Register

M&S raw turkey crown - do not reheat instruction?

For all refugees from the old Beeb Food Boards :-)
Chill out and chat with the foodie community or swap top tips.
NOTE: CHATTERBOX IS IN THIS FORUM

Moderators: karadekoolaid, THE MOD TEAM, Stokey Sue, Gillthepainter

User avatar
Posts: 225
Joined: Sun Mar 29, 2020 5:18 pm

M&S raw turkey crown - do not reheat instruction?

Postby Lokelani » Sun Dec 27, 2020 6:40 pm

This year I was very relieved when an M&S turkey crown arrived with Ocado, rather than being substituted for chicken drumsticks!

I gave a cursory glance at the cooking times, intending to cook as I wished anyway. However I did notice in big bold letters under the instructions - Do Not Reheat.

Like most of us I cool it down quickly & freeze meal size packs for turkey risotto, turkey & ham pie etc. This year I think they'll have to just be thawed & used as sandwich cold meat.

I've tried & failed to get a reply as to why this is. Has anyone else come across this? I'm wondering what the heck they've done with it to stop raw meat being unsafe to re-heat.

It also had small perforations all over the skin & a couple of tears that I discovered when trying to put my herb butter under the skin.

Other than that it was okay, fairly moist & flavoursome.

User avatar
Posts: 797
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 10:17 pm
Location: East Anglia, UK

Re: M&S raw turkey crown - do not reheat instruction?

Postby Suelle » Sun Dec 27, 2020 6:56 pm

I can't see any logical reason why you couldn't reheat the meat.

Perhaps it's a belt and braces approach to food safety - too many people don't handle the meat hygienically, then don't reheat properly, and M&S then get blamed for their upset stomachs.
Traditional home baking, and more:
http://mainlybaking.blogspot.co.uk/

User avatar
Posts: 3719
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 11:53 am
Location: near some lakes

Re: M&S raw turkey crown - do not reheat instruction?

Postby Gillthepainter » Sun Dec 27, 2020 7:00 pm

Just guessing.
is it a standard thing on all turkey labelling? Do not reheat. I haven't kept my Waitrose crown packaging I'm afraid to look.

User avatar
Posts: 797
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 10:17 pm
Location: East Anglia, UK

Re: M&S raw turkey crown - do not reheat instruction?

Postby Suelle » Sun Dec 27, 2020 7:01 pm

There are lots of recipes for turkey leftovers on their site:

https://www.marksandspencer.com/c/food- ... mas-turkey

I wonder if they meant don't try to cook ahead, then reheat the uncarved crown before the Christmas dinner? That might be difficult to achieve without drying out the meat, and still risking not reheating all the way through.
Traditional home baking, and more:
http://mainlybaking.blogspot.co.uk/

User avatar
Posts: 5297
Joined: Fri Mar 27, 2020 11:58 am
Location: Wiltshire

Re: M&S raw turkey crown - do not reheat instruction?

Postby Earthmaiden » Sun Dec 27, 2020 7:36 pm

I think that both Suelle's posts probably explain it between them. If the meat was raw when you received it and you cooked and chilled it sensibly I can't think of any reason apart from them covering their backs.

User avatar
Posts: 2581
Joined: Fri Apr 27, 2012 1:40 pm

Re: M&S raw turkey crown - do not reheat instruction?

Postby karadekoolaid » Sun Dec 27, 2020 8:05 pm

I´d agree with all of the advice above. If the turkey was cooked, the only suggestion I´d make for reheating would be to ensure it doesn´t dry out, since it´s breast meat.

User avatar
Posts: 6058
Joined: Sat Nov 14, 2015 10:19 am
Location: East Anglia

Re: M&S raw turkey crown - do not reheat instruction?

Postby Suffs » Sun Dec 27, 2020 8:29 pm

I think it was intended to mean ‘dont reheat the crown as a whole or partially used piece’.

Preparing and ‘cooking’ another dish from the leftovers is different IMHO to ‘re-heating’.

Posts: 3511
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 10:42 pm

Re: M&S raw turkey crown - do not reheat instruction?

Postby KeenCook2 » Sun Dec 27, 2020 8:30 pm

Yup, I'm in agreement with all of the above, too.

User avatar
Posts: 3146
Joined: Fri Apr 27, 2012 6:28 pm

Re: M&S raw turkey crown - do not reheat instruction?

Postby jeral » Mon Dec 28, 2020 2:02 am

I bought a duck from Lidl a few years ago which said not to reheat and I couldn't figure it out either since it was a tiny thing. I assumed that was it, i.e. so small it would be uneatable if reheated enough to reach piping hot.

If the crown had stab marks, I wonder if it had been brined which seems quite common now for big meat pieces. Maybe that makes a difference, either H&S or just because it'll dry out on first heating.

User avatar
Posts: 225
Joined: Sun Mar 29, 2020 5:18 pm

Re: M&S raw turkey crown - do not reheat instruction?

Postby Lokelani » Mon Dec 28, 2020 1:29 pm

That was the only thing I could think of, covering their own backs if people leave it lying around at room temperature for hours after the event. Then don't reheat to piping hot.

Which makes me rather cross, I really hope they wouldn't do that. Because it makes those of us that do know what we're doing hesitate to ignore the instruction in case there is another reason!

Thanks for opinions, it's not something I've come across before on turkey crowns.

User avatar
Posts: 1547
Joined: Fri Jan 15, 2016 6:16 pm

Re: M&S raw turkey crown - do not reheat instruction?

