Ground Beef

[CHH1023]

Is it just me or the fresh ground beef is pretty costly? It cost around $5~6 bucks (and expire within 2 days) and it usually only last 2 meals for me (I used it for spaghetti).

I noticed the "non" fresh ones (the one in the tube) were a little cheaper but I'm kinda afraid to buy it since I couldn't see the color of the meat.

Anyways, does anyone know what's the best way to cut down the cost for ground beef? like buy the ones that's about to expire and just put it in the freezer?

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

I never buy the factory packed ground beef for two reasons. 1- Usually it has the highest fat content. 2- Those are the packages that get recalled occasionally for bacterial contamination. When a store ground and packaged one gets recalled, it is usually for something like bits of the plastic extrusion blades having shed into the meat, which seems to me a much smaller risk than e. coli or other bacteria.

I picked up a home meat grinder on Freecycle so I could mince my own, but it did not work. I can mince with a knife and chopping board, though. That way I have more control over what goes into the meat and not have the exposure of a score of cows' flesh in one burger. If you have time to do that, you can choose which ever cut and grade you'd like. You can keep in or out as much fat as you like.

Over the years there have been many ways that people have extended the beef in things like spaghetti sauce or meatloaf. Textured vegetable protein is a dry soy product that rehydrates to a texture fairly close to ground beef. It is sold in all the major grocery stores. Just toss a quarter cup in with or without any meat. I recommend the smallest textured TVP that you can find. I prefer to rehydrate it in a small amount salted, spiced water before cooking it.

[CHH1023]

Originally Posted by Joan.of.the.Arch

I never buy the factory packed ground beef for two reasons. 1- Usually it has the highest fat content. 2- Those are the packages that get recalled occasionally for bacterial contamination. When a store ground and packaged one gets recalled, it is usually for something like bits of the plastic extrusion blades having shed into the meat, which seems to me a much smaller risk than e. coli or other bacteria.

I picked up a home meat grinder on Freecycle so I could mince my own, but it did not work. I can mince with a knife and chopping board, though. That way I have more control over what goes into the meat and not have the exposure of a score of cows' flesh in one burger. If you have time to do that, you can choose which ever cut and grade you'd like. You can keep in or out as much fat as you like.

Over the years there have been many ways that people have extended the beef in things like spaghetti sauce or meatloaf. Textured vegetable protein is a dry soy product that rehydrates to a texture fairly close to ground beef. It is sold in all the major grocery stores. Just toss a quarter cup in with or without any meat. I recommend the smallest textured TVP that you can find. I prefer to rehydrate it in a small amount salted, spiced water before cooking it.

I'm not so sure about TVP (it last longer but also expensive), I have tried it once and it was okay. I like my meat toooooo much. I usually get the 93% ground beef from food lion, it's $0.50~$1.00 cheaper if you get the 80% one..but that's just too greasy for spaghetti.

[irmanator]

I use pureed (in the food processor) kidney beans. No one can tell the difference.

[kork13]

Originally Posted by irmanator

I use pureed (in the food processor) kidney beans. No one can tell the difference.

....until a few hours later! phew! lol

I actually just don't even use meat in my sauces. I make a basic marinara all the time and skip the meat, and I've never missed it. When I do use ground beef for stuff, I typically buy the 80% lean, and just strain off the extra grease most of the way through cooking. Really, the only time I'll use the 95% lean is for stuff I can't do that with, like meatloaf and meatballs. And I'll second the "no ground meat from a tube" rule... Whether pork sausage, ground beef, or anything else, my gut has never thanked me for using it.

In general, however, beans and other legumes do replace meat pretty well in most recipes. I like to use lentils, because they're small and not terribly noticeable to people who don't normally like them, but they still provide good texture and bulk/heartiness. Plus, lentils (unlike most beans) do NOT need to be pre-soaked, which I absolutely love about cooking with them. They'll cook from being dry in ~40 minutes, and will absorb the flavors of whatever they're in. Lentils are a kitchen's unsung heroes. (/soapbox)

Otherwise, use chunkier vegetables, like large-diced tomatoes, carrots (surprisingly good in sauces), bell peppers, and pretty much anything else that strikes your fancy. Get creative, and you'll end up with some delicious ideas.

[kork13]

Originally Posted by Joan.of.the.Arch

I picked up a home meat grinder on Freecycle so I could mince my own, but it did not work. I can mince with a knife and chopping board, though. That way I have more control over what goes into the meat and not have the exposure of a score of cows' flesh in one burger. If you have time to do that, you can choose which ever cut and grade you'd like. You can keep in or out as much fat as you like.

Another option here is to select a cut of meat normally (like a chuck roast, bottom round roast, etc), and ask the butcher behind the counter to grind it for you. I've never met a supermarket butcher unwilling to do that for you, and you can even request a certain size of grind (think course, fine, etc). Plus, most places won't even charge you extra for the grind. They'll just re-label the recently-ground beef as a chuck roast, and priced the same as a regular chuck roast.

[marvholly]

WOW!!! The cost of ground beef is REALLY high for the OP. I live in metro Chicago and even the leanest goes on sale her for about $3 about 1x/month. Also, I have an abundance of independent markets where the sale price of 80% is usually around $2/lb.

I NEVER buy the tube stuff. I want to see the meat. There is WIDE/visible variation in the fat content even on the same %fat marked packages from store to store & even in the same store from week to week and sometimes day to day.

I do use TVP as an extender and also ground turkey. I do advance rehydrate the TVP. Also, I find I need to double the seasonings (except salt) w/ TVP or turkey. This past week I made meatloaf and used TVP, grated carrot and zuchinni as extenders: lower fat, added veggies (micro plane) - what can be bad???

I also make my pasta sauce w/o meat. I can always add later if I want. I have a batch of meat balls in the freezer right now and often have browned ground meat on hand for this and tacos or taco salad. But I usually just do a bunch of veggies.

Kork
I never thought about using lentils or beans as a meat extender. I will have to try this. It is also REAL healthy as a low fat, high protein, low GI source of some vitamins & fiber. Thinking of using 2/3 cooked beans chopped in the food processor. In my area any sale meat or fish that you ask the butcher to do additional work on (fillet, grind, debone & tie) costs a handling 'fee.' Used to be 0.20/lb but that was >7 years ago. No clue now.

[elessar78]

We pay extra for grass-fed beef and we order it during butchering season. It comes out to about $4.50/lb, which isn't cheap compared to the store bought stuff but I've read books about our food supply. The source of our meat isn't exactly healthy, what we feed it and how it is processed.

[marvholly]

CHH
Two of our national chain grocery stores have boneless chuck pot roast on sale this week for $2 or less/lb. Personally, I can grind this myself (have grinder & food processor). One store does charge extra (.20-.25/lb) to grind. Not sure about the other. I actually do like to grind my own because I control fat content and can add my onion, garlic, salt & pepper up front.

This would probably be a good time to try adding some beans or lentils to the mixture too.

[mrsmoneysaver]

We are fortunate enough to be able to raise our own beef. When feeding a family of 8, this keeps our grocery costs way down!

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

If only my less than 0.1 acre could support a cow, mrsmoneysaver! I'm curious as to how much per pound your beef works out to be if you include the costs you put into it. Do you pay a slaughterhouse/butcher or do your own?