Drying Meat

Drying Meat

Drying Meat

Easy Tips for Choosing Quality Meats

For most folks, meat is an important part of their balanced diet. Meat provides protein and vitamins along with zinc, iron and other nutrition factors. Although it's easy to just pick up any old steak or pork chop from the meat department of your grocery store, knowing what to look for when choosing meats is an important part of being an informed consumer.

Here are some tips on how to choose quality meat and how to properly store it after you bring it home.

How to Choose Quality Veal

Look for veal meat that is grayish pink, with a firm texture with very little fat and no marbling. The bones should be porous, soft and red.

How to Choose Quality Beef

Look for beef that is firm and slightly moist with a fresh red color. It should be well marbled with fat, but don't judge the quality of the beef by the color of the fat itself. When choosing ground beef you may find some are a brownish color, or turning a brownish color. Pass on this meat and make certain it is a red color throughout.

How to Choose Quality Lamb

Quality lamb is pinkish red and firm with little marbling and little fat. The color of the fat will vary with the age and breed of the animal. The color turns darker as the animal grows older. The lighter the color, the more tender the lamb.

How to Choose Quality Pork

Choose cuts of pork with more lean meat than fat and bone. A good cut of pork will be grayish pink and the flesh feels relatively firm. It should be well marbled and covered with firm white fat.

How to Store Meat

Meat should be immediately refrigerated or frozen after it's purchased. If you plan to divide it up and freeze portions, try to do so as soon as you can. If you store meat in freezer bags, try to remove as much air from the bag as possible. Label the meat and include the date you froze it.

The length of time meat can be frozen varies greatly, but beef will generally keep longer than pork. Roasts, steaks and chops are good for four to six months, hamburger for three to four months. Any freezer burning that occurs does not necessarily mean the food is inedible. The taste will be tougher and dry and it is best to cut off the freezer burn portions. If the entire meat is freezer burned, toss it.

How to Thaw Meat

The best way to thaw meat is in the refrigerator. While you can use the defrost cycle of the microwave, the meat will tend to lose some of its flavor. Small portions can be thawed overnight. Plan ahead and give yourself plenty of time to defrost your meat before your meal. Never refreeze meat. When you thaw out your meat, make plans to cook it that day or the next.

Knowing how to choose quality meat will help your meals taste better, go farther, and save you time and money in the long run.

A Guide to Canning, Freezing, Curing & Smoking Meat, Fish & Game
A Guide to Canning, Freezing, Curing & Smoking Meat, Fish & Game
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This no-nonsense guide to canning, freezing, curing, and smoking meat, fish, and game is written in down-to-earth, informative, everyday language. The third edition of this perennial bestseller is completely revised and updated to comply with the latest USDA health and safety guidelines. Includes dozens of delicious recipes for homemade Beef Jerky, Pemmican, Venison Mincemeat, Corned Beef, Gepockelete (German-style cured pork), Bacon, Canadian Bacon, Smoked Sausage, Liverwurst, Bologna, Pepperoni, Fish Chowder, Cured Turkey, and a variety of hams. Learn tasty pickling methods for tripe, fish, beef, pork, and oysters. An excellent resource for anyone who loves meat but hates the steroids and chemicals in commercially available products.

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  • ISBN13: 9781580174572
  • Condition: New
  • Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! BUY WITH CONFIDENCE, Over one million books sold! 98% Positive feedback. Compare our books, prices and service to the competition. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed
Smokehouse Products Big Chief Drying Screens
Smokehouse Products Big Chief Drying Screens
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Quality drying screens designed for use with Smokehouse Big Chief Smokers.

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  • Designed for use with Big Chief Smokers
Volume 5: Fruit and Fruit Desserts; Canning and Drying; Jelly Making, Preserving and Pickling; Confections; Beverages; the Plann
Volume 5: Fruit and Fruit Desserts; Canning and Drying; Jelly Making, Preserving and Pickling; Confections; Beverages; the Plann
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Description

