Professionals involved in the food and service industry, especially selling deli meat, are often bombarded with questions about whether it’s safe to store deli meat in the refrigerator or a freezer, for that matter. Refrigeration experts weigh their opinion about deli meat storage with or without deli cases.
What is deli meat’s shelf life?
Deli meats are sold in two ways – raw cold cuts and prepackaged for immediate consumption. And we all know from experience that a bulk purchase often lasts for days, if not weeks, and the only viable option to preserve the merchandise is freezing. Well, maybe not. The right way of storing deli meat is majorly dependent on the type of meat and its condition for preservation.
Cold cuts stored in a deli merchandiser are always refrigerated, so they maintain freshness and don’t spoil the other products in the case. Hence, these cold cuts should be refrigerated at all times, except for when you’re keeping them out for thawing. Common examples of cold cuts include ham, bacon, pepperoni, chicken, etc. Follow the adage of wrapping everything up before tucking it in the fridge to preserve its natural oils, scent, and minerals.
How to store prepackaged meat once the seal is opened?
Well, the good news is that prepackaged cuts are packaged after cutting them, so they’ll last in the air for a little while. Also, these packages are often resealable. Hence, if you have opened prepackaged meat, just wrap it and freeze it again. Alternatively, you can take out the contents, divide them according to your daily requirements, and then seal them in a ziplock bag for longer preservation.
The essence of keeping deli meat fresh is to consume it soon after being taken out of a deli case. Or, store them in a commercial-grade refrigerator with advanced controls and double-coiled design for better preservation!
