Suggestions on what to do with pork after electric went out

[bbk357]

Hey guys. I’ve been coming here for almost two years to get info but I just registered
I hate to be the new guy who post a question about what to do when ——- happens... but here we are.

So last night I put a 7lb pork shoulder on at 1am. I had it on my Traeger with temp set at 225. A little after 3am, I turned the temp up to 250 because it started snowing and sleeting here in Ohio.....
At 7am power went out. Ice storm :(

I went to start my gas grill.... it’s an old Weber and it started acting up recently. I got it to 200 and that’s as high as it would go. So I went and triple wrapped the pork from the smoker and put it on the grill. Shortly after, the grill started acting up and I was out there for an hour and it was only at about 120....
frustrated, I went back inside to get warm and get some sleep.
I never took the temp of the pork when this was happening as I didn’t want to pierce the skin live I’ve heard not to do....
at 10am the power came back on. I checked the grill and it was dead.
I took the temp of the pork and it was ranging from 175-185 inside. I was surprised. I was gonna to toss it, but I Did some online research and decided to throw it in the oven at 1045am at 225°......

my wife thinks it’s fine, but I’m still worried about the safety.

**
I got the pork out myself from a sealed package- I used Traeger pork rub and brown sugar- no injection.
When I checked the temp at 10am, the thermometer slid right in like warm butter....

 

[chef jimmyj]

Your Wife is correct. Any bacteria is only on the surface and that was killed even before the power went out. Finish the cook and enjoy...JJ

 

[bbk357]

Your Wife is correct. Any bacteria is only on the surface and that was killed even before the power went out. Finish the cook and enjoy...JJ

Thank you so much- I am always so worried about bacteria. It would have been a double whammy because Thursday night I got a pork butt out to smoke. I had it defrosting in hot water- still in package at midnight. I turned the smoker on.... fell asleep on the couch! Woke up at 6am and I threw out the uncooked meat.
So, thank you again!

 

[sandyut]

listen to chef jimmyj he knows! yeah man - sounds just fine to me as well.

 

[chef jimmyj]

bbk357 Defrosting meat in water is fine, BUT, Only defrost submerged in Cold Running water. For a big roast or turkey, place the meat in a big stock pot in the Bathtub. Cover the meat with water and let just a trickle of running cold water run into the pot. Tests have shown that this cold convection defrost faster than even submerging in Boiling Water...JJ

 

[fivetricks]

Muscle meat is considered sterile on the inside if the surface has not been pierced. You're all good!

 

[bbk357]

Muscle meat is considered sterile on the inside if the surface has not been pierced. You're all good!

Yeah I’ve heard that too- but then I read a thread that said someone left their smoker go at 165 all night and most said to throw it out. I guess I need to learn the science of the temps.

 

[bbk357]

bbk357 Defrosting meat in water is fine, BUT, Only defrost submerged in Cold Running water. For a big roast or turkey, place the meat in a big stock pot in the Bathtub. Cover the meat with water and let just a trickle of running cold water run into the pot. Tests have shown that this cold convection defrost faster than even submerging in Boiling Water...JJ

Wow that’s crazy- I never would have thought that cold water is better to defrost than hot.

Yeah I think the pork I threw out was a good call the other night. I had it in the sink, in the original packaging but with hot water. And it sat for about 6hr...

And tonight’s turned out great! Only thing that didn’t come out well was the bark. I usually smoke them naked and have a nice thick bark. Since I wrapped it and it sat for a while the bark was not very well developed.

 

[fivetricks]

Yeah I’ve heard that too- but then I read a thread that said someone left their smoker go at 165 all night and most said to throw it out. I guess I need to learn the science of the temps.

I didn't read that thread, but I'm guessing the meat did not hit the 140 degrees in 4 hour rule :-) hence the toss

 

[chef jimmyj]

Remember, the 40 to 140 in 4 hours rule ONLY applies to meat that is, Ground, Injected, Boned out or Punched full of Holes. An Intact Roast that has had the Surface heated above 160 can theoretically, stay in the Danger Zone up until it starts to Rot as long as it's not re-infected from handling or exposed to blowing air. 4, 6, 8, even 12 hours, in a Closed Smoker, should be no issue. There is no Bacteria IN the meat to to grow and cause a Safety issue. Of course you want to restore the heat ASAP...JJ

 

[chef jimmyj]

Yeah I’ve heard that too- but then I read a thread that said someone left their smoker go at 165 all night and most said to throw it out. I guess I need to learn the science of the temps.

If MOST of those people were right,it was at 165 all night so toss it, we could never had the hundred years old cooking technique of Sous Vide! A large roast commonly is slow cooked at 130°F for TWENTY FOUR HOURS!
If true, my entire family would be in the Hospital from the last Rib Roast I cooked at 150°F for 6 hours then 10 minutes at 550°F to get a good sear.
Members here want to help but there is also answers like, " Toss it..." based on misunderstanding, misinformation and misinterpretation. I and a few other members have either been trained in Food Safety or studied it extensively. But we can't be here 24/7 so for any given situation you may get a variety of answers. This is OK we are all here to learn and the right answer will be posted. When a problem comes up, you can always PM me before you toss the meat...JJ

 

[bbk357]

Remember, the 40 to 140 in 4 hours rule ONLY applies to meat that is, Ground, Injected, Boned out or Punched full of Holes. An Intact Roast that has had the Surface heated above 160 can theoretically, stay in the Danger Zone up until it starts to Rot as long as it's not re-infected from handling or exposed to blowing air. 4, 6, 8, even 12 hours, in a Closed Smoker, should be no issue. There is no Bacteria IN the meat to to grow and cause a Safety issue. Of course you want to restore the heat ASAP...JJ

Good to know!
Yes even though it may have been heated up past the danger zone for the first 6 or so hours- I was worried that it sat for 3 hours without a heat source. But wrapping it I think is what saved it. I will say after it was saved i put it in the oven- I got it the pig up to 205 and let it rest for an hour- and it was def softer than I wanted. Still good though.
Leftover nachos for lunch:

 

[bbk357]

If MOST of those people were right,it was at 165 all night so toss it, we could never had the hundred years old cooking technique of Sous Vide! A large roast commonly is slow cooked at 130°F for TWENTY FOUR HOURS!
If true, my entire family would be in the Hospital from the last Rib Roast I cooked at 150°F for 6 hours then 10 minutes at 550°F to get a good sear.
Members here want to help but there is also answers like, " Toss it..." based on misunderstanding, misinformation and misinterpretation. I and a few other members have either been trained in Food Safety or studied it extensively. But we can't be here 24/7 so for any given situation you may get a variety of answers. This is OK we are all here to learn and the right answer will be posted. When a problem comes up, you can always PM me before you toss the meat...JJ

All good info... I’m still going to be too nervous to do that on my own!
thanks for the offer, I’m sure you’ll be getting a PM from me in the future

 

[martin1950]

At 7am power went out. Ice storm

I'm not one to go overboard on "Just-n-Case" scenarios but I do plan a little ahead, I just about have everything except a genny. To make a long story short, after my 1st power outage w/ my PB820D, I put together an auxiliary power source for my Pit. With an 12v to 120v inverter and a marine 12v battery you can run your pit and it's quiet. O.K. maybe went a little overboard but you can always use "more power". Inverter; 2000Wx4000w, battery; 1200cca deep cycle marine.