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naraburns  nihil supernum  2yr ago (text post)   4607 thread views

Small-Scale Question Sunday for November 20, 2022

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Meat. How do you know you're getting the good stuff and not some ultra-processed slop filled with cheap, rotting bits o' this and that?

It seems like this choice is a spectrum.

On one hand, you have the raw stuff: steak cuts, chicken thighs, pork chops, etc. Things that look like meat. Here, you can discern quality by figuring out the origin.

On the other hand, you have spam and spam-like products. It's probably sat in that can for months. It's probably a mix of all sorts of meats and meat-things, along with a bunch of chemicals that aren't too good for your body.

But what's in between? Like, if I buy ham at the store, how can I discern whether it falls more into the ultra-processed category or rather into the raw stuff category?

(I'm trying to be more systemic about my diet and part of the equation seems to be minimizing ultra-processed foods. This is easy with stuff like chips, sweets, soda, etc. but not so much with meat.)

Edit: My thanks for the excellent advice!

I just stopped buying processed meat at all. Sometimes miss corned beef, but it made me realize that the majority of processed meats were just a byproduct of needing to store it without freezers. Like sauerkraut for the fall cabbage crop.

Honestly I'm going off of packaged meat entirely the way the quality of chicken has been dropping. DIYing the whole thing has kinda spoiled me on store bought stuff.

the majority of processed meats were just a byproduct of needing to store it without freezers. Like sauerkraut for the fall cabbage crop.

Well yeah. But the reason for developing those techniques doesn't change that they make meat delicious.

Eh, I've kinda gone off the salt content of stuff like bacon. Although right after posting I had some great Italian sausages, which tasted better than anything I cooked with a pig from the same litter, so who knows.

Hey, if you don't like it by all means don't eat it. We all have things we don't like, after all. I'm just saying even though the techniques of curing/smoking meat have outlived the need for food preservation, doesn't mean we should by any means stop doing it.

My two options are the following:

a) Buy expensive meat directly from local farmers where you can look the cows in the eyes or

b) Get whatever's convenient and don't look at all, just be glad it's something to eat.

Choices are usually dictated by the state of my wallet.

On the other hand, you have spam and spam-like products. It's probably sat in that can for months. It's probably a mix of all sorts of meats and meat-things, along with a bunch of chemicals that aren't too good for your body.

Hormel's Spam™ is perfectly fine meat made from pork rump and shoulder, salt, potato starch (to prevent the infamous gelatin at the top of the can), sugar and sodium nitrate. It really doesn't deserve the reputation it gets.

Of all the readily accessible preserved meats, Spam is probably the least processed option.

to prevent the infamous gelatin at the top of the can

But it's the best part of spam! I used to scoop it off every canful back when canned ham humanitarian aid was a thing in Russia.

It's also very good when cooked in a heavy skillet or flat top.

Yes. Slice, pan fry, enjoy.

Find a butcher you trust, get meat from them. How do you find a butcher you trust? That's a harder answer. I would look the quality of their meats, you should be able to tell visually to some extent (e.g. by looking at steaks for good marbling). Buy some and taste it, determine for yourself how good the product is. Get to know the butcher and talk to them about how they source meat. A good butcher will care about the quality of their product, and you should be able to pick up on that when talking to them.

All that said, I have a local butcher I trust and I don't always go to her shop to get meat. Sometimes I just get meat at the supermarket because I'm already there, and it's easier. But if you're concerned about the quality, finding a butcher you trust is the best way.

Good question, difficult answers. I’m assuming you’re in the US, because everyone on the internet is. This makes my number one tip more difficult: Find a butcher that still slaughters their own animals. If you generally like the quality of their meat, buy it. When in doubt, ask them.

More generally, buying things with a clear name definition can help. Parma, Black Forrest, etc. are protected and while that doesn’t guarantee everything, it might help.

Most generally, use your noggin. Ham, both dried and cooked (aka Prosciutto vs. Honey Glazed or whatever, should be from whole animal. I’m not going to get into what is healthier, but the difference between that and Bologna-style deli meat or any form of salami should be apparent in taste and texture. If it is mandatory, look at the label.

In general, meat that is not bought raw is probably quite a ways towards that processed label of yours. The one exception is air cured things, but even there, salts or lyes are often used to help in preserving. If you put some raw meat on a hook for 6 months, you’re probably not going to want to eat it.

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