Packaged cooked meat and low pH sauce having extended refrigerated shelf life

A process for preparing a non-frozen packaged meat product having an extended refrigerated shelf life, comprising:

• selecting an uncooked meat cut having an outer surface;
• treating the uncooked meat cut with a marinade containing an organic salt, a lactate salt and a diacetate salt;
• searing a substantial portion of said outer surface of the meat cut, and cooking the meat cut to provide a cooked meat cut having an internal temperature of at least 155° F. (68° C.);
• cooling said cooked meat product to below room temperature and without internally freezing the cooked meat product;
• placing the thus cooled cooked meat product into a pouch, and placing a low pH sauce into said pouch, said sauce having a pH of 4.5 or lower;
• sealing the pouch with the cooked meat product and the low pH sauce therewithin to provide a sealed pouch containing the cooked meat and low pH sauce;
• providing a tray sized to accommodate said sealed pouch having the cooked meat and low pH sauce, and inserting said sealed pouch into said tray;
• closing said tray so as to seal said pouch therewithin to provide a packaged cooked meat and sauce product;
• and
• marketing said packaged cooked meat and sauce in a refrigerated, non-frozen condition, said packaged food product having an extended refrigerate shelf life.

A refrigerated packaged food product, comprising:

• a tray having a bottom wall, an annular rim and a sidewall joining together said bottom wall and said annular rim, said tray being made of a material suitable for heating food therewithin by a microwave oven;
• an indent within said annular rim of the tray;
• a lid removably secured onto said annular rim of the tray and over said indent;
• a releaseably sealed pouch positioned within said tray with said lid secured onto said annual rim;
• a food product including cooked meat and a sauce having a low pH prior to its combination with the cooked meat, said food product being sealed within said pouch, said food product being at an unfrozen, refrigerated temperature;
• free space between said sealed pouch and said tray sealed with the lid;
• and
• a sleeve position over said tray which has the lid sealed thereonto.