Postby dennispc » Mon Dec 28, 2020 2:12 pm

Waitrose ready made custard has the same instructions and lots of other products too. I think it’s covering themselves.

User avatar
Posts: 5297
Joined: Fri Mar 27, 2020 11:58 am
Location: Wiltshire

Re: M&S raw turkey crown - do not reheat instruction?

Postby Earthmaiden » Mon Dec 28, 2020 2:30 pm

This is the sort of thing that encourages food waste. It's tempting to write to them and ask what they do mean!

I assume that custard means that you shouldn't keep reheating the same batch.

User avatar
Posts: 3146
Joined: Fri Apr 27, 2012 6:28 pm

Re: M&S raw turkey crown - do not reheat instruction?

Postby jeral » Mon Dec 28, 2020 3:07 pm

Earthmaiden wrote:This is the sort of thing that encourages food waste. It's tempting to write to them and ask what they do mean!

...

Quite agree. There is a difference IMO between Do not (implying H&S) as an instruction and guidance of We don't recommend (won't be as good). As it is framed as an instruction on labels, we should know why, but will they tell us?

User avatar
Posts: 225
Joined: Sun Mar 29, 2020 5:18 pm

Re: M&S raw turkey crown - do not reheat instruction?

Postby Lokelani » Mon Dec 28, 2020 6:00 pm

Exactly, it may well cause some to waste enormous amounts of turkey.

Here it has simply been frozen & will be used in sandwiches. Or reheated if I receive an answer from Ocado, who I asked why. I also tried M&S food helpline but that is just recorded messages that eventually cut you off.

I'll report back if Ocado find out anything useful from M&S.

User avatar
Posts: 1547
Joined: Fri Jan 15, 2016 6:16 pm

Re: M&S raw turkey crown - do not reheat instruction?

Postby dennispc » Mon Dec 28, 2020 7:16 pm

With roughly a pint of custard in their pots, we heat one day, puy it in the fridge when cool and reheat another.

User avatar
Posts: 2993
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 12:33 pm

Re: M&S raw turkey crown - do not reheat instruction?

Postby Pampy » Tue Dec 29, 2020 1:58 am

In defence of the manufacturers and retailers (unusual for me), they have no control over how food is cooked, cooled and stored so in order to protect themselves from legal action, they will always err on the side of caution. If the courts allow what are, in my opinion, frivolous law suits like McDonald's being sued for selling coffee that could burn someone if it is spilled, then mfrs and sellers have to put disclaimers on their products.
Earlier this year, I contacted Tesco to ask why their baby/new potatoes packs said they should be refrigerated when the FSA advises against it. Their reply was that it's only potatoes that are cooked at higher temperatures that should be kept out of the fridge. Their reasoning is that no-one cooks baby or new potatoes like that. Which is rubbish. I think that they should include something that clearly identifies when they shouldn't be kept in the fridge.

User avatar
Posts: 5297
Joined: Fri Mar 27, 2020 11:58 am
Location: Wiltshire

Re: M&S raw turkey crown - do not reheat instruction?

Postby Earthmaiden » Tue Dec 29, 2020 2:39 am

Whilst of course, they have no control over how people use the food, it should be possible (for instance) to advise that meat which is not going to be used at the first sitting should be chilled immediately, kept chilled for x number of days and if reheated it should ideally be done in liquid such as a curry or gravy with the temperature above a certain point for x number of minutes. They have covered their backs then.

User avatar
Posts: 2993
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 12:33 pm

Re: M&S raw turkey crown - do not reheat instruction?

Postby Pampy » Tue Dec 29, 2020 3:20 am

I think that would still be open to interpretation and would depend on things like how cold someone's fridge is, how they chill the food (ie how long it takes), how they measure the temperature of the reheated food etc. Lawyers are adept at finding the tiniest hole in an argument so I think the manufacturer would deem it safer (for themselves) just to "blanket ban" everything.

User avatar
Posts: 3719
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 11:53 am
Location: near some lakes

Re: M&S raw turkey crown - do not reheat instruction?

Postby Gillthepainter » Tue Dec 29, 2020 10:59 am

frivolous law suits like McDonald's being sued for selling coffee that could burn someone if it is spilled

Interesting your mentioning this case. It is used in law degree studies, as to the power of the misrepresentation of the media.
I watched a documentary, in which the old lady was ridiculed until her death, with false claims she was driving at the time in the media, for example. She was the butt of national jokes and the comedy circuits.

But McD's lost the case. There had been several lawsuits by people damaged by their coffee, these were hands if I remember rightly.
They used to serve their coffee 30% hotter than recommended, making it hotter than scalding if spilt.
The old woman was out with family, stationary in the back seat of the car as she couldn't drink the coffee it was so hot. She could not hold the cup any longer, and it fell over her lap. She got 3rd degree burns, and required skin grafts.
The gist of the programme was, she pursued McD's to reduce the temperature, and they refused, saying it had to stay hot for commuters to get to their desks.

The courts upheld, & ordered them to reduce the temperature to a safe level and she was vindicated. Although the documentary was about the way media can affect the facts.

User avatar
Posts: 225
Joined: Sun Mar 29, 2020 5:18 pm

Re: M&S raw turkey crown - do not reheat instruction?

Postby Lokelani » Tue Dec 29, 2020 10:03 pm

Interesting information there from all.

I still feel they should give clear, correct instructions. No reason why labels shouldn't be part of educating in food safely, rather than encouraging ignorance & waste.

Next

Return to Food Chat & Chatterbox

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 27 guests