Grilling Pastured Meats

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Grilling Pastured Meats

UPDATE: Ned Sayre of Deer Creek Beef sent us his additional thoughts regarding our article. For his comments, see below.

Yes, Maryland (and Virginia), there is a difference.

Even if you think you’ve got steaks on the barbie down to a fine science, the fundamental difference between the food chemistry of pastured or grass-raised meats vs. corn or grain-fed will flare up big time on the grill.

Worse yet, without knowing the best way to grill your meats, you might be disappointed with the fine product you probably just spent a pretty penny on. And that’s something farmers want to avoid. This is why many producers of grass-fed or pastured meats offer tip sheets with their meats. A successful dinner means you’ll be back for more.

Steaks and burgers, beef and bison.

A whole range (so to speak) of grass-fed meats is now available; lamb, chicken, pork, emu. Today, we’re talking mostly about steaks and burgers, beef and bison.

For this quick overview, we’ve pulled together information from several places. One excellent source comes via Jerry Pellegrino of Corks Restaurant in Baltimore. A grilling aficionado, he mentioned on his show, “Radio Kitchen,” (Tues. mornings, WYPR) a book by Shannon Hayes. “The Farmer and the Grill” discusses in depth Shannon’s own search for the best way to grill her meats. Her culinary journey even took her to Argentina, famous for its range beef. You can buy the book at her site, GrassfedCooking.com.

Another source: S.B. Farms. We picked up a pound of bison meat, which is extremely lean, and followed Bill Edwards’s tips. Gotta say, those burgers on the grill elicited wow’s.

Ten Facts and FAQs about Grassfed Grilling:

1. Why grassfed meats are different and what that means for grilling. They’re often leaner, have more robust muscle tissue and a less bland, “meatier” flavor. Makes sense; the animals spend their time moving and browsing, eating grasses rather than grains. But less fat, more muscle tissue, means the meat can toughen quickly on the grill.

2. Cook at a lower heat, to a lower internal temperature. Grassfed chefs recommend internal temperatures that range from 120 to 140ºF, versus the USDA recommendations of 145 to 170º (160º for ground meat). Again, overcooking dries the meat and makes it too chewy. If you like meat well done, a lower heat will help here too. Sorta.

3. What about the dangers of – gasp! – pink meat? Well, farmers of grassfed meats point out that their animals have a dramatically reduced risk of bacteria such as E.coli. This is good news for those of us who love medium rare.

4. For good steaks, two kinds of heat. Our sources recommended having two kinds of heat available: a high heat for a quick sear, and then removing the meat to an indirect, lower heat for cooking or bringing to temperature. This is a snap with a gas grill, where you can adjust your flame by area. For smaller grills, here’s what worked for us: We seared our steaks at super hot heat on the stove in our cast iron pan, then did a slow cook on the grill. Yum, perfect.

Waiting carnivores

5. Which cuts of meat take best to high, quick direct heat? Very few: burgers, hangar steaks, London Broil/flank steaks and skirt steaks.

6. Know your meats as much as you can. Every steer will be different, every cut different, every farm different. Even Delmonicos from a tougher animal can be chewy unless you’re very careful. We like the fact that our beef provider dry ages his beef for three weeks before freezing, and that his breed tends to have a higher fat content.

7. Use a thermometer, and expect that it’s going to take a little longer. “Bringing a steak to temperature” took us almost a half-hour on the grill, far longer than we were used to for a cornfed porterhouse.

8. Don’t bring the meat to the fire until the fire is hot. Even if you're in a hurry; it’s too easy to overcook the meat.

9. To marinate or not to marinate? With some cuts, marinades and spice rubs can be extra helpful — including sirloin, sirloin tip and round. Shannon Hayes recommends making your own marinades or spice rubs for seasoning; “throw out that store-bought barbecue stuff.” We found loads of good spice rub recipes online.

10. Learn your cuts, too. Your most tender cuts will be tenderloin, porterhouse, t-bone, strip steaks and rib eye steaks; requiring the two-step process. Budget cuts: sirloin, tri-tip, london broil and flank, skirt and chuck will benefit from marinades. A newbie to all of this? Try some burgers. For beef, use medium heat, four minutes per side. Bison, try searing on both sides, then flip and cook two minutes more. SB Farms recommends rare to medium rare burgers for best taste.

Bottom line: Light touch, low temp, low flame. Above all, enjoy! The flavor’s amazing.

Reader's Response:

Dear Chesapeake Foodie:

I liked your page on grilling tips – many are true for grain finished beef as well. Just a word about e.Coli. It is present in most, if not all animals – pastured or otherwise, and as such it is present in the butcher shop. It is carried on the surface of the meat, not internally in the tissue. When whole muscle cuts, steaks, roasts, etc are cooked, the surface temp is high enough to kill the bug, while the inside stays nice and rare. The problem with ground products is that surface area then gets chopped up and mixed all throughout a batch, meaning the internal temperature must be raised high enough to kill it during cooking. With small producers raising and feeding their animals at one location and not intermingling cattle from multiple herds, and then having them processed individually or in small groups, there is a lessened risk of the ground products being contaminated. As you know, the key is knowing and trusting where your food is coming from, not particularly what its diet was.

Ned Sayre, www.deercreekbeef.com