Why Rinsing Your Meat in the Sink Is a Spectacularly Bad Idea

If you’ve been scouring the Internet this week, chances are you may have heard that a TikTok user has gone viral after sharing a particularly eyebrow-raising cooking video on the platform.

As Pedestrian.TV reports, @eemilydharperr (Emily Harper) has set the Interwebs alight after suggesting folks wash (yes with water) their meat when cooking it.

In the video, Harper shared that while “in Nutrition a couple of years ago” she learnt to get rid of grease by washing it away. She then proceeds to rinse her minced meat under a running tap.

“All this grease is disgusting, so get rid of it! Look at the difference!” She wrote in her captions.

So, let’s explore this a little.

In the video, Harper cooks her minced meat in a pan. Then, upon noticing the grease building up in the pan, she pours the meat into a strainer and rinses the hot, cooked meat with water.

death penalty pic.twitter.com/aIMbgEWT2b

— holly jolly poeb (@poetatoeboi) December 12, 2020

Harper then adds the wet meat back into the pan and continues cooking.

Why are people so pissed off?

First off, pouring grease and oil down the drain is a giant no-no. We wrote about this a little while back, but to jog your memory, here is a quote from our piece on why grease and drains should never meet:

“Even if the fat is liquid at room temperature, it can clog up your pipes and demolish your personal or neighbourhood plumbing, resulting in backed up sinks or, on a larger and more upsetting scale, basements flooded with sewage.”

So, yeah. What she’s done with the grease in the video is really not a good idea.

The other element is flavour. Folks are horrified that the minced meat has been washed down to dry cardboard levels, resulting (assumedly) in a much less tasty meal. This one, of course, is down to personal preference. But, like… you’ve got to agree that water does not a flavour-filled dish make.

What should you do if you want less grease in meat dishes?

Like our original article on grease states, you can collect oil or fat in a jar if you’re going to strain it out. From here just toss it into the trash.

Alternatively, you can soak up excess fat with paper towels and throw those babies into the bin.

Or, you could just opt for leaner ground beef so you don’t need to worry as much about straining the contents at all.

Whatever you choose, never rinse your ground beef under a sink and allow that grease to trickle down the drain. Like, ever.