Grass fed beef...

[smokeyokie]

Grass Fed? Corn Fed? I have a steer butchered every year that a buddy raises on grass till the last 60 days then on grain till butcher time! and I will say it is better than any store bought beef (other than waygu) IMO there is no similarity between deer,elk and grass fed beef??? Beef has a flavor unto itself...I love all kinds of red meat and they all have a very distinct flavor... If you want to know what gamey is really like try a whitetail harvested in south TX and you will find gamey!!! To each his own!!! and I respect most opinions on this site!! that is my .02 cents.

 

[mmmmeat]

Or rattlesnake, pheasant, antelope, odd rodents and bugs.

rattlesnake, phantastic smoked

Pheasant fantastic as well

you can keep the rodents and bugs ( unless i was starving...or just wanted to live andrew zimmern for the night)

havent had antelope yet

 

[Chezmatt]

I eat a lot of grass fed beef, it is my preference when I can afford it, it can get pricey around here. But, in Humboldt, I have access to local sweet grass beef and pork, it tastes great. I have cooked up a few briskets and found them to be excellent in both taste and texture. The steaks take a little more care and simply cannot be cooked past medium. I am pretty much alone in this, to my knowledge, all of my friends prefer formula or grain finished beef. Well, except for Smokejumpers, but, then again, that guy eats offal.

I'm with you, landarc. I am very lucky to be friends with the family that runs Stemple Creek Ranch in Marin County. They raise 100% grass-fed cattle, and it is without question the best beef I've ever had. The flavor and texture are unbelievable.

 

[bmanMA]

"landarc: But, in Humboldt, I have access to local sweet grass beef and pork, it tastes great"

Lots of sweet grass in Humbolt. Oh how I miss it so!

 

[mmmmeat]

i think grassfed being supreme/ feeding cows corn/oats is bad.... is a fallacy... much like global warming,

i can do with out the steriods, and antibiotics.... but i like a fat cow, and like i have said before IN ARIZONA grassfed is crap....come take a visit... and i'll show you why

 

[Crakaveli]

try it with just salt and pepper first

 

[Crakaveli]

i think grassfed being supreme/ feeding cows corn/oats is bad.... is a fallacy... much like global warming,

i can do with out the steriods, and antibiotics.... but i like a fat cow, and like i have said before IN ARIZONA grassfed is crap....come take a visit... and i'll show you why

aren't cows herbivores?

 

[mmmmeat]

i didnt say they ate meat, i said that i dont think that grassfed is supreme beef...i dont think that feeding them corn and oats is bad...

i however do not like the steroids and antibiotics...

and that the "Grass" that the SNACK on out here in AZ leads to lame beef....

with that said im sure other states WITH AWESOME GRASS probably taste awesome.

some of the BEST beef from snake river farms feeds corn... among other things

"SUSTAINABLE, NATURAL BEEF

SNAKE RIVER FARMS cattle are raised along the high plain of the Snake River in Eastern Idaho. In order to raise 100% natural beef, SNAKE RIVER FARMS has adopted many aspects of the heritage-steeped Japanese feeding method, including a slow-paced and sustainable diet that includes Idaho potatoes, soft white wheat, corn and alfalfa hay. SNAKE RIVER FARMS does not cut corners by using growth promoting hormones or animal by-products in the feed. Our American Wagyu Beef cattle grow slowly, a process that can take up to four times as long as traditional U.S. cattle production methods."

 

[landarc]

Perhaps grass-fed and finished beef is best raised somewhere other than...the farking DESERT!

 

[Smokin Ribs]

Grass fed beef needs to be finished off in a feed lot eating corn for weeks and weeks to get great taste. You can marinate range beef. Try pineapple juice with soy sauce and garlic and onion powder. Marinate 24 hours minimum. That really helps.

Mitch ur all wrong the whole purpose of grassfed is no corn

 

[mmmmeat]

Perhaps grass-fed and finished beef is best raised somewhere other than...the farking DESERT!

that's all im saying, not ALL grass fed is better.

 

[Phubar]

Most beef sold in Australia is purely grass fed. I really do not know what you mean by "Gamey". Gamey, to me is a goat that's been hung for a week in a tree in India in Summer!

I do buy grain fed beef when I go to Costco, because that's all they have, and I do find it has a different flavour profile, but I would not call it better than grass fed, just different.

Just cook it up as you normally would and treat the taste as "different" but not "gamey".

Most of the beePh sold over here is grassfed.
Also I don't have any experience with gamey Phlavour...it just tastes a bit different than grain fed but I can not compair it with deer.

Just cook it up allready Keale!

 

[Sheepman]

Hot and fast

Real high heat and a fast sear. Get the fire really hot, salt and pepper the steak, then sear the meat well on both sides.

If you like the taste, get a fancy bottle of first press olive oil (from Spain) pour it on the meat as soon as you pull it off the fire. Slice and serve with a really good Tuscan red wine.

No sides. "Vegetables are what food eats"

 

[keale]

Thanks Guys for all the replies! This beef was grass fed all the way, not aged at all. Over here, the cows are butchered and packed the same day!!:tsk:

Hey landarc, what kind of "grass" you feeding your cows? Bwahahahaha!
Seriously what is this milk brine? I might try marinating a steak with some Modelo, a great tasting Mexican beer IMHO.
Also, Primo is making a comeback over here, thats some nasty stuff I tell you!

