Defroster

[gazzawazza]

Has anyone tried one of those slab type defroster type thingies that are supposed to thaw out meat in a few minutes?

Do they really work?

How?

Is it by magic?

[vittoria]

Yes I have one and use it sometimes; it does work but not as well as the blurb on the box. A pork chop thaws faster than a chicken breast. It works faster if you pour boiling water (from the kettle) on the slab (not on the meat itself) now and again.

[Cetti]

I tend to agree with vittoria, they really do work, but take longer than they would have you believe, although rather cleverly they just say 'in minutes' than 'how many'.

It says this on the box:"The secret is the super conductive metal tray. It absorbs the natural heat energy in the air and then releases it directly into the frozen food".

22:12 Sat 03rd May 2003

[gazzawazza]

Thanks guys, always wondered if they did really work and you're sure it's not by magic?

[gazzawazza]

Oh go on Gazza, you have three stars too, I'm feeling generous...

[asdfasdf]

of course they really work but you didn't have to go and buy one. just use any metal pan. the reason it works is that metal has a low heat capacity (cannot hold heat). So it transfers the heat from the air through the metal and into the meat much quicker than on a plate (which is ceramic or plastic, which both hold the heat absorbed from the air better). all you have to do is get two frozen pork chops. one on a ceramic plate and one on a metal pan. Guess what the metal pan one will thaw faster. QED

[intheUSA]

I gave a slab defroster as a gift years ago and was later told that it works well. I've recently tried to purchase one for myself and I can't seem to find one. I'm in the U.S. so online ideas would probably help me best.  Thanks!