Wal-mat Chicken Once Again

[Zeb 454]

Purchased a whole lot chickens at Wal-mart today.  Got them home, opened everything and it all smelled again.  Took the whole thing back.  With some discussion, got a refund.  It is not fresh. 

I am done with buying chickens there.  Then went to Puritan and got all that we needed.  The man at Puritan said yes, he had heard all that before.  He had inquired as to how they could sell at those lower prices and his supplier told him they purchase a truck load at a time frozen and they keep them for at least a month.  Now, keeping frozen chickens for a month or even more, is no problem.  The problem is they take them out of the truck and they thaw, sometimes outdoors, then who knows what happens.  Perhaps they get frozen again or not....

Anyway, just thought I would post this for customers to be careful.  There really shouldn't be any smell on a fresh chicken.

Also, I noticed when the Manager at Wal-mart came over, she grabbed several of the chicken parts with her hands to get samples of the odor.  She then began to handle anything else that needed handling.  No hand washing.  I suppose there is no training for them about handling raw meat, then everything else......

She also said she didn't smell anything.  Everyone's nose does not have the same sensitivity.

[artsnob 407]

I got a roast chicken today and it was practically raw, an employee lives across street, he looked at it, said he would bring replacement tonight and he let me keep the raw one, as I do not have a stove or oven, I gave it to my housekeeper who lives next door....look carefully when buying

[gringal 3,055]

The only ready cooked chicken I need is at the "Dusty chicken" stand which has relocated to the mountain side of the Carretera.  They are delicious and I haven't had a bad one yet.

Frankly, I don't like the idea of those rotary cooking racks.  Otherwise, I get my raw chicken from Puritan Poultry.  Good stuff.

 

[Chris Gruenwald 3]

Puritan Poultry... the only way to go! (For chicken anyway... and lately sausages!)

 

[barcelonaman 651]

I never buy chicken fron walmart is foul !

[Metuchenmama 83]

I bought a whole chicken at Sorriana today.  It was 39P a killo and was fresh. It was small but meaty.

[El Bizco 52]

I bought a whole chicken breast last week at Wamart. Smelled bad when I opened it,  did not use.

Chris Gruenwald, what type of sausages did you see at Puritan?

Should add that this will not stop me from buying poultry at Walmart in the future. I've had this happen several times in my life, at places better than Walmart. On the whole I think they do a good job.

Edited September 21, 2017 by El Bizco
After thought

[fishcake 1]

10 hours ago, Metuchenmama said:

I bought a whole chicken at Sorriana today.  It was 39P a killo and was fresh. It was small but meaty.

I bought one there & it was bad .

[Zeb 454]

1 minute ago, fishcake said:

I bought one there & it was bad .

I suspect they handle the chickens the same way Wal-mart does.

[kookielendmeyourcomb 43]

I simply do not buy meat, poultry, or fish at Walmart.  However, I broke my own rule and purchased four packages of chicken for making pollo milanesa.... the sell by date was September 4.  On September 2, we opened the packages, and every single piece of chicken smelled and was tinged green.  Ugh.

One other thing I also learned awhile ago, is what looks fresh, is usually not.  I went behind the counter into the back of the Butcher department.  I wanted to ask if the meat / chicken / fish came fresh, or if they thawed it all there.  The head of the department explained that everything comes frozen, and they defrost there.  Since I am a Spanish speaker, I'm pretty sure I didn't misunderstand him.

Everyone knows it's dangerous to re-freeze once thawed meat, unless it has been cooked first, don't they?  

 

 

 

[Zeb 454]

4 hours ago, kookielendmeyourcomb said:

I simply do not buy meat, poultry, or fish at Walmart.  However, I broke my own rule and purchased four packages of chicken for making pollo milanesa.... the sell by date was September 4.  On September 2, we opened the packages, and every single piece of chicken smelled and was tinged green.  Ugh.

One other thing I also learned awhile ago, is what looks fresh, is usually not.  I went behind the counter into the back of the Butcher department.  I wanted to ask if the meat / chicken / fish came fresh, or if they thawed it all there.  The head of the department explained that everything comes frozen, and they defrost there.  Since I am a Spanish speaker, I'm pretty sure I didn't misunderstand him.

