O Woe is Meat

As I walked passed a woman in front of the Lifeline Farm’s stand last Saturday at the Farmer’s Market, I heard her say, “I can’t afford to eat quality meat”.  It’s hard not to agree with her.  The meat that I feel good about eating can be very expensive.  So I did some research and gathered some facts and I am now able to share some good reasons to spend a little more to eat high quality (which often equates to “local” meat). 

The first is nutrition.  The fact is that when we eat an animal we are also eating what that animal ate.  If a cow has spent the majority of it’s life in a CAFO or Concentrated Animal Food Operation or in simpler terms, a feedlot, that cow has been pumped with antibiotics to keep it healthy in incredibly cramped quarters, it has eaten off the ground which is covered in feces and it has often been fed an unnatural diet heavy in grains which makes the animal grow bigger faster.  Meat from cows, chickens, pigs and lambs that are raised on a diet of grass has a much higher level of vitamins, antioxidants and healthier fats such as omega-3s which is then passed on to you when you consume aforementioned meat. Proof is often in the color.  For instance, the high level of beta-carotene from fresh grass can be witnessed in the bright orange yolks of the eggs laid by grass-fed chickens.  



Can you tell which one is from Jerome at the Farmer's Market and which one is from Target?
(Hopefully you can because I just realized this picture is terrible!)



The second is taste.  That $2.50 per pound chicken at the big grocery stores may be cheap but frankly, it tastes funky.  Mass-produced beef really just acts as a filler in recipes whereas a locally raised steak only needs a little salt and pepper to help it shine. It’s hard to describe this with words.  Challenge yourself to a taste test sometime so you can taste the difference yourself.

So now that you know some reasons why you should buy local meat, how do you manage it?  I've found that the best way to add high quality expensive local meat to our diet is to eat less of it. I'm no nutritionist but I know that we Homo sapiens simply don’t need as much meat as we currently consume. It doesn’t always have to be the star of the dinner plate.  When I plan my meals, I try to stick to a mainly vegetarian diet with about three or four meals a week that use meat.  And I confess, that meat sometimes consists of decadent bacon or sausage, highly flavorful ingredients that I don’t need of great deal of to have a tasty meal.  Also, try making meat one small ingredient in a multi-ingredient dish.  Check out my recipe on the Recipe page for Steak and Potato Salad, a great example of meat adding just one of the many mouth-watering flavors in a meal.

For great resources on finding locally raised, grass fed meat visit www.eatwild.com or www.localharvest.org.

Season of My Content

O Happy Day! It's Farmers Market season!  Last week a plethora of towns around our great state opened their gates to this season's markets giving all us winter-weary local food loving Montanans a much needed taste of fresh produce.  I know what you're saying. Yes, there's not an abundance of fresh food yet this time of year but look closely and you can always find something.  Since the markets are slower this a great time to spend a little one-on-one with the vendors.  If you don't know how to prepare something, ask.  I've received great advice about how to use an unrecognized vegetable or how to preserve those thirty poblanos I couldn't resist buying but can't possibly eat in one summer. 

Everyone has their favorite market but I have to say you can always find me at the Clark Fork River Market on Saturday mornings under the Higgins Avenue Bridge.  The selection here is staggering and since you can find baked goods, meat, cheese and eggs you don't have to wait for the growing season to kick in to start savoring our fabulous local flavors. You don't need a wad of cash when you get there. Last year I discovered that you can use your credit or debit card to buy tokens which can then be used at each vendor.  The tokens are good all year (and I think year after year) so you don't have to carefully plan how much money you'll spend each visit. Vendors even accept WIC vouchers and senior nutrition vouchers encouraging everyone to each locally and eat healthy.

The market also host live music and plenty of food carts.  You simply must try the crepes! To find out more about the market, visit www.clarkforkrivermarket.com for the musical acts that will be playing each week, special events, a list of vendors and recipes posted by several vendors featuring their products as the main ingredient.

Hope to see you at the market! Just don't get in front of me at the heirloom tomato stand.  Things could get ugly.