Let's Grind Some Meat!

Thanks to my dear friend, Scarlett (not her real name), I am now deathly afraid to eat ground beef from fast food restaurants, or even the grocery store. I want to be sure just exactly what part of the cow (or pig) I am eating. This really put a damper on my summer barbecuing. I usually love fixing burgers. But not this year. I have been planning to begin grinding my own meats but had not had the tools to do so. Until now. The pasta extruder, I got for Gladys, includes a food grinder. Woo hoo! Here she is, wearing the latest attachment.


And here is my victim. This week's special at Market Place, a 3 lb. Beef Rump Roast.


Grinding meat with the KitchenAid is ridiculously easy. Here is the very first ground beef making its exit. Squee!!! (I don't know why I'm getting such a kick out of this?)


I did have one minor hiccup when I foolishly fed some grisly stuff in and it gummed up the works. It was kind of like trying to grind a rubber band. I had to dismantle the grinder, remove the nasty stuff, and I was right back in business. Here is my lovely bowl of ground beef. No noses, ears, innards....or other questionable additions.


I used my Freecycle vacuum sealer to get the beef all ready for the freezer. I have two 1 lb. packages and two 1/2 lb. packages.


And here is another Freecycle find, a genuine Foley mill. As my friend Kristine would say, this one has been well trained. It does have a bit of rust on it, but I think it will be just fine. And you can't beat the price. I'll clean it up with steel wool and give it a rub down with some food grade mineral oil.


I leave you with a gratuitous shot of tonight's dinner. No, the pork chop is not bloody. I like to douse my pork chops (and fried chicken) with a liberal sprinkling of hot sauce.