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I had purchased a 14 pound packer brisket a couple weeks ago to smoke for Easter. I put it in the freezer after I got home. I pulled it out of the freezer and put it in the fridge (set at 37 degrees F) this past Sunday, thinking it would take about as long as a turkey.

The thinnest part of the flat are already thawed and I am concerned it may start to spoil before Saturday night when I planned to start smoking it.

Is there anything I can do to slow the defrosting? I was considering putting it into a tub of ice water, almost like a brine, but just plain water.

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Refreeze it. You know how long it will take to thaw now, so put it back in the freezer if you are concerned. There's all sorts of myths saying re-freezing is bad but there's no risk. It may impact the texture a bit, but it's better than it spoiling.

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  • But we have no information about the thicker parts that are probably still frozen? Would they thaw in time?
    – Stephie ♦
    Commented Apr 17, 2019 at 13:34
  • Packer brisket doesn't vary that much between thick and thin side @Stephie.
    – GdD
    Commented Apr 17, 2019 at 13:39
  • It is still pretty solid in the center where it is the thickest. The thinnest part of the flat on this brisket is about an inch, whereas the thickets part is maybe 4 or 5. My thought was if it was submerged in really cold water, it would even out the thaw and prevent air from being exposed to the thawed meat prohibiting or slowing the potential spoilage. My neighbor was storing it in his deep freeze, so I could take it back over if necessary.
    – Eric Alexander
    Commented Apr 17, 2019 at 14:06
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    Soaking in water really isn't going to help prevent spoiling @EricAlexander. The question is how concerned you are about it spoiling in 3 days. If you bought it fresh and froze it right away then you probably don't have anything to worry about letting it thaw in the fridge.
    – GdD
    Commented Apr 17, 2019 at 14:12

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