Why I Buy Premium Beef

[Troutman]

OK I'm not some tree hugging, snot nosed, save the whales type but when it comes to putting food into my pie hole, I tend to be somewhat picky in the quality of the products I use in cooking. I'm fortunate enough to live in a part of the country where good, better and best quality meats of all kinds are readily available. If not there are dozens of mail order sources to get the best of the best delivered to my front door.

That said, I tend to choose beef sources from smaller ranches, usually prime or American wagyu grade, that I'm reasonable sure aren't pumped up with antibiotics and growth hormones or whatever they do to create bionic commodity beef. If that means a little more searching and a lot more expense then so be it. If you think I'm being too picky or am some sort of beef snob, then I suggest you take a look at one small portion of one of the hundreds of massive fed lots in Texas alone. Here's an aerial form the Tascosa Feed Lot just outside Amarillo, Texas.



Sorry if I just ruined your steak dinner . And don't get me started on chicken, pork or lamb !!!

[ecowper]

I'm with you Troutman ..... the only mass quantity beef I buy is Costco. I know enough about their program to know that their suppliers are in the top tier of all mass production. But I actually prefer my local butcher and the stuff they get from Painted Hills

[crazytown3]

Same. Also, our local family owned grocery store, who buys all their proteins from the local small town processor, who buys from local ranches, etc.

[Attjack]

What do you have against the whales?

[Troutman]

I actually like whale tomahawks, better than beef

[Donw]

Happens the island next door right now has a washed up humpback on the beach, but not sure if the rangers have any whale tomahawks for sale.

[CaptainMike]

We buy local grown beef, pork and lamb for that same reason, as well as to support our neighbors and friends. It's not even more expensive, but you do need the freezer space.

On another note, if you did cheap out on your meat tastes for a year or so you could save up enough for that dream Santa Maria grill. No divorce necessary!

[Troutman]

Stop it, I don't need logic right now.....blah.....blah....blah....I can't hear you

[USMCCrashCrew89]

We’ve slowly been working towards buying our protein from local farmers, butchered through the local meat processor. It’s a significant investment and requires plenty of freezer space, but I consider us fortunate that we’re in an area with the ability to get both pasture beef and pork that was raised within our county.

Still haven’t gotten quite to sourcing local yard bird, I’m sure the neighbors wouldn’t appreciate setting a few out to my scenic tenth of an acre haha

[CaptainMike]

Yeah, we kicked around raising meat chickens but it just doesn't pencil out. We had neighbors that did that, but they were a family of 6. I think it was mostly to keep the kids busy taking care of the birds, et al. They would share with us and by golly it's best dang yard bird you'll ever eat, but I don't have ambition to take it on. Now, egg layers are another whole ball of wax and hoping to have the time to fix up a coop this spring.

[JakeT]

Only quibble I have is that most everything completely local around here is 100% grass fed. I don’t like the flavor of 100% grass fed (at least the specimens I’ve had thus far)

i typically either buy USDA prime from Costco or order from creekstone (only recently).

costco’s lamb is from New Zealand and I read recently that American lamb is far less gamey. I’d like to try some for barbacoa/birria but haven’t found a local reliable (grain fed) source yet.

[CaptainMike]

Living in a city literally translated from Spanish to "Cow Town" one would think you'd have more options. Have you checked to see if there's a butcher in the Winter's area that could help you? That is cattle country and I'd be willing to bet that you could find a rancher that grain-finishes their beef.

[JakeT]

CaptainMike there’s actually a ranch, Gates Ranch, that is directly across the street from my house but tragically, the owner recently passed away from the God forsaken virus.

Good idea on Winters! I know there’s a few ranches in Napa I just haven’t made my way out there in search of it. I work too much lol

[bbqLuv]

I am writing to get you started on Chicken, Pork, and Lamb. Then Framed raised fish, don't forget them. how about all those caged animals in the pet store? and who is that doggie in the window?
I look forward to a time when man and beast will reside as one. and that is in the future.
Happy grilling to you, and PBR too.

[Henrik]

I agree 100%, thanks for posting. I buy good quality meat, but eat it less often. A real easy way of staying on the same budget.

[Andrrr]

So are you saying that slimer colored poop cesspool on the right is good or bad?

[HawkerXP]

I thought it was Soylent Green!

[Red Man]

I agree completely. My local grocery store sells Double R ranch beef, and that’s about the only beef I buy. Occasionally I’ll splurge for some SRF at the grocery store. To me, Double R ranch choice tastes better than CAB prime. For pork we have a few local producers with pretty good quality stuff and for chicken I usually get Mary’s.

[JoeSousa]

Yet another great thing about the Northwest is being able to get Double R and SRF at the grocery store for much less than it costs online. Very limited selection though.

[ecowper]

JoeSousa We have a lot of great cattle ranches up here .... Painted Hills is better than Double R, in my opinion, and not quite as good as SRF. Pretty much all my steaks now are Painted Hills, which my local butcher carries.

[JoeSousa]

I have a lot of thoughts on this topic but that is for another day. To boil it all down, totally agree with you Troutman . There are some cuts I still buy at Costco and the like but most steaks are just better if you spend a bit more for higher quality. I would rather eat 2 or 3 high quality steaks a month from smaller farms than 6 or 7 a month from standard CAFO beef.

Other meats are the same. The flavor and quality you can get from a pasture raised chicken, wild caught salmon, forest foraging pork, etc. are so much better than the standard grocery store fare. It isn't necessarily a "big industrial farms are bad" type thing, the good stuff just tastes so much better.

[ecowper]

I buy all my bulk stuff at Costco: ground beef, stew meat, that sort of thing. Also chuck roast. And lamb I tend to buy there. Steaks I get at my local butcher shop. Prime Packers from Costco are my absolute go to for brisket.

[Backroadmeats]

I agree completely!! I also am in a much different situation than most . There is a comparts pork farm 20 minutes away and I can get as many pigs as I want ,. I also know alot of small farmers that raise fantastic beef. We raise 100 chickens every year and I have kids to feed them!! I would say freezer space is the biggest fact in buying a 1/2 pig or a 1/4 beef but after the shortages last spring there are alot of people buying local and can't believe the difference in quality,. I get lots of calls from people that can't believe how good the pork chops are!! When everyone was freaking out last year because the meat shelves were empty I put a padlock on my walk in freezer because I had way more meat than walmart had!!

[bardsleyque]

you feed kids to chickens?!!!

[fzxdoc]

I try to buy local whenever I can. However sourcing locally-raised beef that is NOT grass-fed is like sourcing a unicorn. Sigh.

Kathryn

[Craigar]

We have been sourcing our meat from a local, small town butcher. Angus-waygu cross for beef. For pork we have more options: Duroc, Berkshire, and Berkshire-Mangalitsa. As a matter of fact, we had the furry pig rib chops last night for dinner. Not to mention all of his sausage, charcuterie, spreads and pates. The pork head & cracklin' rillette is a favorite of ours. Since it is just the 2 of us at home, we don't mind splurging on the good stuff.

[Panhead John]

Looks like Troutman lied to us. Found these on his Facebook page.

[smokin fool]

....that Ashton Kutcher....