Smell before you buy chicken fillets at the supermarket

[davidst01]

I was caught out a few weeks ago shopping at Robinsons supermarket. We purchased some (uncooked) chicken drumsticks and after opening them up at home they were rotten. The smell was disgusting.

 

Last night I smelt a packet from the same shelf as last time. Of course they smelt rotten again. 

 

I think its important to do a smell test before buying any fresh meats or poultry. Clearly some idiot is not doing their job. Amazing thailand.

 

 

[theguyfromanotherforum]

Noted

[NanLaew]

6 minutes ago, davidst01 said:

I was caught out a few weeks ago shopping at Robinsons supermarket.

...where?

[poohy]

Tesco in PKK the stench from their meat dept at times is disgusting 

The Mrs refuses to buy from there

[seajae]

problem is thais will defrost then re freeze the meats etc, or simply not keep it at cold temps causing it to go off. With the heat in Thailand and the fact they have their meat in open areas with everyone man handling it and no refrigeration involved it is no wonder people end up with rotten meat, especially in packets. You can see the same with packed vegetables, airtight bags and the stuff inside just starts to rot, thais have no idea what to do with either of these things.

[dddave]

I stopped buying fresh chicken parts at Big-C and Tesco because often I could detect a strong bleach smell and also because sometimes a very short shelf life.

A Macro food store has recently opened nearby and I've been buying chicken there the last few months...so far, so good.

[Moonlover]

I know it would horrify many readers, but my wife prefers to buy all our meat products from local markets, where there isn't a chiller in sight.

 

The only exception to that is when she buys meat from Thai/French beef outlets which is local to us near Sakon Nakhon.

 

She says the quality is better and she can tell, straight away if the meat is not fresh because there is no packaging to disguise it.

 

And I have to say that 4 years in and I have not had a single gastronomical upset thus far.

[kevc]

I'm sure they repackage it every morning with a new sell by date, noting the smells that come out sometimes when you open the packet.

Sent from my SM-P901 using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[BritManToo]

1 minute ago, kevc said:

I'm sure they repackage it every morning with a new sell by date, noting the smells that come out sometimes when you open the packet.

1

Never had any problems with Tesco Lotus chicken breasts.

[55Jay]

Thanks, will keep that in mind. 

 

Wife stopped buying chicken and pork at Makro and the local/open air market in favor of Tesco, at least in the area where we live. 

 

I can't even look at the (fresh) Thai beef in Makro anymore.  A mix of dark red and gray/greenish tint to it.  Ugh. 

[tingtongtourist]

I think most Thais would not allow to throw anything in the bin.

 

If its my ex she will wash and then soak the chicken in a solution of water salt and vinegars.

It is ok as long as you cook a long time above the temperature needed to kill bacteria.

 

Thais love to add MSG and deep fry for long time in Palm oil, so i think thats why they will sell like this.

but if it is green, yes to far gone, will still taste crappy, only thing you can do is marinate in embalming fluid!

[NanLaew]

2 hours ago, Moonlover said:

She says the quality is better and she can tell, straight away if the meat is not fresh because there is no packaging to disguise it.

All that the old, blue beef needs is a quick puff of O₂ and it's all bright blood-red and fresh again.

[Tchooptip]

Yesterday in Tesco Lamai I saw a few, 6 or 7, frozen food packages at a sale price for 25 Baht, just put on a table next to the eggs shelve, I took one not sure I understood properly, it was not frozen any more of course but still very cold...Help 

[xtrnuno41]

IF you dont go back WITH the meat and dont complain with the manager, surely nothing will change.

Was there an expiration date on the package? 

If necessary go all the way to the top of the company, specially foreign company as Makro. Make yourself heard !

In Thailand they think very easy about food, displaying and most of all cooling !!

Once i walked in the Makro in Phuket at the meat section and i was thinking <deleted>, the same in supercheap. But we did 

buy at supercheap, i selected pieces meat and i didnt get sick then. But guess lucky.

Also weird, not only in Thailand, the women shopping in markets, always need to touch the food?! No matter what like shrimp or other fish or even the meat. They can rinse there fingers in a bowl AFTER touching the food !!

However im still alive.  

 

 

[Jeffrey346]

Had the same problem at Makro this week. The entire meat dept. reaked. I told my wife not to but anything, but she bought chicken that did not smell right to me. Needless to say I refused to eat it...

[natway09]

Foodland meat I have always found good.

In the village the beef fillets are still warm from the animals body heat, but we still chill for 14 days before eating

[Moonlover]

3 hours ago, NanLaew said:

All that the old, blue beef needs is a quick puff of O₂ and it's all bright blood-red and fresh again.

As far as I'm aware, red meat turns brown as it ages, not blue. And I doubt that an infusion of O2 would revive it. That would require a restored blood supply.

 

Think again. ?

[cyberfarang]

3 hours ago, Jeffrey346 said:

Had the same problem at Makro this week. The entire meat dept. reaked. I told my wife not to but anything, but she bought chicken that did not smell right to me. Needless to say I refused to eat it...