This volume, the fifth of the Woman's Institute Library of Cookery, deals with the varieties of fruits and the desserts that can be made from them, the canning and preserving of foods, the making of confections of every description, beverages and their place in the diet, and every phase of the planning of meals.With fruits becoming less seasonal and more a daily food, an understanding of them is of great value to the housewife. In Fruit and Fruit Desserts, she first learns their place in the diet, their nature, composition, and food value. Then she proceeds with the preparation and serving of every variety of fruit. Included in this section also are fruit cocktails, those refreshing appetizers often used to introduce a special meal.To understand how to preserve perishable foods in the seasons of plenty for the times when they are not obtainable is a valuable part of a housewife's knowledge. Canning and Drying deals with two ways of preserving foodstuffs, treating carefully the equipment needed and all the methods that can be employed and showing by means of excellent illustrations, one of them in natural colors, every part of the procedure followed. The fruits and vegetables that permit of canning, as well as certain meats and fish, are taken up in a systematic manner.Jelly Making, Preserving, and Pickling continues a discussion of the home preservation of foods, showing how they can be kept for long periods of time not by sterilization, but with the aid of preservatives. Each one of these methods is treated as to its principles, equipment, and the procedure to be followed. After trying the numerous recipes given, the housewife will be able to show with pride the results of her efforts, for nothing adds more to the attractiveness and palatability of a meal than a choice jelly, conserve, marmalade, or jam.Confections deals with that very delightful and fascinating part of cookery--confection making. Not only are home-made confections cheaper than commercially made ones, but they usually contain more wholesome materials, so it is to the housewife's advantage to familiarize herself with the making of this food. Recipes are given for all varieties of confections, including taffies, caramels, cream candies, and the confections related to them. Fondant making is treated in detail with illustrations showing every step and directions for making many unusual kinds.Though beverages often receive only slight consideration, they are so necessary that the body cannot exist very long without them. In Beverages is discussed the relation of beverages to meals, the classes of beverages, and the preparation of those required by the human system, as well as the proper way to serve them. In addition to coffee, tea, cocoa, chocolate, and cereal beverages, fruit, soft, and nourishing drinks receive their share of attention.To be a successful home maker, it is not enough for a housewife to know how to prepare food; she must also understand how to buy it, how to look after the household accounts, what constitutes correct diet for each member of her family, how to plan menus for her regular meals and for special occasions, and the essentials of good table service. All these things, and many more, she learns in The Planning of Meals, which completes this volume.

Victorio Digital Food Dehydrator
Victorio Digital Food Dehydrator
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This is an energy efficient, precision, fast drying,versatile dehydrator! Free Flow drying chamber dehydrates fast using less electricity than leading brand dehydrators. The precision digital temperature and shut off timer allow you to take full control over the way you dehydrate your foods. One of the quietest dehydrators on the market.

Features

  • 530 Watts of energy efficient, quick drying power (120 volt)
  • Dual digital Temp display, allows precise dehydrating from 86 degrees F to 176 degrees F
  • Includes 6 Trays, Each tray has 2 height options, Low (1/2") or HI (1")
  • Includes 2 Fruit Leather Trays and 2 small drying screens for herbs and spices
  • 72 Hour digital timer with Automatic shut off, expandable up to 20 Trays
3-Tier Jerky Drying Rack (070155W)
3-Tier Jerky Drying Rack (070155W)
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3-Tier Drying Rack Includes 3 Non-Stick Stackable Racks and a Baking Pan

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  • Found in At Home > Kitchenware > Utensils > Baking
Don Holm's Book of Food Drying, Pickling & Smoke Curing
Don Holm's Book of Food Drying, Pickling & Smoke Curing
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Description

You can learn the EASY way to dry, smoke, pickle any meat, fruit, or fish with the easy-to-follow directions in this food preservation cookbook. There is also information about the type of equipment needed plus delicious and unusual recipes, including jerky and pemmican.

Fresh Is Best Freeze-Dried Raw Alaskan Salmon Dog and Cat Treats
Fresh Is Best Freeze-Dried Raw Alaskan Salmon Dog and Cat Treats
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Description

Fresh Is Best's freeze-dried treats enter the preparation process frozen, then are allowed to dry at low temperatures stretched out over a period of days. This process allows for maximum nutrient retention of the raw product. Many so-called freeze-dried treats are processed quickly in a day or less at temperatures exceeding 180 degrees Fahrenheit, effectively cooking the product. This defeats the purpose of freeze-drying, as enzymes and other essential nutrients begin to deteriorate at 118 degrees Fahrenheit.

Features

  • 100% USDA human grade Wild Alaskan Salmon, and 100% grain-free!
  • Perfect for training, treats, or meal supplementation
  • Crumble easily to add a tasty flavor to your pets food
  • One bag is equivalent to one pound of raw product
  • Great for feeders of raw food - treats can be combined for a tasty, balanced meal while on the go!
Smokehouse Products Little Chief Drying Screens
Smokehouse Products Little Chief Drying Screens
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Quality drying screens designed for use with Smokehouse Little Chief Smokers

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  • Designed for use with Little Chief Smokers
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