bottle. If I use glacial/concentrated acetic acid, water and wine vinegar and just toss in some herbs, that’s a good poor man’s marinade I suppose? Do I want to aim for a variety of organic acids (lemon juice?) or is acetic acid sufficient? I don’t have the dining halls no more, I can’t just take a takeout box full of salad dressing!