Grass Fed Beef
If you have ever eaten venison or real grass fed steak you might have experienced flavor beyond what you are used to. People refer to this as “gamey”. As a deer hunter and advocate of local eating I am quite accostomed to eating “gamey” meat and have come to enjoy a taste that I like to describe as “rich”. This wasn’t always the case!
What Can You Do?
In my book “You Can Afford Grass-Fed Beef! – The ultimate guide to saving money by eating high-quality, local meat”” I urge you to try a variety of grass-fed beef sources to find one that suites your tastes, however this isn’t possible for everyone. Living in Western Pennsylvania I am spoiled with many choices when it comes to grass fed beef and Pennsylvania also happens to be a great place to hunt white tail deer.
Ok so maybe you jumped the gun without trying first and have a freezer full of gamey grassfed beef that you want to love, but just can’t get acclimated to that taste. Maybe you went hunting for the first time and can’t stomach the gamey flavors of venison. Before you bust out that dehydrator and turn it all into jerky I am going to share with you the secrets of removing gamey flavor from meat all while tenderizing and enhancing your meat.
Buttermilk To The Rescue!
The first step is to take a fork and poke many holes in your steak or cut of meat. Get a non-reactive bowl, I prefer glass or crockery, and simply soak your meat overnight in buttermilk in the refrigerator. If you don’t have buttermilk you can use whole milk combined with a few tablespoons of vinegar.
How Does It Work?
Buttermilk has had its lactose converted to lactic acid by probiotics. This lactic acid and protein enzymes that naturally occur in buttermilk will break down and tenderize the cellular walls of your venison or grass-fed beef all while removing the “gamey” flavor that many find off putting. Buttermilk also will add a unique flavor to your cut of meat that is all of it’s own. Soaking in buttermilk is the secret of many top southern chefs and is also great with chicken. Soaking a whole chicken in buttermilk prior to making fried chicken makes the difference between poor imitators and a true southern delight.
After The Soak
If you plan to grill or pan sear your cut of meat be sure to completely dry it out and let it raise to room temperature before cooking. Don’t try to grill a wet and cold steak! To let it warm up simply let it sit out on your kitchen counter for a few hours, don’t worry it’s a perfectly safe and chef approved method of preparing steak!
About That Beef. . .
I hope this simple technique will help you get more enjoyment out of your game meats and grass-fed beef. If you haven’t read my book yet: You Can Afford Grass-Fed Beef! – The ultimate guide to saving money by eating high-quality, local meat” please check it out. Many health gurus keep feeding us the lie that eating a healthy whole food diet has to be expensive. Actually it can be a lot cheaper and save you a lot of money if you do it the right way. I show you how to eat grass-fed beef that is actually a lot cheaper than conventional beef at your local grocery store.
By Nick LaDieu. Nick LaDieu is an author, blogger and podcaster. He runs the blog Save Our Skills and you can connect with him on facebook facebook.com/saveourskills or twitter @saveskills. Nick is a strong advocate of local food systems and back to basics living.
photo credit: devaburger
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This is a great tip now that deer season will be here soon. Thanks
Glad you liked it. Check out the author’s blog and podcast as well!
But can this be done with ground beef? I purchased some local grass fed ground beef from Whole Foods this week, and I DID NOT like the gamey taste of that burger! ICK!
Good question! I e-mailed Nick, I let you know when I hear back from him.
DId anyone ever get an answer on if you can get the gamey taste out of ground beef?
Hi Terry,
I wrote to the author of the book but never got an answer back. I can’t imagine that using buttermilk would work for ground beef. I think it would just end up a terrible mess.
-Mike
Soak the burger, same cure, next time buy grain,fed, tastes much better, and you can,get it all natural also.
Thank u for sharing!!
My Mom-in-law always added either smoked or reg. Paprika to ground venison. Give it a try with grass fed.
Just one thing..never, ever just set raw meat ‘out’ without covering it. I’ve seen house flies lay eggs on frozen hamburger within seconds of placing on a counter while bbq’ing. They are nasty little opportunists.
Love yor tips. Buttermilk is a powerful softener. I thought if it worked so well on chicken it might add flavor to a fish steak. Wrong! The buttermilk completely DESOLVED the fish. Nothing left but buttermilk soup!
To me, trying to take the “gamey” taste out of grass fed beef and more so the venison defeats the reason people like eating these meats. I feel society has become sterilized to the real taste of what foods are intended to taste like. It’s the same about people who say they don’t like fish that tastes “fishy”, fish is suppose to taste like fish. Just my own opinion.
I generally agree but some people just can’t get past the taste but still want the health benefits. My Wife didn’t grow up eating venison but has taken to it. I think it is because she is part Greek and lamb has always been a big part of her family’s traditions. I find lamb to be the gameiest of the readily available meats.
Hi! Can I ask? Can I marinade buttermilk with my beef for only 1 hour to get rid of the smell from my beef? Thank you! ❤️
The game taste is the reason to eat venison. Salt pepper and grill it, that’s all that needs to be done