Right. Here in Thailand if food either bought in cafes, restaurants or home cooked by the wife does not smell, look or taste quite right, then I won`t eat it.

 

My wife believes if food is still within it`s sell by date, that it must be OK. I explained no it doesn`t, it`s how the food is stored that matters. I have seen frozen packets of food in supermarkets that although within sell by dates were manufactured 6 months previous having been in the store for 6 months. Again I won`t buy the stuff. 

 

 

[Andrew Dwyer]

Right. Here in Thailand if food either bought in cafes, restaurants or home cooked by the wife does not smell, look or taste quite right, then I won`t eat it.
 
My wife believes if food is still within it`s sell by date, that it must be OK. I explained no it doesn`t, it`s how the food is stored that matters. I have seen frozen packets of food in supermarkets that although within sell by dates were manufactured 6 months previous having been in the store for 6 months. Again I won`t buy the stuff. 
 
 

Yes, unfortunately my gf is of the same mind, especially with milk, when I suspect it’s going off i ask to have a sniff and she usually just looks at the sell by date !!

[gaff]

I am wondering, why fillet chicken sold at Tops or BigC have a small nerve/hard part, that chicken breast sold at the same shops doesn't have ?

 

 

 

do you know ?

 

 

 

[gaff]

7 hours ago, dddave said:

I stopped buying fresh chicken parts at Big-C and Tesco because often I could detect a strong bleach smell and also because sometimes a very short shelf life.

A Macro food store has recently opened nearby and I've been buying chicken there the last few months...so far, so good.

 

I hate the way Makro displays meat. I want packs like BigC or Lotus. At Makro I feel like I am at a slaughterhouse.

 

 

[BritManToo]

1 hour ago, gaff said:

 

I hate the way Makro displays meat. I want packs like BigC or Lotus. At Makro I feel like I am at a slaughterhouse.

1

I agree and never buy meat there.

Some of the larger Tesco Lotus superstores are similar.

[Suradit69]

10 hours ago, davidst01 said:

I think its important to do a smell test before buying any fresh meats or poultry

Also a good idea to look both ways before crossing the street and to never accept candy from strangers. 

 

Seriously, checking out meat, fruit, vegetables, packaging , expiry dates, etc before throwing things in the shopping cart ... in any country ... seems like common sense 101.

[Nyezhov]

If a Thai person eats it,it's ok for me.

[Jip99]

36 minutes ago, Nyezhov said:

If a Thai person eats it,it's ok for me.

 

 

Not a good standard to set yourself.

 

 

I wouldn’t touch half the crap they eat.

[Nyezhov]

47 minutes ago, Jip99 said:

 

 

Not a good standard to set yourself.

 

 

I wouldn’t touch half the crap they eat.

My motto is when in Rome.....

[cookieqw]

bought a bag of fresh parsnips in my local tesco ( near norwich, UK ) 3 days ago, opened them straight away  slimy and rank   shame on the manager of that store 

[timendres]

13 hours ago, Moonlover said:

I know it would horrify many readers, but my wife prefers to buy all our meat products from local markets, where there isn't a chiller in sight.

 

The only exception to that is when she buys meat from Thai/French beef outlets which is local to us near Sakon Nakhon.

 

She says the quality is better and she can tell, straight away if the meat is not fresh because there is no packaging to disguise it.

 

And I have to say that 4 years in and I have not had a single gastronomical upset thus far.

I agree with your wife. And because of the lack of refrigeration, these meats cannot "hang around" for days on end. So they tend to properly manage the stocks to exhaust them quickly. There are, of course, better and worse local markets, so you need to become familiar with them. The large chains, on the other hand, are managing long delivery pipes, and the products tend to be in those pipes much longer, and will remain in the stores much longer. Personally, I will only buy meats from Tops, or local markets. Regardless of the source, here in Thailand, you must be sure to cook well enough to destroy all bacteria, since it is very likely the meat will contain them in quantity.

[Just Weird]

54 minutes ago, cookieqw said:

bought a bag of fresh parsnips in my local tesco ( near norwich, UK ) 3 days ago, opened them straight away  slimy and rank   shame on the manager of that store 

We'd better keep an eye out for pre-packed rotten parsnips in Tesco stores here in Thailand then, thanks for the heads up.  Geez...

[janclaes47]

9 hours ago, Jeffrey346 said:

Had the same problem at Makro this week. The entire meat dept. reaked. I told my wife not to but anything, but she bought chicken that did not smell right to me. Needless to say I refused to eat it...

The Makro meat department smells awful at every branch I have ever been. Wouldn't even get meat from there if I get it for free,

 

But last week the Makro on Nua road pattaya had a promotion of coconut water at 75 baht for 3 1 liter bottles, down from 215 Baht.

 

As I frequently buy this kind of item I purchased 6 packs.

 

Expiry date is 25 November 2018 .

 

All of them spoiled, with the water having a brown color.

 

I threw away the receipt so will not be worth going back.

 

They clearly knew what they were selling. Went in there on Friday and noticed that brand was not available any more.