Slow and Low: How to Cook Grass Fed Scottish Highland Beef

I remember the first time I grilled steaks from our cows.  They were horrible.  Really, truly horrible.  I cooked them just the way I always did my grass fed steaks, on medium high heat for just a few minutes on each side, enough to sear the outside and leave the inside perfectly medium rare.  Overcooking a good steak makes it tough, right?  So I couldn't understand why these steaks were so tough!  Someone suggested that grass fed meat is just going to be tough and I could marinade it in Coca Cola or Sprite to help break down the fibers.  It seems this is a common practice to which I say, "UGH!  Why bother with good quality meat in the first place?" I could also make my roasts in the crock pot in a plastic roasting bag for easy cleaning (along with BPA , phthalates, and other plasticizers) with a packet of meat marinade (aka chemical shit storm).




Hmmmm.....

No.

But, after gnawing away unsuccessfully for a few minutes I decided to throw them back on the grill for a while and after cooking the steaks to what I would have previously considered incredibly over- done, they were not great, but at least edible.  The flavor was good and they were tender.

Since that time I have had quite a bit of practice and what I have discovered is that the meat from our cows is quite different from even the best quality grass fed beef I used to purchase at the co-op.  It is denser, richer, and not as lean as what you would typically expect from grass-fed  Most cooking sites will tell you that grass fed beef is leaner than conventional beef but this is a generalization.  The amount of fat and the overall texture of the muscle will vary greatly from herd to herd, not only because of different food sources but also because of variance in breed, climate,  and lifestyle of the animals.  I guess our Scottish Highland cows have a pretty laid back life because their meat has some really nice marbling.  The quality and flavor of the fat is different as well.  Even though there is a nice amount of flavorful fat in our cuts, the fat does not render the same as beef from other sources I have used.

To get the most flavor and tenderness out of our Scottish Highland beef I have had to disregard everything I used to know about cooking beef.  Slow and low is the way to go and I cook my steaks to more "doneness" than I used to.  To get a really tender and tasty steak you really need to cook it slowly to medium well.  Otherwise it's going to be tough and fatty.  I know, I resisted too.  Everyone I know who likes their steaks rare or medium rare has trouble with this point but you just have to trust me on this one.

Cast Iron on top of the wood burning stove - yum!

Here are my tips for a perfect steak or roast:

1)  Thaw at room temp before you put it on the heat.  After you have completely defrosted the meat overnight (or longer) in the refrigerator, set it out on the counter for 20 minutes to an hour.  The amount of time you leave it out will depend on the size of your cut.  You will need more time for a 5 lb. roast to come to room temp than a 1 inch steak.

2) Cast iron is best. Stainless steel is an acceptable second choice.  Teflon coated or other non-stick pans?... Nope!

3) Bones add flavor.  When I was pinching pennies I always bought boneless cuts.  Who wants to pay for the weight of a bone?  But a cut of meat with the bone attached will have more flavor than one without.  When you can,  cook meat on the bone.  I save the bones, throw them in a crock pot with water, some cider vinegar , onions, carrots, celery, and a few seasonings and let it cook for at least a day - sometimes up to 3 days. Strain this into jars or just pick out the bones and you have made your own amazing and nutritious bone broth.

2) Always sear.  For steaks, start with a med/high heat and just a few minutes on each side before reducing the heat.  I like to put a layer of salt & pepper on the meat before searing but you could make up a seasoning rub with just about any dried spices or herbs that you like.  For a roast, sear all sides before putting it in the roaster or crock pot, especially on the side with that nice layer of fat.  Let it start to render.  Add a little broth, wine or water to your pan to help scrape up the brown bits and pour that into the roaster.

3) I have had great luck with my steaks in the broiler.  I like them even better than on the grill.  I use a cast iron pan and sear one side on the stove top.  Then I flip the steak and put the pan under the broiler.  My broiler doesn't have a low setting but I can reduce the heat by putting it on the lowest rack, far away from the heating element.  If you like it a little crustier you can always move it higher for the last few minutes of cooking time.

4)  Cooking time varies by cut, thickness, starting meat temp, and other factors.  Don't rely on a set amount of time.  Never walk away from a steak.  Pay attention, check in, and test for doneness by pressing on the steak.  It's firmness will tell you how tender it is.  This might take a little practice to learn how it feels when it's just right for you but, again, too many variables for a one size fits all description.  Please,  I beg you, do not check for doneness by cutting into the steak.  Much of the juices will drain out and your steak will not be as good as it could have been.

