Nothing throws dinner plans into a downward spiral quite as fast as forgetting to defrost the meat you planned to cook.
One As Seen on TV product claims it can help in a hurry.
Consumer expert Amy Davis is testing the D-frost Wonder. It's a small aluminum tray that claims it can defrost anything in half the time it would take just letting the product thaw naturally.
Shannon Carnes agreed to test that claim with two frozen steaks.
He put one on top of the D-Frost Wonder in his kitchen and left the other one in the Styrofoam tray from the grocery store. The D-Frost Wonder commercial claims "It's made of a special metal that draws the cold out of anything frozen in just minutes."
The directions are simple. Run hot water over the D-Frost Wonder tray for 30 seconds. Then set the frozen meat directly on top.
Carnes started the experiment at 5 p.m. When he checked the steak at 5:30 p.m., the side that was touching the De-Frost Wonder tray was thawed.
The other side was not. The steak thawing naturally was still completely frozen and hard as a rock. Carnes flipped the steak and then back to it 20 minutes later.
"It's completely thawed," he said as he touched the steak.
Still at $14.99, Carnes says he expected the D-Frost Wonder to work faster.
"I would not buy it," he said. "I mean it takes an hour to thaw it. I wouldn't buy it."
The D-Frost Wonder is made of aluminum. It's a good conductor. It will draw the cold out of whatever you put on top of it. It's why you will get the same results from an aluminum cookie sheet.