{"id":6315,"date":"2012-10-15T12:42:37","date_gmt":"2012-10-15T19:42:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.skilletchronicles.com\/content\/?p=6315"},"modified":"2012-11-14T13:58:17","modified_gmt":"2012-11-14T20:58:17","slug":"pure-beef-for-the-rest-of-us","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.skilletchronicles.com\/content\/pure-beef-for-the-rest-of-us\/","title":{"rendered":"“Pure Beef” for the rest of us"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

I grew up in a beef-eating family. My dad, who was poor as a child, loved nothing more than a slab of sirloin and a monster baked potato for dinner. There were vegetables on the table only because my mom insisted.<\/p>\n

As an adult, though, I’ve had an uneasy relationship with beef and have avoided it more often than not in the interest of health.\u00a0 For more than a decade, the only beef I consumed was an occasional hamburger \u2013 one of my guilty pleasures.\u00a0 When I became a restaurant reviewer, though, I could no longer reject red meat, since it stars on so many menus.\u00a0 Beef returned to my life, but I remained a little uncomfortable about it.<\/p>\n

Then I received a review copy of Lynne Curry’s cookbook, “Pure Beef,” Running Press, 2012.\u00a0 The book looks at the movement toward artisan beef\u00a0 raised on open pasture, slaughtered as humanely as possible and dressed by craftsman butchers.\u00a0 This is meat for the conscientious consumer, light years removed from the industrial model beef sold at most supermarkets.<\/p>\n

What struck me most was the case Curry makes for eating grass fed beef, which is becoming more widely available.\u00a0 Beef from cattle fed exclusively on grass is much leaner than meat from feedlot animals, which are stuffed with grains, antibiotics and hormones for rapid weight gain in the last months of their lives.\u00a0 It boasts more healthful omega-3 fats and an extra measure of vitamins A and E.\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Of course, when meat is very lean, you need to take more care in cooking it or you’ll spend a lot more time chewing it. Along with her extensive guide to beef cuts and cooking techniques, Curry offers a treasure trove of recipes for grass fed beef.\u00a0 As a rule of thumb she suggests slow cooking at low temperatures for the tougher cuts, such as chuck roasts, and quick cooking over high heat for steaks and hamburgers.\u00a0 The most important point she makes is to be careful not to overcook the more tender cuts, which can go from medium rare to extremely chewy in the blink of an eye.<\/p>\n

I bought grass fed beef at a local natural foods market to try out a few of the recipes and was impressed by the deeper flavor of this meat.\u00a0 \u00a0 It was so much more savory than most supermarket beef that it didn’t require much additional seasoning.<\/p>\n

Following Curry’s instructions, I seasoned New York steak with nothing more than salt, pepper and a quick rub with a garlic clove before searing it in a hot skillet with a little oil and butter for two minutes a side. Then I popped it into a\u00a0 475 degree oven for\u00a0 4-5 minutes.\u00a0\u00a0 It was the best steak I’ve had in years.<\/p>\n

Dutch Oven Barbecue, which I made in a slow cooker, was simply rubbed with modest amounts of smoked salt, paprika, cumin, black pepper and cayenne before roasting at a low temperature.\u00a0 It was so good, it didn’t need the spunky barbecue sauce with its undercurrents of coffee and chile.\u00a0 However, it would have been a shame to skip the condiment.\u00a0 I wanted to eat the sauce with a spoon.<\/p>\n

Curry offers 140 appealing recipes for every part of the cow.\u00a0 It’s an eclectic collection ranging from chicken fried steak and beef bourguignon<\/em> to Argentinian empanadas<\/em> and Vietnamese pho<\/em>.<\/p>\n

I’m still not ready to put beef on my table every day, but I feel much better about it now that I’ve switched to grass fed meat.\u00a0\u00a0 With Curry’s cookbook in hand, I can’t miss.<\/p>\n

DUTCH OVEN BARBECUE<\/strong>
\nServes 6 with leftovers<\/em>(Note:\u00a0 Although Curry cooks her barbecue in a Dutch oven, I converted the recipe to a slow cooker so I could leave it unmonitored.\u00a0 I started the roast on high for an hour, then switched to low for 6-7 hours, until the meat was fork tender.)<\/em>Meat:<\/strong>
\n2 teaspoons smoked sea salt
\n1 teaspoon smoked paprika
\n1 teaspoon ground cumin
\n1\/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
\n1\/8 teaspoon cayenne
\n2 1\/2-3 pound chuck roast
\nBarbecue sauce (recipe follows)<\/em> for serving<\/p>\n

Combine the salt, paprika, cumin, pepper and cayenne is a small bowl and mix well.\u00a0 Rub the mixture all over the roast.\u00a0 Put roast in a plastic bag or covered baking dish and refrigerate for at least 12 hours and up to two days.<\/p>\n

Preheat oven to 200 degrees.\u00a0 Roast meat, covered, until you can pull it apart with a fork\u20135 1\/2 to 6 hours.\u00a0 The internal temperature should register at least 180 degrees.\u00a0 Remove from oven.<\/p>\n

When meat is cool enough to handle, slice or shred it, discarding any fat or bone.\u00a0 Serve with some of the accumulated broth and the barbecue sauce.<\/p>\n

Tangy barbecue sauce<\/strong>
\nMakes 1 1\/2 cups<\/em>
\n1\/2 cup ketchup
\n1\/2 cup apple cider vinegar
\n1\/2 cup strong brewed coffee
\n1\/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
\n2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
\n1 tablespoon grated onion
\n4 cloves garlic, minced
\n1 tablespoon chile powder
\n1 teaspoon smoked paprika
\n1\/4 teaspoon cayenne<\/p>\n

Whisk all ingredients together in a small saucepan until smooth.\u00a0 Bring to a boil over medium high heat, then reduce heat to low.\u00a0 Simmer, stirring occasionally for 1 hour until thick.\u00a0 Cool to room temperature before serving.<\/p>\n

Adapted from “Pure Beef,” by Lynne Curry<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I grew up in a beef-eating family. My dad, who was poor as a child, loved nothing more than a slab of sirloin and a monster baked potato for dinner. There were vegetables on the table only because my mom insisted. As an adult, though, I’ve had an uneasy relationship with beef and have avoided … Continue reading “Pure Beef” for the rest of us<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6315","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.skilletchronicles.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6315","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.skilletchronicles.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.skilletchronicles.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.skilletchronicles.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.skilletchronicles.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6315"}],"version-history":[{"count":31,"href":"https:\/\/www.skilletchronicles.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6315\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6451,"href":"https:\/\/www.skilletchronicles.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6315\/revisions\/6451"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.skilletchronicles.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6315"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.skilletchronicles.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6315"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.skilletchronicles.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6315"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}