5)  Cook slow & low.  This gives the fats time to break down and distribute their flavor into the meat. A higher heat can cause the fibers of the meat to contract, making it tough.

5) Let it rest.  Give the meat a good 10-20 minutes, again this depends on the size of the cut you are working with.  During this time the rendered fats and juices will be distributing and cooling in the fibers of the meat where they will impart their juiciness and delicious flavor.  Don't worry, did you know that new science shows that fat from healthy, grass fed animal sources is good for you?  It is! And it's delicious.  So enjoy!

*Note:  If you are following a favorite beef recipe you might try just dialing back the cooking temp and upping the cooking time a bit.  This has worked for me with recipes from cookbooks and other blogs.  For my first Prime Rib I used a recipe from the Complete America's Test Kitchen cookbook which is, by the way, the absolute best cookbook ever.  Everything I've made from it has been the bomb.  It turned out fantastic but I did cook it on 250 for almost 5 hours.

This handsome fella is D3.  

Give Your Furnace the Cold Shoulder

It’s October and temperatures have dropped quickly here in Wisconsin.  In just a few days we went from overnight lows in the 60’s to lows in the 40’s.  The cattle are frisking about the pasture, absolutely joyful to have a break from the summer heat and humidity.  The pigs cannot get enough to eat as their instincts are telling them it’s time to start packing on the fat (they don’t know that Mike the Butcher is coming tomorrow).  Many of my friends are posting on Facebook that they have given in and have turned on their furnaces or that they are thinking about it. Even though I am the personification of the term “Freeze Baby” and there are few things I love as much as a fire in the wood stove, I am not ready to give in just yet.  

Not much comes easily here and we don’t take much for granted.  The other day, we were talking about firewood with some friends, fellow farmers.  Someone said, “It’s not like it grows on trees.”  Well, literally speaking, yes it does but it takes time and energy to cut, haul, and stack.  Or you shell out the hard earned dough to pay someone else to do it.  So, even though I am the first one to complain about being cold, I will be one of the last to light a fire in the wood stove or turn on the heat.  No, I won’t be walking around my house bundled up in outerwear.  Socks and a sweatshirt?  Sure, but no abominable snowman attire needed.  Here are the little things we do the keep the cold at bay for a few more weeks and keep fuel usage in the coldest days of winter.

Take advantage of the daytime sun. 

Open curtains and blinds on East facing windows in the morning and on West facing windows at night.  Close the blinds when the sun isn’t shining directly in.  I am constantly amazed at how much heat the house picks up from the sun, even on really cold days, when we do this.

Close doors. 

My son lives with me for a week, then with his dad for a week.  When he is not here, his bedroom door is closed.  We also have a small room at the front of the house we call the “summer kitchen”.  It has large windows and protrudes from the living space so that it is less sheltered by rest of the house.  The door separating this room from the rest of the house is closed at night and open it in the morning while the sun is shining in, allowing the warmth that gathers in that room to flow through the house.  At the top or bottom of staircases many homes have doors.  We have a heavy curtain at the top of the steps.  I open or close the curtain to regulate the temp between the upper and lower levels as needed. 

Get in the kitchen.

In the summertime I do not cook pot-roast. I buy my bread and cookies and other baked goods from the Amish bakery down the road or the Co-op.  Now that the weather has cooled it’s time bring the roasting pans, cookie sheets and crock-pot up from storage in the basement.  During the early fall when days that are warm and nights are cool, I bake cookies, cakes, crisps, bread, and other baked items in the evenings.  Crock-pot oatmeal adds a little overnight heat and takes the chill off the morning air.  Later in the season I will add crock-pot meals on weekdays when I am not home to come home to a ready meal and a warm house.  On work from home and weekend days I will simmer soups and sauces, make stock from the bones I freeze all year long, and slow cook roasts, whole chickens, and ribs.  I will pull the produce that I froze earlier in the fall from the freezer for canning, adding both heat and moisture to the dry, cold winter air.

Some of these things may seem simple, “no-brainers” for many of you.  But I never thought of these things when I lived in an apartment in the city.  I didn’t need to.  I just turned on the heat when I got cold.  Opening and closing doors and curtains is about as simple as it gets.  If you are going to cook anyway why not make the most of it? Maybe you’re not a baker or don’t love to cook.  Crock-pots are excellent tools for those who don’t love to cook or think they don’t have the time and there are many simple recipes that just take a few minutes of prep time.  These simple measures can reduce your fuel usage, reduce your heating costs, and reduce your carbon footprint.  Please share your simple ideas in the comments below!