Cooking with 93 percent ground beef

[returntosender]

Lately ground beef with only 7 percent fat has been offered at a very reasonable price. It excites me to be able to buy it but I always end up with the same problem. Making it taste good and with moisture. Same problem every time I buy it. I googled it and it had advice in cooking it, the most appealing is with onions. But it is still tasteless and dry. I need to find a way to make it appealing. I noticed this time that no matter how I cook it or what I add to it it just doesn't taste like beef. Cooked it this time with a little olive oil, salt, pepper and onions, always the same outcome, sigh.
Does anyone have a supper recipe for this form of beef?
Thanks

 

[ewq1938]

Try adding some Oyster sauce. If you like spicy, add some Sriracha or those hot pepper seed pieces that people put on pizza.

 

[Sketcher]

Try adding a little minced garlic.

Most of what I cook with it is usually pasta, which will have a strong sauce to it. Stroganoff is very do-able. Spaghetti sauce also - add spaghetti or rotini noodles to the browned and seasoned beef and spaghetti sauce, bake it covered for a little while, then add shredded cheese (either white, or a combination of yellow and white) to the top, let that cheese melt. Jazz it up with mushrooms and/or black olives before baking if desired.

 

[returntosender]

Try adding a little minced garlic.

Most of what I cook with it is usually pasta, which will have a strong sauce to it. Stroganoff is very do-able. Spaghetti sauce also - add spaghetti or rotini noodles to the browned and seasoned beef and spaghetti sauce, bake it covered for a little while, then add shredded cheese (either white, or a combination of yellow and white) to the top, let that cheese melt. Jazz it up with mushrooms and/or black olives before baking if desired.

I've cooked it as a pasta filler but it still feels like I am chewing on tasteless cardboard. Its not easily masked. I like what you have said in your last sentence. I just wish it was a different consistency if that is the right word.
Its curious to me that it has no taste by itself. I might have to add dry beef soup to really guarantee that it is beef, lol.

 

[returntosender]

Try adding some Oyster sauce. If you like spicy, add some Sriracha or those hot pepper seed pieces that people put on pizza.

No peppers for me but I will try oyster sauce. I didn't know there such a thing, thanks.

 

[ewq1938]

No peppers for me but I will try oyster sauce. I didn't know there such a thing, thanks.

I hate the taste of Oysters but Oyster sauce has no off putting flavor and doesn't taste like an Oyster for some strange reason. It tastes like a version of Teriyaki sauce but a richer flavor. I use it in so many things including soups.

 

[Sketcher]

I've cooked it as a pasta filler but it still feels like I am chewing on tasteless cardboard. Its not easily masked. I like what you have said in your last sentence. I just wish it was a different consistency if that is the right word.
Its curious to me that it has no taste by itself. I might have to add dry beef soup to really guarantee that it is beef, lol.

Maybe add a little more salt and garlic. I grew up on Hamburger Helper so I do not mind it.

No peppers for me but I will try oyster sauce. I didn't know there such a thing, thanks.

A little of that goes a very long way. The only recipe I know that calls for it requires that it be cut with fish stock, and that was absolutely needed (shrimp recipe, no beef in it). Be ready to cut it with . . . something, I couldn't tell you what to use for beef.

 

[ewq1938]

A little of that goes a very long way. The only recipe I know that calls for it requires that it be cut with fish stock, and that was absolutely needed (shrimp recipe, no beef in it). Be ready to cut it with . . . something, I couldn't tell you what to use for beef.

It is a thick sauce so it is wise to use less at first until you figure out the right taste. It doesn't need to be cut if a small enough amount is used.

 

[returntosender]

80 percent is perfect to me except it isn't as healthy.
It got me to thinking that the taste must be in the fat since with little fat it has no taste.
Sort of like beef without the bone is not as tasty not to skip the subject, lol.

 

[returntosender]

I had oysters once in my life and I was told to swallow it whole. odd, so of course it would have no taste at all if you swallow it whole. Sorry, off topic.

 

[ewq1938]

80 percent is perfect to me except it isn't as healthy.
It got me to thinking that the taste must be in the fat since with little fat it has no taste.
Sort of like beef without the bone is not as tasty not to skip the subject, lol.

Fat does have flavor...some fat is good but too much isn't. I save the fat from when I cook meat, in a coffee cup in the freezer and add some to soups to enrich the flavor unless the soup already has some meat fat.

 

[returntosender]

Thanks for so much input. Next time I am at the store.......
I am open for any and all suggestions
Have a good night.

 

[returntosender]

Fat does have flavor...some fat is good but too much isn't. I save the fat from when I cook meat, in a coffee cup in the freezer and add some to soups to enrich the flavor unless the soup already has some meat fat.

My grandma used to do that. I am glad you refrig. it as it gets rancid fast. But then I think if I have to doctor it, especially with fat, I might as well buy a higher percent of fat. If I had a grinder I would grind up the fat from steaks in the hamburger but there again it is defeating the purpose. This beef I just bought looks as if it has absolutely no fat.

 

[returntosender]

Its amazing, two men that cook with expertise.
lol

 

[Occams Barber]

Lately ground beef with only 7 percent fat has been offered at a very reasonable price. It excites me to be able to buy it but I always end up with the same problem. Making it taste good and with moisture. Same problem every time I buy it. I googled it and it had advice in cooking it, the most appealing is with onions. But it is still tasteless and dry. I need to find a way to make it appealing. I noticed this time that no matter how I cook it or what I add to it it just doesn't taste like beef. Cooked it this time with a little olive oil, salt, pepper and onions, always the same outcome, sigh.
Does anyone have a supper recipe for this form of beef?
Thanks

It sounds like you're missing the texture of fat (the 'richness') and you need to add more to the basic beef to improve the taste.