 

[landarc]

For some reason, people started making milk brines a few years/decade back, You just take a half gallon of milk, add 1/2 cup of salt and maybe some sugar, let it all dissolve and then soak stuff in it. It actually makes for a great fried chicken soak if you don't like buttermilk, although buttermilk is a lot better for that purpose.

The coastal region from northern Humboldt County in California on up the coast and inland valleys almost to the Columbia River has selected areas of pasture that have what they call Sweet Grass pasture. If you pick the grass and chew on it, it has a sweet grassy flavor. It makes for great dairy cows and meat cattle. Also you can get some incredible pork from sweet grass pasture.

 

[jimmyinsd]

For some reason, people started making milk brines a few years/decade back, You just take a half gallon of milk, add 1/2 cup of salt and maybe some sugar, let it all dissolve and then soak stuff in it. It actually makes for a great fried chicken soak if you don't like buttermilk, although buttermilk is a lot better for that purpose.

The coastal region from northern Humboldt County in California on up the coast and inland valleys almost to the Columbia River has selected areas of pasture that have what they call Sweet Grass pasture. If you pick the grass and chew on it, it has a sweet grassy flavor. It makes for great dairy cows and meat cattle. Also you can get some incredible pork from sweet grass pasture.

in my humble opinion you are about as close to correct as there can be on this issue. the term grass fed is going to mean different things to different people when it comes to beef.

breed, genetics (natural marbeling), age of animal, days aged, and many more variables come into determining whether a piece of meat is palatable. not just what it ate, but who ate it and where the feed was from.

i have had beef all over the US and i always prefer to try locally grown, just to taste the different flavors you get. some places can get good beef off of just grass, but not many imo. in others the non grained beef tastes like pinesol. (i usually find this in mountainous areas, i assume its because there is a higher acidity level in the grasses that grow there.) i found some steaks in california that had a interesting taste, it was kinda sweet with a really strong smell. i was told it was grazed on greens and vines from from fruit and vegetable fields in central california.

its pretty silly to say one tastes better than the other though considering taste is really up too the individual.

for the record i prefer mine to be raised on a pasture, but fed grain as a supplement to the grass. no hormones and no antibiotics other than when they get sick. and i agree with the individual that sees the term "grass fed" as more marketing hype than substance.

just for the record...how many people arguing one way or another have ever seen their beef from start to finish to know actually what they are getting besides what a little stamp on the packaging tells them?

 

[landarc]

Ooo! I have, I have, my uncle was a rancher in Idaho, he used to raise a couple of steer for his family. Those two got special treatment. Well, special until they got killed, hacked up and eaten, which is less special. Although, they didn't go to the feedlot, they were driven to the hit man the moment it was time. Which is special, sort of, I guess.

Out here, there are options, like if you are ChezMatt, where you can get to know the animals, at a herd level, before you get the meat. Actually, Marin Sun Farms used to let you pick the animal from a selection of ready animals, then it was field slaughtered and wrapped for you right there. By the way, Five Dot Ranch makes an incredible beef, with grain finishing, but, on their land with their own grain. Amazing brisket and chuck, just amazing.

 

[jimmyinsd]

Ooo! I have, I have, my uncle was a rancher in Idaho, he used to raise a couple of steer for his family. Those two got special treatment. Well, special until they got killed, hacked up and eaten, which is less special. Although, they didn't go to the feedlot, they were driven to the hit man the moment it was time. Which is special, sort of, I guess.

Out here, there are options, like if you are ChezMatt, where you can get to know the animals, at a herd level, before you get the meat. Actually, Marin Sun Farms used to let you pick the animal from a selection of ready animals, then it was field slaughtered and wrapped for you right there. By the way, Five Dot Ranch makes an incredible beef, with grain finishing, but, on their land with their own grain. Amazing brisket and chuck, just amazing.

we raise and used to butcher our own, we use a locker now, but i am not always convinced that you necessarily get your own meat back from some lockers. we have found some pretty questionable things from some lockers that would lead a person to believe that there may be some cut and switching going on out there.

as far as believing marketing crap, people would be pissed if they truely understood how freely those stamps are applied. you pay more, but for what?

when ever people ask me how to get good meat, i always say make friends with a good rancher and better friends with a good butcher.:thumb:

 

[Chezmatt]

Out here, there are options, like if you are ChezMatt, where you can get to know the animals, at a herd level, before you get the meat. Actually, Marin Sun Farms used to let you pick the animal from a selection of ready animals, then it was field slaughtered and wrapped for you right there. By the way, Five Dot Ranch makes an incredible beef, with grain finishing, but, on their land with their own grain. Amazing brisket and chuck, just amazing.

If I might make a shameless plug for a good friend, anyone in Northern California who wants to get to know some cattle can take advantage of the occasional ranch tours offered by Stemple Creek. PM me if you have any interest.

 

[landarc]

If I had a freezer, I would already be getting to know a Stemple Ranch Steer