isn’t needed right away, then it’s also safe to
thaw it in the refrigerator. But cold air is an
especially inefficient purveyor of warmth, so
it can take days for a large roast to thaw.
Cooking Unthawed Meats Frozen meats can
be cooked without thawing them first,
particularly with relatively slow methods such
as oven roasting, which give the heat time to
penetrate to the center without drastically
overcooking the outer portions of the meat.
Cooking times are generally 30–50% longer
than for fresh cuts.
Irradiation
Because ionizing radiation (p. 782) damages
delicate biological machinery like DNA and
proteins, it kills spoilage and disease
microbes in food, thus extending its shelf life
and making it safer to eat. Tests have shown
that low doses of radiation can kill most