Our Own Grass Fed Beef - Cooking Steak (Part 4)

This is the fourth segment in an on-going series we're doing after we butchered one of our grass fed Angus steers.  Grass fed beef is all the rage right now and it is primarily driven because of health issues.  As you are aware, there are good fats and bad fats.  Grassfed beef is high in all of the fats that are good for you (Omega-3 fat) and low in all of the fats that have been linked to cause health problems.  According to This Link these important health considerations underscore the reason to eat grass fed:

When we switch from grainfed to grassfed meat, then, we are simply returning to the diet of our long-ago ancestors, the diet that is most in harmony with our physiology. Every cell and every system of our bodies will function better when we eat products from animals raised on grass.

Grass-fed beef is naturally leaner than grain-fed beef.

Omega 3s in beef that feed on grass is 7% of the total fat content, compared to 1% in grain-only fed beef.

Grass-fed beef has the recommended ratio of omega 6 to omega 3 fats (3:1.)

Grass-fed beef is loaded with other natural minerals and vitamins, plus it's a great source of CLA (conjugated linoleic acid) a fat that reduces the risk of cancer, obesity, diabetes, and a number of immune disorders.

Beef, in its natural grass-fed state, is a health food of the highest order. 

Before we jump into today's discussion, here are links to the previous 3 posts in the serious, in the event you missed them:

Grassfed Beef - Part 1
Grassfed Beef - Part 2
Grassfed Beef - Part 3

So we've established that we want to eat grass fed beef, so what are the differences? We have eaten the hamburger meat and notice that the meat is leaner and more flavorful.  What about other cuts, like steak?  We're going to find out right now.

Since the meat has all been frozen, we thawed out a couple of steaks for supper tonight:

We decided to try a T-bone and a sirloin steak.  Now the link below has some great tips that educated us regarding cooking it.  To be honest, it is sort of a different product than the grain fed beef you purchase in the supermarket.

Tips for Cooking Grassfed

The link above will tell you that grass fed beef is very low in fat.  Surprisingly, the steak from our steer had a nice amount of fat that provided great flavor.  We also learned that you should tenderize your steaks using a Jaccard Meat tenderizer.  Of course, we didn't have that gizmo so we used the next best thing - a Pampered Chef Hold n Slice.  I think it is really used for holding vegetables while you slice them.  It also worked well to tenderize the steaks:

Tricia simply poked the steak full of holes to tenderize both steaks.  Simple & Easy.

Tenderizing the steaks

You should marinate your steaks prior to cooking.  We used part acid, part oil, and part herbs/flavoring.  Tricia used apple cider vinegar and lemon juice for the acid and olive oil.  Then she added Worcestershire sauce, minced garlic, yellow mustard and our home made Tabasco sauce.  She shook it all up in a storage bag and allowed the steaks to marinate all day long in the fridge. 

Marinating the steaks

You should always bring your meat to room temperature prior to cooking.  Grass fed beef cooks very quickly.  In fact, it requires 30% less cooking time.  We learned that you should reduce the cooking temperature by 50 degrees.  Sear each side over high heat to seal in the juices and then turn down your fire to medium or low heat to finish, being careful not to overcook.  Since we're new at grass-fed cooking, we actually under-cooked ours and had to put it back in the skillet for a minute, but that's all part of the learning process and we'll have it down for next time.  I hate to admit to you that I don't have a photo of the finished product.  We ate it all quickly and before we knew it, the only thing left was a few bones for the dogs!

Next we cooked a shoulder steak.  We seared it on both sides and then added it to a pot with a roux that was made along with vegetables and water and some of our dehydrated tomatoes and let it cook between 2 and 3 hours.  Delicious!!

I hate to admit to you (again) that I don't have a photo of the finished product. We've got to get better at getting pictures of the finished product.  Once it is done, we're ready to eat!  We are really enjoying our grass fed beef and highly recommend it.

We'll have at least one more segment in this series as we're working on yet another product that we're able to make