What's for Dinner?

[Gertrudes]

Having eaten supermarket meat for my entire life, I am amazed at how flavoursome the free range, properly fed meat I've been buying lately is. This grass fed beef is just so delicious!

Good on you Gertrudes! Nice that you found a source that sells grass fed meat! The comments about tongue made me curious, I'll definitely will be trying it soon, though I don't have a stainless steel pressure cooker yet, so I'll try to fry it instead, adding some water to it, so hopefully it'll cook through.

Yes, having found an affordable source of grass fed meat has made all the difference!

Just a note, tongue takes a lot of time to cook, so you need to stew it instead of frying it, otherwise you'll get something that will taste and feel like a rubber sole! If you don't have a pressure cooker it can take up to 4 hours. Before we got ours, it took us between 2 to 3hours of boiling a cow's tongue in a regular pot before we could peel all of the skin off. After that, it took us about another one to two hours to cook the tongue. If it's lamb tongue it takes less time because the tongue is much smaller, instead of one big chunk of meat (as with the cow's tongue), you get several little tongues.

If you want to try it fried what you can maybe do is stew the tongue, and as it reaches the point of being almost completely done (after a few hours without a pressure cooker), change it into a pan and fry it to get a brownier look and crispier texture.
:)

 

[Oxajil]

Yes, having found an affordable source of grass fed meat has made all the difference!

Just a note, tongue takes a lot of time to cook, so you need to stew it instead of frying it, otherwise you'll get something that will taste and feel like a rubber sole! If you don't have a pressure cooker it can take up to 4 hours. Before we got ours, it took us between 2 to 3hours of boiling a cow's tongue in a regular pot before we could peel all of the skin off. After that, it took us about another one to two hours to cook the tongue. If it's lamb tongue it takes less time because the tongue is much smaller, instead of one big chunk of meat (as with the cow's tongue), you get several little tongues.

If you want to try it fried what you can maybe do is stew the tongue, and as it reaches the point of being almost completely done (after a few hours without a pressure cooker), change it into a pan and fry it to get a brownier look and crispier texture.
:)

Thank you for your suggestions Gertrudes, I would need a small tongue anyway :D I will try one of your suggestions, Thanks again!

 

[Turgon]

Having eaten supermarket meat for my entire life, I am amazed at how flavoursome the free range, properly fed meat I've been buying lately is. This grass fed beef is just so delicious!

Good on you Gertrudes! Nice that you found a source that sells grass fed meat! The comments about tongue made me curious, I'll definitely will be trying it soon, though I don't have a stainless steel pressure cooker yet, so I'll try to fry it instead, adding some water to it, so hopefully it'll cook through.

Personally, I wouldn't recommend that, Oxajil. Without a pressure cooker, you pretty much HAVE to boil it for a few hours. What you can do, and I've done this before, is after it's boiled and peeled, fry it up with veggies and extra animal fat. It kind of becomes like a sausage at that point. But hey, experiment away. :P

Edit - thought the last post was on page 50, didn't see the other dialogue between you two.

 

[Goemon_]

Today I was not home, I had some salami with coconut oil, and has I was upset by my petty tyrant, I ate about 50g of almond. I don't know if I will be hungry tonight.

What do you think about pork liver? Is it good to eat? I read that beef liver is not good. But pork? The other day I made pork liver with onions and a jest of vinegar.

Loreta

I don't know about pork liver, but about beef, I had a cow's liver (heifer) last week, and I wouldn't say it was no good (if we are talking about taste). The taste isn't strong, so that could be interresting for those who don't like too much liver's taste.

I have frie it gently and serve with cultivated mushrooms.

Also I haven't eat liver a lot (except from poultry). I remember have taste some veal's liver about 10 years ago, and because of the strong taste I didn't taste it again since. Also it's very expensive, but I would have to try it again some day.

 

[Gimpy]

Tonight: curried beef tongue. (An experiment)

You may know this already, but if it's your first time having it, you may want to remove the skin before eating it. I made a lamb broth with tongues last week and wasn't crazy about the skin. The rest was good though.

Oops, didn't see this, sorry. Yes, we've had beef tongue before. We get it from the local butcher. (Grass fed.) I put it in the crock pot all day, skin it, slice, and sometimes we eat it the next day. I like to put it in the refrigerator in some of the broth so it doesn't dry out.

Basic beef tongue

Half a cup of chopped garlic
5 bay leaves
2 Tablespoons sea salt
1 Tablespoon black peppercorns
8 cups RO water
1 grass fed beef tongue (may need to be cut in half if its a big one)
1 Tablespoon bacon fat

Add all ingredients to crock pot, turn on high for 1 hour, then down to low for 7 hours.
In a pinch, you can still get tender results by using high for 4 hours and low for 4.

This time Hubby wanted to try an experiment: curried beef tongue. He likes to make up his own recipes, so forgive me if I miss something. (When in doubt, go with a recipe for curry you like)

I have no idea on measurements, only ingredients used:

diced ginger root
curry lime leaves
bay leaves
sea salt
black peppercorns
full fat coconut milk (canned)
turmeric
cumin
'masala mix' (I don't know what's in it off hand)
ghee
bacon grease
chopped garlic
diced onion
diced beef tongue (1 whole tongue, cooked & skinned)

He ate his over rice, I had mine plain...and wow was it good! This is a very rich tasting dish, and unexpectedly filling. One small bowl and I was full up. :D

 

[rsnedaker]

Baked grass fed Filet Mignon with a sweet potato.