Everyone knows it's dangerous to re-freeze once thawed meat, unless it has been cooked first, don't they?  

 

 

 

They may know and not care.....I wonder if there is any type of Health Department here that regulates cleanliness and food handling.  I get the feeling there is not.  I hope you returned the chicken.  If everyone returns these unsafe items, maybe they will reconsider how they are handling them.

Edited September 21, 2017 by Zeb
Additional comment

[Yo1 973]

4 hours ago, kookielendmeyourcomb said:

Everyone knows it's dangerous to re-freeze once thawed meat, unless it has been cooked first, don't they? 

It's not dangereous,  but the quality and texture are not as good. But not unhealthy.  That's an urban myth.

[mattoleriver 173]

3 minutes ago, Yo1 said:

It's not dangereous,  but the quality and texture are not as good. But not unhealthy.  That's an urban myth.

I bristled when I read that so I immediately checked it out. It seems to be generally accepted as true. I learned something today.

[Yo1 973]

I checked years ago, but checked again just before I posted and it's still not dangerous according to the FDA.

[ComputerGuy 4,661]

Every site I checked said "as long as it is defrosted in the fridge".

[mudgirl 2,366]

I have never bought meat of any kind at Walmart (or any food, except for packaged stuff), but I do buy meat at Mega, and have never had any problem with it. However, even at Mega, they do the same, the meat is frozen, they thaw it, but there is never any indication that it has been previously frozen. In Canada they have to put a "previously frozen" sticker on it.

[Newjersey expat 199]

I know we are not NOB , but some of the practices here may explain the chicken issues. First in meat/ dairy there is suppose to be below a freezer line. No product displayed above that.line because it is not the right temperature.. Second, places like Cosco only allow their chicken to stay out on display for so many hours, then they pull them.. Third, I recently had chicken from Walmart ( I didn't buy) and it was so dry, tasted like saw dust. probably from being out so long as it was bought late in the day.. As for freezing meat. Lowering the temperature at night is done here and NOB. But here the temp is way low which may account for the smell. Check ice cream at Superlake and don't be surprised if it is crystallized because it melted and refroze. I also have had to bring it to their attention that some of the dairy products are way expired. I won't buy cheese there because I find the cheese they package often just had the mildew cut off. So how frozen  the chicken is when it arrives, how long it is kept "frozen" and the low freezing temp. may play a part.

[mudgirl 2,366]

Walmart and Fresh Food is an oxymoron.

[PaulD 1]

I am commenting from NOB but anyway, with all of the cooked chicken you can buy on the street in Ajijic why would you buy it anywhere else ?

I remember buying plenty with fixings for small money.

 

[mudgirl 2,366]

I don't live in Ajijic, but stopped buying street chicken when I saw the street chicken lady flop a cooked chicken ready to sell on top of a raw chicken. There's a lot of ignorance re safe food handling in Mexico. I prefer to cook at home.

[Zeb 454]

1 hour ago, PaulD said:

I am commenting from NOB but anyway, with all of the cooked chicken you can buy on the street in Ajijic why would you buy it anywhere else ?

I remember buying plenty with fixings for small money.

 

Because not every chicken meal involves a roasted chicken.  Raw chickens are purchased with a different preparation in mind.

[Solfeggio 2]

I have had the same experience with Wal-Mart chicken and ribs and eggs, all smelling spoiled when just purchased. Their produce is often nasty also. I still go there but only for a few things I cannot get elsewhere.

 

[sputnik 57]

bought a chicken the other day,,,,smelled really really bad,,,,went and told the employee.....i needed another one so asked to tear open and smell...it was fresh,,,,but it is turning me off buying chickens there unless it is the package of pilgrams pride frozen breasts.  Anyway, where is the place you all talking about next to S&S auto???  Do they sell raw whole chickens???  thanks

[dennis clark 55]

yes , Puritan. Great bratwurst  also.

 

Edited October 4, 2017 by dennis clark
misspelled word

[camillenparadise 300]

Thanks for that! ALWAYS looking for something to take home to the beach in October! You guys are SOOOO lucky to have all the food choices you do!