I fear those "no refrigeration" pork products I see at the grocery.

[flvegan]

I've been seeing them for a while. "Shelf-stable" bacon...ham...pepperoni-esque things. No refrigeration needed. I don't get it. I don't eat that stuff now, but when I did, I know I'd feel the same way. Fearful...confused...cross-referencing this with The Stuff.

I'm not afraid for myself, no. I'm afraid for those that will choose to eat it. It just can't be good for you. How is it processed? What is "shelf-stable" exactly, and why does that term scare me too?

Somebody...please, hold me.

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

1. Yeah, that sort of stuff weirds me out.

For that matter, I'm also weirded out by those canned veggie dogs.

[NMDemDist2]

2. salamis and pepperronis are designed to hang with no refer

as for the bacon, they do tell you to refridgerate after opening

[LeftyMom]

3. Oh, I figured this would be related to your ongoing quest for SmartBacon

Did you ever track some down?

[flvegan]

7. Oh, yeah.

One (count 'em, ONE) place here in this mecca I call Tampa carries it.

Morons.

[LeftyMom]

9. Gee, half the conventional grocery stores here have it.

I'm glad you found some, even if the idea of your one person vegan bacon deprivation riot still gives me the giggles.

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

11. Come to Jersey. All the supermarkets have it.

Although I prefer Fakin' Bacon and that's pretty much only at the health food stores.

[xmas74]

4. I don't eat pork

but it's probably no different then a good cured ham. People used to keep them in cool, dry places w/ no refridgeration and they did fine. I would think you'd have to refridgerate the leftovers, though.

[undeterred]

5. Even the bacteria won't eat it.

[Jamastiene]

6. I feel the same way. Also, the cheese that

grocery stores set on a stand in the middle of the aisles looks suspicious to me too. I don't like dairy products that have been away from the refrigeration. I just don't trust it. I thought it may be the imitation stuff, but I checked and it isn't. Yuck. That sounds like a stomach ache waiting to happen to me.

[flvegan]

8. Exactly. It's just creepy.

What's next, raw fish in a baggie on aisle 12?

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

13. Actually the hard cheeses are safe without refridgeration.

It's pretty common to not refridgerate them in other countries.

[Jamastiene]

17. I'm not sure which cheeses are considered hard.

I am referring to sliced American cheese in the aisles. Is that hard cheese? :hi:

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

18. Ewww...no. That's not even real cheese.

Hard cheese are stuff like parmesan, asiago, etc.

[GOPisEvil]

10. Certain cured meats are relatively shelf-stable.

I mean, they're basically fully cooked.

Or are we talking some engineered meat product? Those are scary.

[flvegan]

14. I really don't know the details.

I'm afraid to look directly at the package, and even considering looking up the websites is reason to drink.

[GOPisEvil]

15. Well, for example, Smithfield Hams are sold off a display rack.

They've been salt-cured and aged for 6-12 months. They're considered preserved. No bacteria wants any part of that much salt. It's how people stored meat before refrigeration.

[Midlodemocrat]

21. And let me tell you, getting that salt out is no easy feat.

It's simply inedible without soaking for a couple of days. Made me really wonder about the safety of the meat. Seemed it was 1/2 cured, 1/2 not for a while before we ate it. :scared:

[sendero]

12. Probably...

.. irradiated. I'm not eating the crap.

[BrightKnight]

19. irradiated = 15 million times the energy of a chest x-ray

Irradiated food is treated with 15 million times the energy of a chest x-ray. The amount of energy is 150 times the dose lethal to adults. It works by damaging DNA and it does not kill all of the bacteria. I am not going to eat that mutated bacteria infested crap.

Spraying meat with lactic acid before grinding kills 99.9 percent of bacteria.

[petronius]

16. "Shelf-stable" does sound like a word for a physics or chemistry lab

rather than a grocery. As in: "the nuclear detonator is shelf-stable, but it's best not to bump it." It's not an appetizing term...

[Lars39]

20. Seeing dicksteele's thread and this one reminded me...

meat can be 'canned' to preserve it.
I remember my mom and dad talking about sausage being canned when they were growing up.