Our meats: Fresh Never Frozen
One of the things I find really frustrating when cooking is planning to make sure any meats I want to make meals from are taken out the night before to defrost. It's such a pain and in those times I forget (which happens quite a lot), or when dinner plans change and extra guests invite themselves round (like in any asian household), I'll be there frenetically running hot water over the mince to get it to defrost in time!
I've always felt defrosted meat it never tastes as good as freshly cooked and as a true science geek, I investigated! It all relates to a basic fact about water and some simple biology:
We all know the importance of water in our diet as its estimated that it makes up about 60% of our body. Muscle tissue, just like the meat we eat, has an even higher water content of ~75% and it resides in the cells at a microscopic level. That means, the cells within meat are like tiny bags full of water.
As water expands when it’s frozen, many of the cells inside our beloved steaks and chicken breasts can’t take the added pressure caused by the water turning into ice and so they burst. This explains why whenever you defrost meat, there’s always a puddle juice in the bag and this puddle always makes me upset: the juice should be inside my meat for maximum tenderness not swimming around it!
This also explains the change in texture I find when cooking them both. To me defrosted red meats typically feel mushier which is not so bad for curries, but it’s terrible for things like steaks and roasts in comparison to fresh. And when it comes to poultry the difference is even more stark. Defrosted poultry is rubbery compared to the fresh version. Try a side by side comparison and you’ll see what I mean!
It seems like such a shame and waste to buy premium quality, naturally reared tayyab meats like ours and for them not to be in their prime condition when cooked. At Saffron Alley, one of our aims is the raise the steaks (pun intended!) and make sure that all muslim households across the UK can have access to the best quality fresh meat on demand with no hassle. We only charge £4.95 for shipping and it's free for all orders over £30!
Moreover, unlike others on the market, none of our meats are ever frozen. They are cut and packed on the same day they are shipped meaning that when stored in the fridge, red meats last for 7 days, poultry for 6 and mince for 5. Combine this with our fast delivery times and there's no need to freeze ❄️again!
Hope you're all safe inshAllah!
Stay tuned as we have giveaways, prizes and some charity collabs coming up soon!
JazakAllah Khair
Jabraan, Ph.D.
Founder - Saffron Alley - muslim, made easy.