I buy ground beef ('mince' in my language) about once a month and cook it using a basic recipe to which I can add variants.

Basically onions (essential), garlic (essential), diced red capsicum (bell pepper to you), diced carrots, diced greenish veg like pak choy or spinach or even cabbage. Fry the onions, beef and garlic in a big saucepan then throw in the other veg. Add a can of tomatoes (essential), a generous glug of dry red wine(essential) and a generous pinch of salt. You can also add a couple of generous tablespoons of passata or bottled spaghetti sauce to smooth out the texture. I often add a teaspoon of dry beef stock (an OXO cube). If it looks a bit dry add a little (half cup?) water. Simmer for at least an hour - preferably two.

Taste variants:
Sometimes adding a little spice will lift the taste. You choose your favourite:

• Curry powder, just a bit to give it some background. You're not making a curry. I often use a little curry in soups to give them a lift.
• Chili powder : again just a bit to lift the taste
• Worcestershire sauce: great for spiking up mince on toast
• Plain flour: if your cooked mix is a little watery either simmer off the excess water or add a couple of tablespoons of flour and cook for a few minutes. Flour is a thickener and will help give it a smoother 'mouth feel'

Serving variants
Once you've made up the basic mix you can use it in different ways:

• Spaghetti sauce: mix needs to be a bit moist (add a little water if needed) and top with parmesan
• Shepherds pie: pour mix into a baking dish and top with mashed potatoes (potatoes, milk, butter). Bake at around 200c* until potatoes start to brown here and there.
• Meat pie: A pie dish and pastry (shortcrust or puff) top and bottom. Bake around 200c* until pastry is golden. (30 to 45 minutes)
• Chili con carne: Add a can of red kidney beans and bump up the chilli content
• On toast: thick buttered toast topped with a mince

Then there's hamburgers, rissoles, Salisbury steak, stuffed tomatoes, stuffed mushrooms...

You're only limited by your imagination.
EDIT: * 200 deg celsius = 390 deg fahrenheit
OB

 

[musicalpilgrim]

80 percent is perfect to me except it isn't as healthy.
It got me to thinking that the taste must be in the fat since with little fat it has no taste.
Sort of like beef without the bone is not as tasty not to skip the subject, lol.

Don't buy into this wrong idea that fat is bad. This wrong info' was brought out in the 1970s.
Animal fat is good for you.
You need it, the brain needs it.
Listen to some videos on YouTube to explain the real science backed up by real research. The body needs real animal fat.
Food tastes better. Don't use any seed oils.

 

[Hazelelponi]

As the saying goes "fat is flavor"... and what you're missing is fat.

So add some...

Mix your beef with ground pork (50/50) and make Swedish Meatballs.
The Best Swedish Meatballs Recipe! | The Recipe Critic

Mix it with some Italian Sausage for Italian Meatball Sandwiches or meatballs to go into your Pasta Sauce..

Make it into a soup. Kansas City Steak Soup would do...
Comfort food: Kansas City-style steak soup has hundreds of variations

Add a bit of beef fat (to make it an 85/15 mixture) and turn it into a nice meatloaf...

Just replace your fat in various ways..

 

[SkyWriting]

Lately ground beef with only 7 percent fat has been offered at a very reasonable price. It excites me to be able to buy it but I always end up with the same problem. Making it taste good and with moisture. Same problem every time I buy it. I googled it and it had advice in cooking it, the most appealing is with onions. But it is still tasteless and dry. I need to find a way to make it appealing. I noticed this time that no matter how I cook it or what I add to it it just doesn't taste like beef. Cooked it this time with a little olive oil, salt, pepper and onions, always the same outcome, sigh.
Does anyone have a supper recipe for this form of beef?
Thanks

Try grinding bacon
Chopped yellow, green, red peppers.
Onions
eggs.

Basically make a meat loaf with lots of added vegetables, eggs, and some oatmeal.

 

[Tony B]

I cheat by using one of the pre-prepared bolognaise sauces from the supermarket or health food store.

I use a slow cooker to try and get the flavour from the sauce infused into the low fat mince during the 4 hour cook time. But I boost the flavour a bit by browning some chopped onion and chopped bacon first up and then browning the mince before mixing it all together with the sauce in the cooker.

I sometimes add a tablespoon of raw sugar or honey, and a tablespoon of mixed herb pasta sauce to give the sauce more body and zest.

Here's a copy of Jamie Oliver's Spag Bol recipe I just downloaded from his website....seems like it would be a tasty meal.

 

[mmksparbud]

Instead of salt, try using beef flavoring. I like the "Better than Bouillon" brand. Use it instead of salt on roasts and the chicken one for chicken. I hate anchovies, but, in stuff like this, even in tomato sauce, it does not add any fishy flavor, but an amazing flavor oomph. I was hesitant to try at at first, sounded nauseating and what if I ruined a whole batch of sauce? So I added a little to some sauce and then I ended up adding it to the whole pot. Always use it now, any left overs I freeze. It doesn't take much, you need to experiment to find your level of it. And use butter instead of oil. Or consider going up a notch on the fat, mix the 7% with some 20%--Experiment until you get the percentage that tastes better to you.