Comments on: Why pay more for lean ground beef?

By: steve

steve — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 00:08:06 +0000

I buy the cheap ground beef cook it all in the skillet at once but drain all the excess fat off and its quite lean by then but I do add sliced onion and maybe a little ketchup. I got started doing this since I live by myself and have a package of beef sit in the fridge for a week and going bad before I can use it. I know a lot of you may be saying make patties and freeze them. It just never has a good taste when cooked like that.

By: Karen

Karen — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 17:22:12 +0000

Huh. I guess I’m WAY late to the party on this one. :)

Thanks for the tips everyone! I’ll never pay more for ground beef again!

Kacie – you’re right. I’m amazed! Thanks for the link!

By: Kacie

Kacie — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 15:59:43 +0000

OK, you will be amazed at this link: http://healthy.hillbillyhousewife.com/groundbeef.htm

So, the fatty stuff can actually be even leaner after a good rinse! Woohoo!

By: Kacie

Kacie — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 15:54:43 +0000

YES! I echo Joanna.

I’ve read studies that have shown the super-fatty meats can be reduced to lean by cooking, draining, and rinsing in cold water.

The rinsing is key if you’re going to freeze it, but it also significantly reduces the fat content.

You can buy the 25% fat stuff for WAY cheap and turn it into pretty durn healthy stuff. Srsly.

By: Suz

Suz — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 15:28:26 +0000

I was spoiled at a young age growing up on a farm and having our own meat. When it came time to have to buy my own, I had to learn how to make it stretch because of it’s cost. I’ve always drained and often patted my ground beef like you mentioned. I’ve never been able to get myself to pay the high prices on the leaner meat.

The only time I buy the leaner ground beef is when it goes on a great sale or in the clearance section and I always use the leaner meats for meatballs and meatloaf… things that you can’t drain and pat. Hope that helps.

Good post!

By: Annie Jones

Annie Jones — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 15:03:52 +0000

I take it a step further and actually cook ground beef in water, then drain it. Some argue this isn’t good for the plumbing (all the fat going down with the cooking water), but I’ve never had a problem with it. It’s a great way to cook a large amount of ground beef to portion into freezer containers for later use.

By: Michelle

Michelle — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 14:57:18 +0000

I boil my ground beef. Add it to a pan, cover in water and let it boil, while breaking it up til it’s no longer pink. Then you can drain all the fat that way.

By: joanna

joanna — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 12:46:26 +0000

I’ve found that rinsing the ground beef in water also gets rid of a significant amount of the fat, even after draining what you can off.