Why does chopped meat turn brown

The use of a plastic wrap that allows oxygen to pass through it helps ensure that the cut meats will retain this bright red color. However, exposure to store lighting as well as the continued contact of myoglobin and oxymyoglobin with oxygen leads to the formation of metmyoglobin, a pigment that turns meat brownish-red.

Color is also not an appropriate indicator of whether meat is cooked. The only clear way to tell if meat is cooked thoroughly is to use a meat thermometer to ensure it has reached the recommended internal temperature for that meat. Beyond color change, there are ways you can tell if your meat is spoiled. Spoilage is a process that occurs over time and is the result of the growth of spoilage bacteria. There is no one point in time where a product is fresh and wholesome and then suddenly becomes spoiled.

Changes in color can be an indicator that the process is beginning, but color change alone does not mean the product is spoiled. This in and of itself doesn't indicate at all that your meat is going bad. Interestingly, the oxygen has another role with the color of the meat — the oxygen that interacts with the surface of the meat actually lends it its cherry-red flavor.

But that doesn't last forever. So, what does it mean if your ground beef has gone from its bright, reddish-pink color to a brownish gray? It's simple really: Once exposed to oxygen, ground beef will turn brown, and that is perfectly normal via The Takeout.

This is similar to what happens to apples, avocadoes, and eggplants when they get a whiff or two of fresh air. Janeal Wyn Yancey, a meat scientist at the University Of Arkansas, told The Takeout that this is due to a protein in the meat called myoglobin that, when exposed to oxygen, chemically changes its shape, and subsequently changes how light reflects off it.

That answer as to whether or not you can eat ground beef that has turned brown is not a straight forward "yes" or "no. If it is just a color change, you are probably good to go ahead and cook the ground beef. Beef muscle not exposed to oxygen in vacuum packaging, for example is burgundy or purplish in color.

After exposure to the air for 15 minutes or so, the myoglobin receives oxygen and the meat turns bright, cherry red. After beef has been refrigerated for about five days, it may turn brown. This darkening is due to oxidation, the chemical changes in myoglobin due to the oxygen content. This is a normal change during refrigerator storage.

Beef that has turned brown during extended storage may be spoiled, have an off-odor, and be tacky to the touch and should not be used. Related Information Title. URL Name. Related Articles Why does the color of food change when frozen?