No more!
Now my concerns are--in order--"what did the cow eat?" and "is there enough fat in the cut?"
Feed
My concern over the cow's feed derives from the Paleo AIP diet. I can approach this concern from two angles. First, the transitive property of food; I am not supposed to eat corn, and if I eat a cow which ate corn, then I eat corn. Second, eating healthy food; eating corn makes me sick and if a cow eats corn then the cow gets sick (not diseased, just not healthy).Sick cows taste bland (like cardboard) which is why BBQ sauce is so important with typical steaks. But remember, flavor predicts nutrients which means that bland meat has fewer nutrients.
On the flip side, meat from healthy cows tastes awesome, so that meat must have a lot of nutrients. And from what I've experienced with grass-fed, grass-finished beef, the flavor is astounding.
To make sure you pick nutritious beef, there are some labels you need to know; "grass-fed", "grass-finished", and "all vegetarian feed".
Grass-Fed
"Grass-fed" means that the cow was fed only grass (no grain, especially not corn) until it was tall enough to start fattening up for market.Grass-Finished
"Grass-finished" means that the cow was fed only grass its entire life. The term "finished" comes from the old cowboy days from when they would tend cattle which graze in fields. The cows were considered "finished" when they were ready to take to market ("finished" in more ways than one, I might add).All Vegetarian Feed
Grass-fed used to mean grass-finished, but supermarkets have caused confusion by re-branding grass-fed as "until the cow is tall enough". The way you can be sure is if the label on the beef says "all vegetarian feed". "All vegetarian feed" means the cow was fed grains; typically corn since corn is so abundant and cheap right now.If the label only says "grass-fed" then you should look up the brand of meat on the Internet to find out if the beef is also grass-finished.
By being aware of these phrases and what they mean, you will be able to choose amazing meat which doesn't need a sauce at all.
By the way, anywhere else on this site where I mention grass-fed, I also mean grass-finished.
Pricing
Ranchers are paid per pound of meat that they sell and not the nutrient density. This reward system heavily influences their decisions when raising cattle.Grain, and particularly corn does a great job fattening up a cow. Because of the cost to the cow's health, feedlots expect to lose 2-4% of their cattle; that's how ranchers know mathematically that they are getting optimum yield from their livestock. Since ranchers are paid per pound, optimum yield is the metric they target. This means that even with losing part of their herd, a rancher will get the highest number of pounds of salable beef by feeding the cattle corn.
Because corn fattens up a cow quickly, it takes about 1.5 years to finish a cow on grains. This means ranchers spend less time getting a cow from infancy to market, which also means higher yields.
It can take a 2-3 years to finish a grass-fed cow. This means it takes twice as long to get a grass-fed cow to market which makes such meat roughly twice the price.
Grass-fed beef is tough to find in your local supermarket. If you do happen to find it, then most likely the beef will be wrapped in vacuum-sealed plastic packaging.
You may need to check with specialty butchers in your area. Ask the butcher if the cow is also grass-finished. If they say "what's that?"--which most supermarket butchers will say--then you know that the butcher is not knowledgeable enough about beef and you will not be getting quality meat.
I personally drive 20-30 minutes north to Central Market because nearby supermarkets don't carry grass-fed beef. The first time I went to that market I asked their butchers if their grass-fed beef is also grass-finished and they launched into a short, affirmative explanation.
Knowledgeable butchers? Check! Grass-fed beef? Check!
If you can't find grass-finished beef in your area, then the best place for you to get yours is probably the Internet. You might also look into getting beefalo, a cow-bison hybrid which also has good flavor although slightly more gamy.
Cut and Fat
I don't purchase the most expensive cuts; the way I cook the meat allows me to get the tenderness of the best cuts but at a far lower cost (I'll give you my recipe in my next post). In particular, I buy tri-tip steak at $14 per pound instead of the New York cuts at $26 per pound. I've tried the Teres Majors and the Flank Steak--both of which have slightly different flavor--but to me they aren't worth the increased cost. On the other hand, I've also tried the top round cut (at $10 per pound), but the flavor is pretty flat because there isn't enough fat.My first time cooking a grass-fed steak I tried the top round. I was pleased that it didn't taste much like cardboard, but I was disappointed because the flavor was still flat.
My second time cooking I upgraded to the tri-tip and was floored at the difference in flavor. Visually, the biggest difference between the tri-tip and top round is the marbling; i.e. How much fat and how distributed it is within the meat. Sometimes there are large pockets of fat within a particular tri-tip slice, but I am happy to eat it. Not only do I like the flavor, but fat is actually healthy for you; it's an essential nutrient for many processes within your body, including brain function.
Book Recommendation
By the way, if you want to read a great story on how to get the world's best-tasting beef, then I heartily recommend "Steak: One Man's Search for the Worlds Tastiest Piece of Beef", by Mark Schatzker. It's a great read and will teach you all about beef from around the world. This book, and others extolling the virtues of grass-fed beef, got me excited for eating grass-fed beef. I hope you are excited, too, after reading this post.I also learned to prepare my steaks "dry" which means no sauce or spices on the beef. Season only with salt; that's the way to enjoy the beef's most authentic flavor.
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