Cooking tips for Grass-Finished Beef

THAW RIGHT.  Never use a microwave to thaw frozen beef. 
Rather, thaw in the refrigerator overnight or quick thawing, place the vacuum-sealed package in a bowl of cold water on the counter for no more than 30 minutes.

DON’T COOK COLD.  Do not cook it cold straight from the refrigerator.  Allowing it just enough time on the counter to approach room temp is preferred.

PINK IS BEST.  Grass-fed beef is ideal at rare to medium-rare temps. If you want well-done beef, it is best to cook at low temp in a sauce to add moisture–a slow cooker is ideal.

OIL & MARINADES.  Because the beef is low in fat, you can very lightly coat in extra virgin olive oil or other light oil for easy browning.  It will also keep it from sticking and drying out.  Very lean cuts, such as New York Strip, Sirloin and some roasts can benefit from a marinade.  Always marinate in the refrigerator.

TENDERIZING. You may want to further tenderize steak and you can use a Jaccard tenderizer, easily found on Amazon.com.  You can also coat a thawed steak in your favorite rub blend, put in a baggie, and pound with a mallet or rolling pin but don’t flatten, to tenderize and drive in the flavor.

PRE-HEAT.  Always pre-heat the oven, pan or grill first.  

TONGS!  Always use tongs, never a fork, to turn beef.

DON’T WALK AWAY.  Grass-fed beef cooks about 30% faster than grain-fed beef.  Use a thermometer to test for doneness and watch.  You can go from perfect to overdone in less than a minute.

KNOW WHEN TO STOP.  The meat will continue to cook after you remove it from heat, so pull it off the heat when it reaches a temp 10 degrees lower than your target.

REST.  Let beef sit covered in a warm place for 8-10 minutes after removing from heat to let the juices redistribute.

BURGERS.  When grilling burgers, use caramelized onions or roasted peppers toppings to add low-fat moisture to the meat.  Alternatively, and RECIPE HERE, cook your burgers in a skillet for a juicy and tender, super-lean burger.

STEAKS.  Pan searing on the stove is easy.  Sear your steak on both sides over high heat, then turn heat to low and add butter and garlic to the pan to finish cooking.

GRILLING.  Quickly sear the meat on both sides over high heat, then turn heat to medium or low to finish.  Baste to add moisture.

ROASTS.  Sear the beef roast first to lock in juices and then place in a pre-heated oven or a crock pot.  If using a recipe that does not specify grass-finished beef, reduce roasting oven temp by 50 degrees.

RIBS & SHANK/BONES:  These require long, slow cooking for an entree, but they are great for making bone broth!