1 to 2 days.
Use your fridge. Defrosting meat in your fridge takes longest, but works best. Depending on the size of the cut in question, it may take up to 24 hours to fully thaw a frozen piece of meat. A general rule is that you should set aside one day of defrost time for every five pounds of meat. Frozen meat should be defrosted in the refrigerator not on a counter top. Place the meat in your refrigerator on a platter or in a bowl to catch any juices that may leak from the package. For a large cut of meat allow 4-7 hours per pound, for a small cut of meat allow 3-5 hours per pound, for Steaks allow 12 – 14 hours. In the refrigerator, ground beef, stew meat, and steaks may thaw within a day. Bone-in parts and whole roasts may take 2 days or longer. Once the raw ground beef thaws, it will be safe in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 days. 1 Place wrapped or covered meat on a dish to catch any raw juice runoff. 2  Defrost the meat for a full 24 hours. 3  Large cuts of meat, such as whole birds or roasts, can take 24 hours for every 5 lbs. ( 4 2.3 kg) of meat. 5  Cook ground or stew meat and poultry within 2 days of thawing for refrigerator defrosting. 1 Submerge the beef in cold water, changing the water every 30 minutes so that it continues to thaw. 2  Small packages of beef may thaw in an hour or less; a 3- to 4-pound roast may take 2 to 3 hours. 3  Cook immediately. 4  When microwave thawing, refer to your microwave owner's manual for instructions. Freezing meat keeps bacteria in a dormant stage. However, once thawed, these bacteria can become active again. Never thaw meat on the counter or let it sit out of the refrigerator for more than two hours. In the summer, reduce this time to 1 hour. Never defrost meat in hot water. 1 Plan ahead for defrosting meat in the refrigerator since it will take time. 2  Place wrapped or covered meat on a dish to catch any raw juice runoff. 3  Defrost the meat for a full 24 hours. 4  Large cuts of meat, such as whole birds or roasts, can take 24 hours for every 5 lbs. ( 5 2.3 kg) of meat.
http://freezers.reviewed.com/features/everything-you-need-to-know-about-defrosting-meat https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20061023164103AA4vSLM http://askkaren.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/502/~/how-long-does-it-take-for-beef-to-thaw%3F http://www.wikihow.com/Defrost-Meat http://askkaren.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/502/~/how-long-does-it-take-for-beef-to-thaw%3F http://web.extension.illinois.edu/meatsafety/thawing.cfm http://www.wikihow.com/Defrost-Meat
how long to defrost meat in a refrigerator