My meat contains flavor enhancing fluid up to 20%????

Question

When I opened the package the meat smelled kinda strange. It wasn't spoiled, but it tasted weird too. What is in flavor enhancing solution, why don't they list it on the label? Did I pay $5.99 lb for all that solution along with the meat? How do they get all that solution to stay in the meat without leaking out?

Answer 1

You soak any meat in water or brine (or flavored versions) and it will swell up with fluid up to 20% by weight.

I don't know why the ingredients aren't listed on the label. They should be. It's mostly water, salt and spices plus who knows, artificial flavor maybe.

If you stop buying meat packaged in those plastic bags and buy it from the butcher or on those styrofoam trays fresh from the butcher, then it won't have been soaked in anything.

Answer 2

It's a way to cheat you out of that much more money. The dollar per pound might sound good, but given the extra 20% weight of water, salt, and what not, I doubt if you're getting a good deal - you're paying $7.18/lb for that untreated meat, with the addition of flavors/chemicals you don't necessarily want. Also, the wet-aging process plus the extra brining solution it's soaking in makes the meat mushy and less flavorful.

You're better off keeping your eye open for decent meat on sale, even if it means buying big packs and freezing some. Then if you want to brine it (with or without seasoning), at least you know what you put in it and you're not paying extra for the water.

Unless the meat (beef) you're buying specifically says it's "dry-aged", it's already been wet-aged, which means it has 20% more water in it than dry-aged. Dry-aged used to be the only beef there was - it tastes better, and now costs more.

So, what you've been buying is not only wet-aged, it also has another 20% or more water/brine solution added to it. So, it has 30%-40% more water in it than dry-aged beef (which is very hard to find).

Answer 3

I don't even worry about it the fluid is always leaking out of my meat, even if I put it in the refrigerator.

Answer 4

EEEWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!!
This is why I eat Boars head. Its all natural NO PRESERVATIVES!! YUCK