How to Thaw Ground Beef in Microwave

How to thaw ground beef in microwave quickly is here. If you need to quickly defrost hamburger for dinner this will save the day. Just one of many microwave recipes on our site.

I started this journey because I needed to know how to defrost chicken in microwave once. It was easier than I thought it would be and then I was able to cut it up and make our favorite casserole dish. In the event that you’re in a pinch these kitchen hacks might come in handy too.

Defrost Ground Beef in Microwave

This is how to defrost ground beef in microwave, or hamburger as my mom always called it. 😉 We are going to assume you just want it thawed and not cooked. If you want to take it a step further we have extended instructions for cooking it too.

How to Thaw Ground Beef in Microwave

Defrost and thaw are synonymous as well I think, you probably use one more often than the other but saying the same thing. In fact I rarely make hamburger(s) with it but rather make things like our ground beef casserole with potatoes.

Or you might want to make our very simple but delicious 5 ingredient chili when done. You can choose for yourself when it is done.

You know it isn’t a a requirement to make it tender before cooking it though. If you read our Instant Pot frozen ground beef post and tried it you already know that. I will say the texture is far better though if you take it step by step and not from one extreme (right out of the freezer to cooked) to the other.

All you’re going to need is a bowl or shallow dish with a lip on the edges to catch some liquid which will be created. A wooden spatula can be handy to break off the outside pieces that are done while exposing more of the rock hard center. Have another bowl handy outside the microwave to gather the softened meat.

Thaw Hamburger in Microwave

I have a printable instruction sheet at the bottom of this post for your reference but here is a quick step by step to explain how it’s done. Quick and easy, no waiting for it to soften in a bowl of cold water you have to swap out once it’s room temperature. Just takes about 3 minutes to thawed meat!

• Open up your original packaging on the outside of the frozen ground meat. Transfer raw meat to a bowl or shallow microwave safe plate with a lip on it to catch the liquid.
  • Put the bowl in the microwave and push your defrost button or set power to 50% for 1 minute initially.
• Break off thawed bits on the edges removing them and transferring into a dish outside the microwave at this time. Turn piece over and continue on the defrost setting or at 50% power for 1 more minute. Again do the same thing for the last 60 seconds.
  • It should be done at this time unless it is a very thick chunk.

If it needs longer, remove defrosted pieces again, turn over again and add another 30 seconds until it is done all the way to the center. Drain if there is any liquid in the bowl and then cook the meat as you wish from there.

Can you cook ground beef in the microwave? YES! There are TONS of different ways to cook the beef from here. Brown in a pan to create taco meat as a cheap meal, add into a casserole when cooked or make our famous Ninja Foodi meatloaf recipe everyone loves.

How Long to Thaw Ground Beef in Water

This will take about an hour as opposed to 3-4 minutes. If you would rather do so you should follow safe guidelines which is to keep meat in it’s sealed packaging. Fill a bowl with cold water and submerge. Change water every 30 minutes or when it becomes room temperature until thawed.

Never put it into hot water to defrost faster, that is a great way to promote bacteria growth. You want slow and steady at low temps if using any sort of heat source like your microwave in this instance.

There is a way of cooking after the defrosting process in the same machine and we will go over that in just a bit too. You always want to make sure once cooked your beef is 160 degrees Fahrenheit to be safe to add into dishes like our tater tot casserole with ground beef and others.