#083 Do You Ground Beef?
It will never be bland again
Ground beef is one of the most nutritious foods you can consume. No matter the fat %, it’s rich in protein and full of essential nutrients the body needs. However, it’s notoriously one of those foods people cook incredibly poorly, and I’ve never understood why. Why would you want to eat a plate of gray, bland ground beef? It just isn’t appetizing at all.
Sure, you could say it gets the job done, but you could also easily elevate ground beef into something so much more palatable and beautiful. Most people think enjoying meat is limited to having the blockbuster cuts of juicy bone-in ribeyes or fatty shanks. Well, you can actually make ground beef taste just as good, if not better.
The Proportion: The standard ratio of meat to fat is 80/20, meaning 80% lean beef and 20% fat. This gives a good base that you could use for just about anything. Incorporate too much fat and you’ll struggle to make patties (they’ll disintegrate) and it’ll be really greasy. Too little and it'll taste like cardboard.
Glorious Extras: If you’re struggling to incorporate organs in your diet, sneaking it into ground beef is a great way to do it. Ask your butcher if it would be possible to add chunks of liver, heart, and even bits of bone marrow in your ground beef. This boosts the micronutrient content significantly, and transforms a regular serving of minced beef into a superfood.
Now that you have your meat, here’s what you can make with your serving of ground beef:
1. Patties
Patties are perfect as your new lazy option. All you have to do is to simply roll it into a ball and cook. You could smash the ball of meat directly onto the pan if you wanted to, and make smashed patties. Don't overthink it. Throw some cheese, add some onions and before you know it, you've got something amazing going. You can even play around with seasonings, use unique cheeses and add different spices to elevate and change things up.
Forming Patties
Add garlic powder, salt, freshly cracked black pepper and season your mince
Form 150g patties, and make sure seasoning is incorporated well
Cook Patties
Get a pan on medium-high heat and coat well with ghee. Just before it starts to smoke, place the patties in the pan, and press down firmly
Cook for 2-3 minutes on one side. Flip, to reveal a beautiful sear
Throw the sliced shallots on the side, for it to slowly fry
Place a slice of gouda on every respective patty, and let it cook for 2-3 more minutes
2. Kebabs
Skewers and a grill are a match made in heaven. With kebabs, your imagination is the only limit. Squeeze minced meat into smaller balls of meat, and load them onto the skewer. Sandwich them with colorful peppers if you wish. MM's Koobideh Kebab recipe features in Optimal Fuel, and it's truly glorious. If you don't have a grill, you could also broil it in the oven, but the char on a grill elevates the flavor like nothing else.
Ingredients:
2lb seasoned lamb or beef (add any spices you want, could use harissa as a base)
50% tomato paste, 50% spicy pepper for marinade
Method:
Add minced meat & marinade sauce in a bowl
Knead until incorporated & make 8 balls
Spread evenly on middle part of skewer
Set skewers on grill and give them enough space
Keep turning the skewers to the temperature you like
3. Meatballs
The magic of meatballs is found in the details, primarily the combination of herbs and spices you use to season the meat with.
My rule of thumb for me is to go heavy on herbs and spices. This means a cilantro & garlic powder overdose. And throw in an egg too, because why not? It will also help bind it all together.
Biting into a meatball should be soft, yet explode with flavor. Incorporate the ingredients well and you can either pan sear, brown and cook in some sauce, or finish them in the oven.
Other notable options:
Making a shakshouka (minced beef with eggs, tomatoes, and various spices), a hearty beef stroganoff, making a chili beef taco, or even cooking some spelt pasta and doing a bolognese.
We’re Actually Not That Different
The solution to factory farming isn’t eating grass. The solution is to improve farming practices. Animals deserve a happy life. They deserve a diet and an environment as close to their natural biology as possible. Regenerative agriculture is the future.
Baklava Turkish Coffee Undefeated
It’s truly one of the best combinations out there. Don’t knock it until you’ve tried!
Affogato Lore
Affogatos should be decadent, never gluttonous. It's espresso with an injection of ice cream, not the other way around. Milk, cream, sugar, all with the punchiness of Italian espresso. Unlimited idea generator.
❋ A day on the green: how to host a tennis themed party
“From white linens to cane and rattan furniture, simple decor touches can recreate the fun and excitement of being court-side in any environment. Set on a manicured tennis court, these chic outdoor settings serve style in spades. Be inspired to host your own tennis themed soirée with these three winning style points.”
❋ Martha's 39 Best Kitchen Organizing Tips Will Help You Make the Most of Your Space
Kitchens should be aesthetic, but also incredibly functional. If you’re currently updating your kitchen, or want a reason to do so, these tips will come in handy. A hanging rack for your pans is a great one that will save you cabinet space, since pans don’t really stack too well. It’ll also look stunning, especially if you have nice stainless steel or copper pans.
On your kitchen island, you could also get a butcher block installed directly on top that would be your everyday cutting board. We talked about cutting boards and more in our latest piece for Patron Club, which marks part one of the Kitchenware Handbook series:
Ingredients
2 shots of Peet’s espresso (Cream Scura or Ricchezza are my go-to)
½ cup vanilla bean ice cream, melted at room temperature (see note)
ground cinnamon or cocoa, for serving
Instructions
Froth melted ice cream with a frothing wand or milk frother until foamy.
Prepare 2 shots of espresso in espresso cups large enough to accommodate the foam.
Spoon foam generously over each shot and dust with cinnamon or cocoa. Enjoy!
“Where a traditional affogato is ice cream topped with a shot of espresso, a Reverse Affogato is — you guessed it! — a shot of espresso topped with ice cream. Melted ice cream. That’s been whirled into a glorious cloud of vanilla bean-flecked foam. We’re talking about a cappuccino here, in essence, but it’s more special than that. It’s sweet, rich and aromatic — without diluting or detracting from the espresso, itself.”
❋ Why Butter Molds and Sculptures Are Everywhere Right Now
Butter molds are everywhere. For some reason, everyone seems to be enamored by sculptures made of raw butter, and this resurgence is a good omen. Whether it’s a conch shell or a beautifully shaped stick of butter, butter is making a comeback, in style.
“Pioneering chef and artist Laila Gohar, from whom many a lifestyle trend has sprung, has gone viral countless times over the last few years for her work with butter, transforming it into everything from disjointed sections of Michaelangelo’s David to chicken drumsticks to Ionic columns and the Venus de Milo, which she filmed herself casually smearing onto a piece of bread.”
Thank you for joining us on this beautiful Sunday ladies & gents 🥂
❋ Read our latest WARKITCHEN magazines:
❋ Get your copy of Optimal Fuel: Your Nutrition Playbook here. It's a cookbook and nutrition guide — all in one. All proceeds goes towards an outrageous amount of hearty ribeyes and raw honey!
❋ If you'd like to contribute an article or sponsor a future issue, simply reply to this email or send us a DM @TheWarKitchen 🤝
Adding us (rocky@warkitchen.net) to your contacts, or moving us to primary will make sure you continue receiving these emails. Connect with us on all our socials.
My (almost) daily bland ground beef has just been revolutionised. Great stuff