Why can't I get "ground beef" dishes right? (best, meat)

[Missy2U]

I've found a few things.

I only buy 80/20 or even 70/30 if I can find it - I don't even like 85/15. I add it to the dish last if possible (if not and it's in something that needs to simmer a long time, as long as it's simmering in liquid, it turns out fine). When I brown it, I don't overwork it - I don't keep breaking it up endlessly until it's in tiny, tiny pieces that look like, well, taco bell beef for lack of a better analogy like tiny, tiny, tiny pebbles - it is in a big bigger pieces, pea sized or a even a tiny bit bigger, I'd guess.

I've also found that different brands make a big difference as well - that chub of ground beef that I can get in the red tube I refuse to use - we find the taste and texture terrible. I use my store brand instead.

[momtothree]

I get my own meat ground up at the store. I find most store ground regardless of fat content too firm or the taste is off personally.

OP, try the grass fed or bison. It's probably closer to the texture and taste you are used to from your country. Or buy the meatloaf mix, pork veal beef. That's what I use for Italian/tomato/simmer sauces

[burdell]

Originally Posted by syracusa

...but the consensus seems to be that this is only for whole-chunk meats, not GROUND meat.
Is that correct?

I am trying to figure out why my GROUND meat always come out gritty/hard/pebbly despite endless hours of simmering on low.

Poster above argued that it's exactly because I simmer it so long that it hardens.

Try not sautéing the ground meat with the onions, get the sauce going and braise the ground meat in the sauce. It sounds like that pebbly texture may be from browning the meat.

[syracusa]

I just wanted to say thank you all so much!

Lots of good tips that point to the things I was doing wrong.
Cooking it too long (simmering), sauteing with onion, breaking it apart in very small pieces, getting the leaner grounds as anything lower than 90/10 felt like I was clogging up my family's arteries, etc. :-)

I continue to be amazed at how many small details you have to know to get one basic, pitiful dish really right.
Just following a recipe (that usually doesn't include those small, all-important details) never worked for me.
The only dishes that I can do well are those that I saw a "successful someone else" doing, step by step (usually my mother, grandmother or some of my mother-in-law's - but not all, as I never seem to be able to replicate what she does, even if I stare step-by-step).

When it comes to beef, really, the meat I have had in the US performs clearly better than what I was used to at home. My parents usually avoid beef there because a lot of it is tough. The only one I know that is really nice is a young cow/almost veal-shank my mom is using in a soup (I would have a hard time wasting such a nice piece of meat on a soup here though).

Otherwise, we virtually never had beef steak, only pork. When my father came to visit, he wanted nothing to do with beef because he thought it was the same like the one at home - but then he had a steak at someone's house and was blown away. He never thought a beef cut could be this flavorful and tender.
Now ... whether the cattle raising methods are orthodox or not (in terms of hormones, feed, etc), that I don't know anymore - but the best-tasting beef I have had is in the US.

The trouble with the ground meet is not the quality, it's what I am doing to it.

I will take into account all of the above tips when I use it in the next dish and will report back - hopefully it will be useful for other ground beef novices like myself. :-)

[Zen88]

You can also soften ground beef or any mixtures of ground meats by mixing in wet bread. As you mix, it melts right in. You can also add Ricotta cheese (but not too much or it falls apart) if appropriate, like for Italian meatballs. I use a little less than one of those small ricotta containers for 3 lbs of ground beef.

[newcomputer]

If you are putting the meat into the skillet straight from the package, I find that the extruded (spaghetti like) bits cook into hard pieces, especially if you're using a very lean mix. I put mine in a plastic bag and massage until it no longer has that just came out of the grinder look. Then take the meat out of the bag and drop by forkfuls into the skillet.

Using chuck and/or adding pork or ground chicken or a little bread and milk as suggested will also give you a more tender bite.

[mainebrokerman]

like a good woman,,,a good burger has some marbling for character


buy 85% lean or if you can go to a butcher shop or smaller iga store buy the real ground chuck

burger is different depending on where you buy it,,,don't buy any "chubs" don't buy any burger from Walmart (they don't grind fresh instore its all shipped in from miles away

even supermarkets beware,,,,,many are using a pre-determined fat/lean ratio stock called "tube" burger they still grind it at store level, but it is part of a million pound batch out west....

if you buy LEAN it will be dry and rubbery .....

the fat wont kill you if you use 80-85%

id also suggest not buying the 70,73, 75 % leans ...too much fat(the burger will shrink in half) in these and again,,,its part of million poind batches

ive been a butcher for over 30 years, was a meat manager in a supermarket for many years and also worked in independent stores for many years .....


again,,,buy GROUND CHUCK from a butcher shop or smaller independent store,,,they still use the fresh real deal,,,steak trimmings...


some stores you can ask the butchers to grind the lead sale item steaks and roasts ,,,and they will for free-if chuck roasts come on sale for 3.99lb or less,,,ask them to do this

[lubby]

it's being cooked too long and you need to use fatty ground beef like 80/20

[Zen88]

Your swedish meatballs are excellent!!

[hellpaso]

Yep. Use 80/20, aka "ground chuck ". You'll be amazed at the difference.