I admit I eat too much meat. One could say, an occupational hazard, but then that would sound like I don’t enjoy it!
I love beef. I like cows, but I love beef. I like the fragrance of good beef hanging in a dry aging cooler. I like the texture, and the color. I just love beef. I guess that’s an occupational hazard as well.
I also admit that I am a lazy cook. My recipes tend toward the practical and the utilitarian. I never ruin a good cut of beef, but I could do so much better by it.
So over the next couple of blogs I’d like to share my love of beef and also explore some better ways to both cook and enjoy the finished product. I figure this is a journey of exploration that we both can learn from!
First, let me share what makes good beef, so good.
Cows. Well bred and well raised, cows are almost Zen. I like haying them in the early hours, especially when it is cold. The steam rises off of them while they are munching their hay. They grab big mouthfuls and roll it around with their tongues as they swallow it whole. Cows are delayed eaters. They do a basic munch up front to get it down, but do a more thorough job later when they “chew their cud”. There is nothing more satisfying than a field full of happy cows, usually laying down, chewing their cud. It’s a sign that their tummies are full and they are not hungry.
Cows that are happy and not hungry produce great milk, which makes their calves happy and fat. Happy cows. Happy calves. Good meat. It’s a Zen thing.
The next thing is calm cows. Calm cows make better mothers. They make more milk and they make fat calves. They also tend to make calm calves. Again, Zen.
The trick is to keep them calm.
Now here is the part you may not want to think about, but it is important. We want them calm all the way through to the end. Yes, that is end with a capital E. You know what I mean. It’s got to be done. However, the way it’s done affects the beef. If the calf is calm right up to the end, then there is no release of adrenalin. Adrenalin toughens meat and it means the calf has panicked. We don’t want that! We want a calm, swift, humane end. It’s the best for everybody.
So, we’re now past the big E.
Do you ever wonder what’s next? Well, you should. Aside from curiosity, how beef carcasses are handled over the next hours determines quality, hygiene, taste, everything.
A carcass is hung and gutted. It is also under the watchful eye of a State Meat Inspector (at least in the plant we use!). A skilled butcher will swiftly remove the head and large leg bones, the hide, and internal parts. Hygiene dictates that he makes sure there is no contamination from either the internal parts or from any outside material (fecal matter). Once the Inspector is sure of this (and has inspected lymph nodes, heart and liver), the carcass is moved to a chilling cooler.
The reason for the chilling cooler is to let the carcass cool down and set. The meat is still warm and too soft for cutting. Rigor mortis needs to set in and then wear off – about 24 hours after the killing. The carcass can then be moved into the dry aging cooler. This will now allow a natural chemical process to take place. Enzymes in the meat break down, this enhances both the tenderness of the meat and concentrates flavors. Because of the young age of our carcasses – remember BCC processes calves under one year of age, effectively making it rose veal – we only dry age the whole carcass for a week. Larger, older carcasses – both grass finished and grain fed - can be hung for up to one month.
Note I said “dry aging”. This is the time honored – going back thousands of years – way to age beef. Dry aging works from the outside in. I (personal opinion) consider it superior to “wet aging”. Wet aging entails wrapping the carcass in cellophane or cutting the carcass immediately after the cooling period and vacuum packing cuts (you know the ones you see in grocery stores) making them ready for retail. The “advantage” is wet aging loses no moisture (read weight) out of the cuts. Its final weight (and retail value) remain unchanged. This makes wet aging cheaper and the preferred option of many large retailers. However, it can be argued that letting meat “age” in its own blood while sealed in packs is neither effective nor desirable.
Aging can be taken to another level as well. Many chefs like to take large sections of the carcass (known as primals) and do additional dry and wet aging. This is done in a temperature-controlled room (like the dry aging cooler) and allows the meat to concentrate its flavors. Additional dry aging is an expensive process – as much as twenty percent of the original weight can be lost – but it produces more flavor and tenderness.
Dry aging can also be taken to one more level. Certain primal cuts – the brisket, the round, the loin – can be hung for several months and turned into “cured” meats. Bresaola is such a cured meat.
Over the next several blogs, I would like to discuss the various cuts of beef and all the various ways they can be cooked, cured, smoked, and dried. Beef is amazing!
I guess its just a Zen thing with me.
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
