Frozen ribeye for meat slicer question(s)

[jhouse5848]

Hello! I’ve got a 3-4lbs of frozen ribeye from a whole ribeye roast that I didn’t use at Christmas that was vacuum sealed and frozen. I am wanting to slice some of it for Philly’s today but have two main questions:

1. Can I put the completely frozen ribeye on my Walton’s 10” slicer and proceed from there or will I have to thaw it for a bit to soften? I’ve only ever taken fresh ribeye and froze for 20+ mins to get real cold for slicer, but never started from frozen.

2. If I do need to thaw it, I will likely not use all of that meat this week. Would it be okay to refreeze the ribeye in a chamber vac bag again to save for another time?

Thanks!

[processhead]

You can saw through totally frozen meat but you won’t be able to slice it.
It will need to partially defrost for a day or so and then you should be able to get through it with the slicer.

Refreezing is fine.

[jhouse5848]

Thanks — I will get it out to thaw now! Was hoping to do Philly’s tonight!

[processhead]

jhouse5848 said in Frozen ribeye for meat slicer question(s):

Thanks — I will get it out to thaw now! Was hoping to do Philly’s tonight!

Tonight doesn’t leave much time to thaw. You may be able to get a few slices off of either end of the roast by supper time.

You can speed up the thawing by soaking in cold water. Meat thaws more quickly in water than in air.

[johnsbrewhouse]

jhouse5848 would depend on how thick you are wanting to slice it. If you are wanting it fairly thin the slicer should handle it unless it’s rock hard, which it could possibly be if it’s been in a freezer for three months. You might cut what you are thinking you need off the entire ribeye and let that warm a bit and reseal the rest for later. You can cut the frozen meat with a saw or a really sharp serrated knife warmed with hot water if you can take the time.

[jhouse5848]

processhead I can plan for Philly’s tomorrow night so it’s not a huge issue — was craving them tonight though. I’ve definitely used the water thaw method on many proteins in the past and will definitely use if it’s still pretty frozen tomorrow.

[jhouse5848]

johnsbrewhouse I was going to do paper thin so that’s good to know you believe it may work for that. I will just exercise patience and not force it today and plan to eat them tomorrow evening. Want to take advantage of the nice weather in CO today and tomorrow!

[Ted Frodyma]

Looks like you have already been given some great advice. Let us know how it turns out! Pictures would be nice too if you can.

[johnsbrewhouse]

jhouse5848 should still stay nice a couple of days since it’s still nice here in Washington state today 100+ miles from the coast. It’s almost 65 today and the rain won’t be here till tonight.

[Dave in AZ]

You can actually just microwave frozen meat to make it sliceable, yet still frozen. I do it all the time with pork loin, meat is still 32f with frozen crystals , but soft enough you can slice it with knife… I always cut partially frozen stuff for Chinese food, for thin slices. Fine to refreeze remainder.