 

[Oxajil]

Personally, I wouldn't recommend that, Oxajil. Without a pressure cooker, you pretty much HAVE to boil it for a few hours. What you can do, and I've done this before, is after it's boiled and peeled, fry it up with veggies and extra animal fat. It kind of becomes like a sausage at that point. But hey, experiment away. :P

I'll keep that in mind :) Thanks Turgon!

 

[Psalehesost]

What do you think about pork liver? Is it good to eat? I read that beef liver is not good. But pork? The other day I made pork liver with onions and a jest of vinegar.

Loreta

As I understand it, cows get sick from eating grains, and therefore their livers (beef livers) are generally in poor shape unless the cows were grass-fed. As far as I know, while grain-fed pigs are not in optimal health (and their meat is reportedly very different from wild-fed ones), it's not as bad; and I think - provided it's organic - that pork liver is fine enough.

I've had it, and certainly it didn't seem bad.

 

[loreta]

Thank you Psalehesost-

Loreta

 

[caballero reyes]

Hi, Psalehesost, your reply to Loreta give me a convenient answer to my question: "cow get sick for eating grain...in pork is not as bad". thanks.

 

[mcb]

As I understand it, cows get sick from eating grains, and therefore their livers (beef livers) are generally in poor shape unless the cows were grass-fed. As far as I know, while grain-fed pigs are not in optimal health (and their meat is reportedly very different from wild-fed ones), it's not as bad; and I think - provided it's organic - that pork liver is fine enough.

Cows are herbivores and pigs are omnivores. It does make a difference. Wikipedia says this about their diet:

Pigs are omnivores, which means that they consume both plants and animals. In the wild, they are foraging animals, primarily eating leaves, grasses, roots, fruits and flowers. In confinement pigs are fed mostly corn and soybean meal with a mixture of vitamins and minerals added to the diet.

The article doesn't offer a reference, but the comments agree well with my other reading. To the degree that what we have been learning about human diet might also apply to pigs (somewhat of an unknown), the unnatural "confined" diet might be expected to be correlated with health problems in both pigs and in humans that eat them.

I've had it, and certainly it didn't seem bad.

Wheat didn't "seem" bad to me, even though it turns out that I am quite allergic to it and it makes a mess of my GI tract when I eat it. What exactly do you mean, "it didn't seem bad."

 

[Psalehesost]

I've had it, and certainly it didn't seem bad.

Wheat didn't "seem" bad to me, even though it turns out that I am quite allergic to it and it makes a mess of my GI tract when I eat it. What exactly do you mean, "it didn't seem bad."

Whereas, from what others have posted, beef liver from grain fed cows can be visibly nasty, the pork liver I prepared was not. It seemed - to a body that has grown fairly sensitive - like real food. I had no reaction to eating it - at repeated occasions, having some nearly every meal for days - and on top of that it even tasted fine.

Whereas something like wheat does not seem fine at all, as seen from the same point along the way of dietary adaptation. The slightest trace of it, if it sneaks into something, will give me a sharp, nasty feeling in my head along with fogginess. Grain-like things in general do not even seem like food - and, at least in the case of buckwheat, tried after a time of only meat and fat, it neither felt like food nor was tolerated by the body, as noticed very soon after eating a small serving.

So that, in short, is how I contrast "seems fine" and "seems bad". "Seems" in itself does not mean knowing for sure, though at this point there are rather few kinds of foods that personally "seem fine" to me.

 

[Nienna]

I eat beef liver from grass fed/grass finished cows and have to say that I enjoy it very much. It is very tasty and not really tough at all. Also, I wonder if the breed of beef has anything to do with it. The beef raised by this particular farm are a cross between Devon and Belted Galloway. I dunno if it has anything to do with anything or not. Just thought I'm mention it.

So maybe all the ickiness people are talking about comes from the grain fed beef?

I've also had lamb liver. It tastes like chicken liver to me, only larger.

 

[mcb]

...I had no reaction to eating it - at repeated occasions, having some nearly every meal for days - and on top of that it even tasted fine...

...So that, in short, is how I contrast "seems fine" and "seems bad". "Seems" in itself does not mean knowing for sure, though at this point there are rather few kinds of foods that personally "seem fine" to me.

Thank you for the clarification about "seems." :)

I have not had such good experiences with pork. I have not been able to buy local pastured pork, and I have been limiting my intake for the most part the last six weeks to a slice of bacon in the morning (fatty, and sliced and wrapped by the butcher, not sealed in plastic) and the occasional organic bratwurst (which is not local and is sealed in plastic).

My impression is that I feel better when limiting pork, although until I completely resolve my wheat allergy issues I am not going to be able to do a good test. I had a wheat mishap at the end of last year, nearly a month ago, and it takes a LONG time to recover from a small mistake. In the mean time, anything I eat can cause problems at times, while my gut is healing. I did limit pork intake for a couple of weeks before that happened, though, and there seemed to be a positive effect.

My main sources of meat right now are local organic grass-fed/finished beef (chuck roast or ribs), imported grass-fed lamb (ground or shank), and the above-mentioned slice of bacon.

 

[LQB]

I eat beef liver from grass fed/grass finished cows and have to say that I enjoy it very much. It is very tasty and not really tough at all. Also, I wonder if the breed of beef has anything to do with it. The beef raised by this particular farm are a cross between Devon and Belted Galloway. I dunno if it has anything to do with anything or not. Just thought I'm mention it.

Good genes from the Red Devon produce what is referred to as "gourmet grass-fed beef" primarily due to the fine distribution of fat in the meat. Apparently the Red Devon will drop dead quickly on grains, so they are not candidates for the stockyards. You can see the RD in some of the cows in NE's pic above. [for more info on RDs google Gearld Fry or Herbataurus]