How to Store Raw Meat, Chicken, and Seafood Safely

Why raw meat, poultry, and seafood need extra care

Raw animal foods can carry germs that may cause foodborne illness if they spread to hands, counters, cutting boards, utensils, or ready-to-eat foods. The main goal is to keep raw juices contained, keep food cold, and cook food to a safe internal temperature before eating.

Good storage starts before the food reaches your refrigerator. Separate raw meat, poultry, and seafood from other groceries in the cart and on the way home. If a package may leak, place it in a plastic bag or another protective container.

Refrigerator and freezer temperatures

Your refrigerator should be kept at 40°F or below, and your freezer should be kept at 0°F or below. A simple appliance thermometer is helpful because the dial setting on a refrigerator does not always tell you the actual inside temperature.

Refrigeration slows bacterial growth, but it does not stop all spoilage. Freezing keeps food safe much longer when it stays continuously frozen, but freezer storage times are generally listed for best quality, not because food instantly becomes unsafe after that date.

At-a-glance storage guide

These are general home-storage ranges. Product labels, sell-by dates, freshness at purchase, handling history, and specific seafood type can affect the best decision. When the label gives a shorter safe-use instruction, follow the label.

How to store raw meat and poultry in the refrigerator

Keep raw meat and poultry in its original packaging until you are ready to use it, unless the package is leaking or damaged. If the package may drip, place it on a rimmed plate, tray, or inside a sealed container.

Place raw meat and poultry on the lowest practical refrigerator shelf. This helps prevent juices from dripping onto cooked foods, produce, leftovers, or other ready-to-eat items.

How to store raw seafood in the refrigerator

Fresh seafood is highly perishable. Keep it cold and use it quickly. For raw fish, shrimp, scallops, squid, and similar seafood, plan to cook or freeze within the short refrigerator window. Live shellfish and specialty seafood can have different handling instructions, so follow package, market, or official guidance for that item.

If seafood smells unusually strong, sour, ammonia-like, or unpleasant, or if the handling history is uncertain, it is safer not to use it.

How to freeze raw meat, chicken, and seafood

Freeze raw foods as soon as you know you will not use them within the refrigerator time limit. Freezing sooner helps preserve quality and reduces the chance that food sits too long in the refrigerator.

If you freeze meat or poultry in the original store package for more than about 2 months, add extra protection. Use airtight heavy-duty foil, freezer paper, plastic wrap, or a freezer bag to reduce freezer burn and quality loss.

Safe thawing matters

Thawing is part of safe storage. The safest method for most raw meat, poultry, and seafood is thawing in the refrigerator. Keep the thawing package contained so juices cannot leak onto other foods.

Cold-water thawing can be used when food is sealed in a leakproof package and the water is changed often enough to stay cold. Microwave thawing is also possible, but food thawed in the microwave should be cooked right away because parts may begin warming during thawing.

Do not wash raw chicken or raw meat

Washing raw poultry, meat, or seafood is not recommended for safety. Rinsing can splash germs onto the sink, counters, utensils, and nearby foods. Cooking to the proper internal temperature is what makes raw animal foods safer to eat.

Prevent cross-contamination while preparing food

• Wash hands with soap and water before and after handling raw meat, poultry, or seafood.
• Use separate cutting boards or thoroughly wash and sanitize boards between raw foods and ready-to-eat foods.
• Keep raw juices away from salads, fruit, bread, cooked foods, and leftovers.
• Never reuse a plate or utensil that held raw meat unless it has been washed with hot, soapy water.
• Clean and sanitize surfaces after preparing raw animal foods.

Cook to safe internal temperatures

Storage keeps food safer before cooking, but cooking is still essential. Use a food thermometer because color alone is not a reliable safety test.

When should raw meat, chicken, or seafood be thrown away?

Discard raw meat, poultry, or seafood if it has been stored too long, left out too long, leaked onto other foods, developed an off odor, looks slimy or moldy, or has an uncertain handling history. Do not taste raw or questionable food to decide whether it is safe.

Be especially cautious when serving young children, older adults, pregnant people, and anyone with a weakened immune system.

Best practices to remember

1. Buy raw meat, poultry, and seafood near the end of your shopping trip.
2. Keep packages separate from ready-to-eat foods in the cart and bags.
3. Refrigerate or freeze promptly after getting home.
4. Store raw packages on a low shelf in a sealed container or on a plate.
5. Use raw poultry, ground meats, and many seafood items within 1 to 2 days, or freeze them.
6. Use raw steaks, chops, and roasts within 3 to 5 days, or freeze them.
7. Use a food thermometer when cooking.

Bottom line

Raw meat, chicken, turkey, fish, and seafood should be kept cold, contained, and separate from ready-to-eat foods. When you cannot cook them within the recommended refrigerator window, freeze them early and wrap them well. Safe storage, careful handling, and thermometer-checked cooking work together to reduce food safety risk at home.