Grass Fed Beef?

[lawn psycho]

Since I come from a family who farms pure-bred black angus, I think there is nothing that beats the taste of grain fed beef. In fact, I have about 300 lbs of it in my freezer The hamburger is so lean that you have to grill/cook them on very low heat.

My recommendation is to find a local farmer for your beef. Much cheaper than buying it a steak at a time. You can usually buy an entire side of beef with prices for everything at slightly less than the cost of ground beef than you would pay at the grocery store.

The local butcher shops often have a wall of business cards with different farmers advertising their beef.

[trfour]

Originally Posted by lawn psycho

Since I come from a family who farms pure-bred black angus, I think there is nothing that beats the taste of grain fed beef. In fact, I have about 300 lbs of it in my freezer The hamburger is so lean that you have to grill/cook them on very low heat.

My recommendation is to find a local farmer for your beef. Much cheaper than buying it a steak at a time. You can usually buy an entire side of beef with prices for everything at slightly less than the cost of ground beef than you would pay at the grocery store.

The local butcher shops often have a wall of business cards with different farmers advertising their beef.

Please tell us and confirm that you have cow catchers mounted on all of you're lawnmowers!

Terry
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[magicrobotmonkey]

I buy a lot of meat from Jenn of ladyfarmer.com. I'm going to pick up my spring pig today, as a matter of fact. She only has five cows, but deals in a lot of grassfed beef. She has very high standards and goes to see the farm and meet the cow(s) before she'll buy a cow. I have a lot of ground beef in my freezer right now that is very tasty and full of delicious fat!

[SAMIAM]

Along the same subject, is anyone buying free range chicken?....can you taste the difference?

[Argie's Wife]

Originally Posted by SAMIAM

Along the same subject, is anyone buying free range chicken?....can you taste the difference?

I notice a difference in the eggs mostly... I'm NOT a fan of eggs on a good day - they have to be well disguised. However, I do like free-range, humane eggs. My favs are the ones from road side stands or from a neighbor with hens. Fresh eggs are the BEST... I can tell the difference between the rubbery, tasteless store bought, store-brand, eggs. They're just blah in comparison.

[dpg]

Originally Posted by Argie's Wife

I notice a difference in the eggs mostly... I'm NOT a fan of eggs on a good day - they have to be well disguised. However, I do like free-range, humane eggs. My favs are the ones from road side stands or from a neighbor with hens. Fresh eggs are the BEST... I can tell the difference between the rubbery, tasteless store bought, store-brand, eggs. They're just blah in comparison.

Oh please, you mean to tell me you can pick the difference in eggs from two different ommelets (SP) ??

[Argie's Wife]

Originally Posted by dpg

Oh please, you mean to tell me you can pick the difference in eggs from two different ommelets (SP) ??

Oh please, you mean to tell me you never tried fresh eggs?

Have you tried it? You should. There is most certainly a difference between f-r-e-s-h and the not-fresh, from a grocery store, sitting in a fridge for a week or so, shipped in from gawd-knows-where, laid by chickens fed gawd-knows-what... They're tasteless in comparison with fresh. Honest.

My neighbors raised chickens for a little while and would bring over eggs. I hadn't had fresh eggs in over 20 years. The taste difference was big - I was amazed and converted - fresh or nuttin' at all. If I had more property, I would most certainly consider raising hens myself!

[Pineedles]

Thanks for the testimonial AW. I pass a home on my way to work that has a hand painted sign that says "FRESH EGGS" out front. I am going to stop and buy a dozen on Friday. My only fear is that I will become an Egg Snob, and only fresh will do after trying them.

[jmen24]

Originally Posted by Argie's Wife

Oh please, you mean to tell me you never tried fresh eggs?

Have you tried it? You should. There is most certainly a difference between f-r-e-s-h and the not-fresh, from a grocery store, sitting in a fridge for a week or so, shipped in from gawd-knows-where, laid by chickens fed gawd-knows-what... They're tasteless in comparison with fresh. Honest.

My neighbors raised chickens for a little while and would bring over eggs. I hadn't had fresh eggs in over 20 years. The taste difference was big - I was amazed and converted - fresh or nuttin' at all. If I had more property, I would most certainly consider raising hens myself!

AW, I would certainly agree with your statement, fresh eggs if eaten very soon after harvest cannot be beat. Getting them cracked on the pan while they are still warm is even better than one or two days old.

And no, I would not be able to tell the difference in a taste test, its not OMG type of difference, but a slight one nun-the-less.

If you get chickens you cannot just let them run all around the yard though, the egg production drops way off if they do not have some structure in there lives. Not saying they have to sit all day, just keep them penned with the roost. If you are not looking for a dozen eggs a day then that may work out well, you will only get a couple a day, you will also get many more animals venturing into the yard to see what smells so good. Oh yea, the occasional rotten egg found with the mower or string trimmer is a treat as well.

[Argie's Wife]

Originally Posted by jmen24

If you get chickens you cannot just let them run all around the yard though...

I'm a townie and have a postage stamp-size of a lot... I think my neighbors would hate me if I got chickens, especially about mid-August, dog-days, time. (I love my neighbors - we get along great - and I intend to keep it that way!)

