Funky smellin Butt!

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okjsmoker

StickBurners
Original poster
Jun 21, 2006
108
13
south central Kansas
I bought three butts from Wally world a couple days ago, kept them in the fridge until today... pulled them out and opened them up and all three had some kind of funky smell, they didnt have a rancid smell like they were rotting, not like im an expert at smelling rancid meat... but it was definetly not a good aroma.

The date on all three said use or freeze by 10/01/08 so its not like they were out of date.

I went ahead and washed them up, dried them off and the smell was pretty much gone. I went ahead and hit them with the mustard and rub, and in the smoker they went.

I think this is the last time I buy butts from Wally, the last one I did, was the same way, except much much stronger smelling when I opened it, so it got tossed in the garbage. They were all Tyson brand.

Ive heard the rule of thumb is you dont mess with pork as it can make you sick. And I would never dream of serving something that would make people sick. Looking for fast opinions since I have an event tomorrow, and dont have much time to start over If I have to.

My personal thought is that since the smell went away with a washing, it is just something on the surface causing it, and since I will take the meat to 200 internal, all should be good?
 
I've read posts on here that sometimes the cryovaced packages will have a strong smell when opened , mayby due to being sealed up when too fresh . but as long as the smell washes away you should still be good.
 
I have read in other threads in this forum people noticing a similar "funky" smell on pork that has been cryopacked (vacuum sealed in heavy-duty plastic) on ribs and butts. I have had the same aroma on ribs when I first cut into the package to open it. Since it went away and you are cooking it to 200F, I think you will be ok. I would think rotten meat would still stink after you washed it.
 
okj i had 1 of those before from wally world as well..did the same thing smelled bad when i opened i washed it up and the smell went away...i heard that the pork puts off a gas or something and sits in the packaged and makes it smell when opened..i think you would be good as long as the smell went away..but always remember if you don't feel comfortably with it then throw it away ..i would rather lose 15.00 dollars or so then make someone sick...my .02;...good luck
 
Good deal!

Well then another 12-14 hours on the smoker and Im good to go!

That one I tossed out.... my wife caught a smell of it and nearly puked, it was pretty strong, and it didnt even get washed, it went straight in the trash. I thought ok well I just got a bad one, but then I open the three Im doing today.... And I started cussing.

And yeah... They were in heavy plastic cryo bags.

I still think Im done buying meat at wally world, we've had other cuts be bad before too.

Thanks for the fast replies.... I was teetering on just throwing out the whole mess and starting over.
 
When they package the meat in the cryovac, they add gas to extend the life of the product. That way they can put it on the shelf for 3 weeks instead of 1. Once you open the package, there will be a funky odor and it will go away in a minute or so. Also, the meat will probably turn a brighter pink once the package is opened.
 
Thanks for the info... be sure to stop into the Roll Call forum and introduce yourself and your equipment .. iffin' ya have any yet! Welcome to SMF!
 
usually store vac packed meat is also packed in nitrogen. Pork can take on a meaty odour after sitting in the fridge for a few days.
But yeah as long as it was just the surface liquid - which usually smells and you take it right up to 200 you should be fine.

Acid test - bad meat will still smell like bad meat after it's been cooked.

That's why curry was invented. ;-)

ps. rich he's been a forum member since 2006 - probably introduced himself before you joined lol
 
Most all cryovac meat will smell a bit different when ya open it, however the smell generally goes away after ya rinse the meat off. Ifin however while cookin er after it is cooked it still smells funny yall might wanna get rid of it. It is simply a byproduct of tadays meat storage, in the old days it used ta just hang on hooks in front a the shop er in a case. I thin yall be just fine with it. Lots good advice yall recievin here.
 
Don't know if it is still in practice or not but a few years ago it was made public that a lot of high volume commercial meat cutter/packer outfits were putting Carbon Monoxide in the package to keep the meat apearing redder longer.

Cheers!
 
ive also read in wild game books about rinsing with vinager. that will remove the funky outside oders from meat. they said butchers used to live by vinager.

i just opened a set of pork tenderloins last even i thawed out that were in a vacuum bag. they were frozen for the past couple weeks. and the date said oct 1st wich aint here yeat. and they smelled funky. after a quick rinse they were fine too.

there about to go on as a matter of fact.
 
My three butts are now entering the 5th hour and lookin good.

They should be done late tonight, probably pull em in the morning. Ill let you know how it comes out.
 
I had some pork chops from Wally not too long ago that had been in my fridge for a couple of days and had that smell. The date still had three more days to go, so I took it back and they replaced it no questions asked. The new pack didn't have that smell.

I'm sort of afraid that it's just some way that they're trying to get some extra shelf-life out of it by keeping it red looking even though it's borderline going bad.
Ever bought a tomato that was still nice and shiny red on the outside but on the inside the seeds were starting to sprout? That's what it reminds me of.

I'm probably wrong, but...I still won't eat chicken pot pie and I got sick off of that more than 20 years ago.
icon_sad.gif
 
anaerobic bacteria are pretty rare. They metabolise sulphur in place of oxygen.
Carbon monoxide is a posion, might have an effect. But as there's unlikely to be much sulphur content in beef so not a huge problem.

Botulinism is VERY rare. I mean getting struck by lightning on the same day you win the lottery rare.

And you are not going to miss it if you ever come across it. The bacteria give off h2s - hydorgen sulphide - rotten egg gas. The human nose can detect something stuipid like one particle of h2s in 4 million.
It's very toxic, far more toxic than hydrogen cyanide gas.
So if you ever open a tin (mainly in tins) and you get a hit of rotten eggs. That's botulism.

I don't know anyone who's ever come across it - the odds are you don't either. Stop worrying about it rich :-)
 
The packaging here in the UK actually refers to the possibility of a smell that may last 10 minutes or so after opening and that it's caused by the packing process so the meat stays in optimum condition.

Some very interesting posts above re the actual reasons for the smell :)

Jon.
 
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