Help with hamburger please?

[Daybreak]

Could someone please tell me if it is reasonably safe to freeze the less desirable cuts from a deer or moose, thaw it later to be ground into burger and then refreeze as hamburger? I was under the impression meat should only be frozen once?

I looked but could not find this topic covered.

[Rackem]

The more times you freeze meat, the more it degrades. So you will lose both nutrients and flavor.

From http://www.yumsugar.com/Refreezing-Thawed-Meat-2831379
According to the USDA (http://dwb.unl.edu/teacher/nsf/c10/c10links/www.fsis.usda.gov/oa/pubs/freezing.htm), when raw meat is thawed in the refrigerator, it is safe to refreeze it without cooking. For this reason, it's perfectly all right to purchase, say, a previously frozen piece of salmon, and then put it in your freezer when you get home. But if you refreeze thawed poultry or meat, you will be compromising quality of taste and texture. Not only does meat lose water during the defrosting process, but refreezing it also creates ice crystals (http://www.bordbia.ie/aboutfood/meat/pages/storingmeat.aspx) within the structure of the meat that alter its fibers, leaving an unfortunately dry cut of meat.
Of course, like all raw animal protein, the true safety of the product will depend on whether it's been properly handled. The best ways to defrost raw meat are in the refrigerator, in cold water, or in the microwave — not on a room-temperature kitchen counter.

[Rackem]

If you want to grind previously frozen meat, best to take only the amount out that you will use in a day, and grind that much only. Then use it immediately.

[elkhunterette]

I have re frozen meat before but when you want to thaw it again, do so in the fridge then eat it as soon as possible.

[Dannybuoy]

We have done it with both hamburger and meat that we get made into sausage .... not any real noticeable difference .

[Gateholio]

Yes it's pretty common and I've done it many times.

[longstonec]

I also end up doing it at least once a year! still tastes good!

[BearStump]

yup, its fine and wont make any difference for burger, or sausage. I'd avoid re-freezing of steaks and roasts if possible.

[Caveman]

I've done it plenty of times. I tend to grind as soon as the meat pieces can be separated and then refrozen immediately to keep the temperature as low as possible. This is with the intent not to allow bacteria to start growing again. Whether it makes any difference, I don't know.

[dd3boss]

You could leave it frozen and grind it up and then put back in the freezer. If I recall correctly frozen meat grinds up not too badly.

[betteroffishing]

ive done this many times with no adverse effects. just be carefull with temps , ie partially thaw in fridge , gring while still part frozen , package immediately the refreeze. many foodsafe rules are written with multiple redundancies in mind . and so far as degredation of the cells in the meat , this would only really be noticeable with steaks and chops , ground meat is allready as degraded as it gets.