In an article from the April 2011 edition of Cooking Light, Kim Cross writes on the differences between grass and grain fed beef. She says that with beef, "as with everything in the American diet, change is afoot. Shoppers are seeing more and more grass-fed beef in regular grocery stores, along with meat from breeds marketed as special, and meat from organically raised animals."
Grass-fed cattle are those that are allowed to pasture and are not "finished" on a diet of grains and supplements to promote fast weight gain. Raising cattle this way is said to be better for our planet, for our health, and for the cows.
In this article, Cross says that she is going to be looking at three different aspects of the difference between the two: price, taste, and nutrition.
As for price, Cross says that "in supermarkets, small-production, grass-fed meat can be a lot more expensive than your average grain-fed beef". However, they found that they could dodge the supermarket prices by buying in bulk. When purchasing half a cow, their price per pound was $5.32. This was not just for ground beef, but also for everything from the liver to filet mignon. So when purchased this way, the price per pound was only marginally higher than similar quantities of regular grain-fed prices in local supermarkets, and a lot less than we pay for high-grade grass-fed or grain-fed meat.
In terms of taste, they found that grass-fed can be delicious and versatile, but it takes special care when cooking to make it especially good.
Cross says that "buying beef directly from local farmers is not only a logical next step in the "buy local" movement but also hearkens back to the way many of our parents and grandparents bought meat." One way to get involved in buying meat local is to sign up with a Community Supported Agriculture Group (CSA) where meat can be delivered on a weekly or monthly basis.
The Skinny on Grass-Fed Beef
While all cows do graze on pasture for the first six months to a year of their lives, many finish their lives in a feedlot on a concentrated mix of corn, soy, grains, and other supplements, hormones, and antibiotics. Finishing a cow on grass takes a lot more time to get to market weight than finishing them on grains. Therefore, conventionally grown meat is much faster to grow and costs much less in the supermarket. Nutritionally, grass-fed beef is "lower in calories, contains more healthy omega-3 fats, more vitamins A and E, higher levels of antioxidants, and up to seven times the beta-carotene."
While it's good to know that the number of US grass-fed beef producers is growing quickly (from 50 in 2002 to over 2,000 today), they face big challenges; "including higher operating costs, a shortage of processors, loose standards for the definition of grass-fed, a lack of consistent quality, and consumer wariness about taste and texture."
Meeting the Meat
When buying grass-fed beef, Cross learned that delicate veins of fat running through meat play a critical role in flavor and grade. Different cow breeds accumulate fat in different ways; therefore, its not just about the grass only, but the breed of the cattle matters as well.
Once the grass-fed beef is cut, it hangs in a cold locker while natural enzymes break down the tough muscle fibers and tenderize the meat. Conventionally grown beef is often aged in wet vacuum seals in order to prevent shrinkage.
Finally, she learned that when looking at the fat content on beef, there is a big difference in how the fat looks on differently raised cattle. Grain-fed cattle has the traditional bright white fat, while grass-fed cattle fat is yellowed by the higher amounts of beta-carotene.
The Bottom Line: Taste and Tenderness
The meat from the grass-fed cow, according to Cross, had "a good, clean beefy flavor but tended to be a lot chewier than we were used to, and sometimes drier." Since the lean, grass-fed beef does not have as much of the insulating fat, you have to cook it carefully in order to have it taste good. "Carefully", according to Cross, "means that tougher cuts like short ribs or brisket require the very-low-and-slow approach - long cooking at low temperatures."
Exercise: BREAK - today is a swim workout for freestyle. Next week I will be starting back up. This week has been just too exciting with the new baby born, my family getting home from vacation, and everything else.
Eat: Today I want to talk about three more vegetables: parsnips, radishes, and rhubarb. Parsnips contain fiber, potassium, vitamin C, and folate. Radishes have vitamin C in them. Finally, Rhubarb has vitamin K, fiber, potassium, vitamin C, and manganese.
Relax: Today I was able to get a bunch of stuff done in the studio during the morning and could watch today's episode of The Biggest Loser. It was sad as always but I still love the show!!
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