How long can I keep a sealed pork shoulder in the fridge.

[Tiffin]

So I picked up a sealed pork shoulder from the store the other day with intention to make pulled pork. But of course time got the better of me and it sat in the fridge for a week and a half. Do I now have to throw it away or is it still good to smoke? Will be cooked to 185 ish for pulled pork.
Your thoughts are appreciated :)
Thanks, Tiffin

[Habanero Smoker]

Have you looked for an "Use by" or "Freeze by" date on the packaging. I have purchased cryovac packaged pork that had a "Use by" date that was good for another three weeks.

Generally bad pork will have a very strong odor, but you can't always go by smell; the pork can be spoiled and have no offensive smell or a very strong smell. If it is cryovac it can have an odor when you take it out of the package, and still be good. After a quick rinse, the smell should go away, and not return.

Other signs of bad pork are the packaging may be bulging, it may have a slimy or sticky surface, there may be green or gray discoloration in the meat (do not attempt to cut away the discolored area, and use the rest of the pork). If it has any of those characteristics it should not be used, even if the "Use by" date is still good. Several months ago I had a whole pork loin go bad, and I was well within the "Use by" date.

[renoman]

Have you looked for an "Use by" or "Freeze by" date on the packaging. I have purchased cryovac packaged pork that had a "Use by" date that was good for another three weeks.

Generally bad pork will have a very strong odor, but you can't always go by smell; the pork can be spoiled and have no offensive smell or a very strong smell. If it is cryovac it can have an odor when you take it out of the package, and still be good. After a quick rinse, the smell should go away, and not return.

Other signs of bad pork are the packaging may be bulging, it may have a slimy or sticky surface, there may be green or gray discoloration in the meat (do not attempt to cut away the discolored area, and use the rest of the pork). If it has any of those characteristics it should not be used, even if the "Use by" date is still good. Several months ago I had a whole pork loin go bad, and I was well within the "Use by" date.

This is good advise. I had a whole pork loin in the fridge that I was going to cut up and freeze. I was a few days before the use before date but when I opened it up it had a bad smell. I rinsed it off really good but it still had an odour. I ended up chucking it out to be on the safe side. Lesson here is freeze it or use when you buy it.

[Tiffin]

Yea I decided to be on the safe side since no meat or money is worth making people sick. In the garbage it went, oh well, lesson learned. Thanks for the advice guys.

[DaveT261]

One of my first post on this board was about a pork shoulder, we had quite a long thread discussing it and at that time we could not come up with a conclusion to why it turned out that way.  I bought one from WalMart and I think it sat too long in the fridge.  It did not sit so long as to spoil but it sit long enough to become very bland.  As far as smoking it went very well, great stall, fall apart tender, and juicy but it did not taste like any other shoulder I had done in the past.  This is just my opinion but I think the longer a piece of thawed meat sits in the fridge the less flavor it will have.