Smart ways to buy fresh chicken – Times of India

As kids going to the butcher shop with grandparents to get fresh meat rekindled a sense of nostalgia, but gone are the days when people had time to ensure the freshness of foods. Over the years the idea of buying meat has changed so has the modes like home delivery of meat or buying packaged meat from supermarkets. No wonder, it is almost impossible to identify the freshness wrapped inside fancy packaging. However, there’s always a scope of decoding the truth behind the eye-grabbing packaging. Here are some smart ways to ensure that the store bought meat is fresh enough to cook.

Check for texture

The first thing we observe while buying meat is the texture, which can be easily checked by pressing the meat, if it is not too bouncy then you can be assured that the meat is fresh.

Sticky or slimy

Store bought meat has small amounts of preservatives to ensure a long shelf life, the best way to check that the meat is not too old is by rinsing it under water. If even after washing the meat has some stickiness, then it is best to not cook it.

Change in colour

One of the smart ways to ensure the quality of chicken is by checking its colour. Freshly cut chicken has a nice pinkish hue, and the texture is nice and firm. However, if the chicken is pale or has a grayish hue, then it is probably old chicken and it is best to avoid buying.

Find molds or spots

In case, you come across red, yellowish or grayish spots on the chicken, then the meat you are buying is stale as the fresh and uncontaminated meat has no such spots. These spots may indicate that the bird had infections and may cause severe ailments on consumption.

Smell

Fresh meat is prone to development of pathogens and bacteria. The first sign of contamination is the foul and pungent smell, which indicates that the meat is not fit for consumption.