Can you say 'ammonia'? Powerful stuff, chicken poop.

As it was the neighbor that did get chickens was... well... not well appreciated by most folks but their little experiment didn't last for long... we all held our breath for about six months, tho.

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jmen24 - when I lived in the South I noticed that ground pork was added to venison sausage. I was told it was to help with the forming of the sausage and because venison was too lean for sausage by itself. I dunno if that's true but that's what I remember....

[tomboymom]

egg snob indeed! It will happen, trust me. Fresh eggs are vastly better than store bought. You will immediately notice deep orange yolks that stand up high in the fry pan, more delicate texture and yummy flavor. My husband and three sons all immediately know when I have copped out and grabbed eggs at the grocery store. Plus, its a great way to "eat locally" on a small scale.

[Pineedles]

Gettting back to beef, is there a difference in taste when beef is frozen. Buying a side of beef may be economical, but 6+ months in the freezer can take its toll, right or wrong? I ask because my DW limits our beef intake to once or twice a week.

[LIforrelaxin]

Originally Posted by Pineedles

Gettting back to beef, is there a difference in taste when beef is frozen. Buying a side of beef may be economical, but 6+ months in the freezer can take its toll, right or wrong? I ask because my DW limits our beef intake to once or twice a week.

Pineneedles it all depends on how you store it. If you are looking to by in bulk and freeze for long periods of time (greater than one or two months) I suggest buying a vacuum sealing machine. It is really the way to go. I am in the process of thinking about one myself. Getting married in May and I will then have a wife and her two sons to feed, I plan to buy meat in bulk. Butcher it myself and package in meal sizes for us.

[SIKSUKR]

Originally Posted by jmen24

Ground beef has fat added to it during processing, its not a bad thing. Just saying it does not matter what kind of cow it comes from, it is something that has to be done, I would ask the question of what type of fat is added, if ground locally, it is probably fat back off a pig. .

I purchased 10 million dollars of meat products a year and made all the formulas for anything from hotdogs to hams for our family processing plant for 25 years.You absolutely CANNOT add pork fat to hamburg.Hamburg is 100% beef.The different % of fat content is achieved by blending together different cuts of meat,generally 85-90% muscle meat with a 40% trimming to arrive at the desired %.Grass fed beef has a definate difference in taste than grain fed.It will have a more gamey flavor and as has been mentioned will be much leaner and therefore have less of the flavor we have come to expect from todays beef.

[jmen24]

Originally Posted by SIKSUKR

I purchased 10 million dollars of meat products a year and made all the formulas for anything from hotdogs to hams for our family processing plant for 25 years.You absolutely CANNOT add pork fat to hamburg.Hamburg is 100% beef.The different % of fat content is achieved by blending together different cuts of meat,generally 85-90% muscle meat with a 40% trimming to arrive at the desired %.Grass fed beef has a definate difference in taste than grain fed.It will have a more gamey flavor and as has been mentioned will be much leaner and therefore have less of the flavor we have come to expect from todays beef.

Well, just learned something new there. My post has been adjusted.

Siksukr, do you know what the reason is for that. Pork gets added to game meat for hamburg and sausage, we have only had one cow for cutting in all those years, I just assumed that it worked the same. Thanks for the info.

[SIKSUKR]

Originally Posted by jmen24

Well, just learned something new there. My post has been adjusted.

Siksukr, do you know what the reason is for that. Pork gets added to game meat for hamburg and sausage, we have only had one cow for cutting in all those years, I just assumed that it worked the same. Thanks for the info.

For USDA regulations,hamburg must be 100% beef.If you have somebody grind up your game you really might want to add fat for better flavor.Pork fat will definately have a more palatable flavor on the tongue.It's all what you want but it can't be sold as "hamburg" in a store.

[Yankee]

Originally Posted by jmen24

Well, just learned something new there. My post has been adjusted.

Siksukr, do you know what the reason is for that. Pork gets added to game meat for hamburg and sausage, we have only had one cow for cutting in all those years, I just assumed that it worked the same. Thanks for the info.

Ground beef + ground pork = bratwurst = good! Mmmmmm, brats....spent several years in Wisconsin, and in Germany. They sure know how to make sausage!

[SIKSUKR]

Originally Posted by Yankee

Ground beef + ground pork = bratwurst = good! Mmmmmm, brats....spent several years in Wisconsin, and in Germany. They sure know how to make sausage!

Ya volt. I'm a German sausage maker. 1st generation sausage maker in my family in the US was in the 1870's.

[Seaplane Pilot]

This month's New Hampshire Magazine has a story on grass-fed beef entitled "Where's the (grass fed) Beef?" http://www.nhmagazine.com/

Magazine isn't available on line, but can be downloaded for $4.50 according to the website. I noticed it in the grocery store last night.

[lawn psycho]

Originally Posted by trfour

Please tell us and confirm that you have cow catchers mounted on all of you're lawnmowers!

Terry
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You will find that anyone who owns a beef farm, they will tell you that they feel more like grass farmers.

Unfortunately my subdivision prevents anyone from owning farm animals, horse, etc. I have an enough acreage to support a couple cows. I've thought about tying a cow out in my front yard to see how long it takes for my neighbors to say something My lawn would take a serious beating though....