Just like with all products, not all meat is created equally. In recent years, the public has been made aware of many processes that might make the food you’re eating not as healthy or good for you as you might have once imagined. Knowing this, it’s important that you’re skilled in picking quality cuts of meat and able to know what type of food to look for and what makes something worth your while to buy and eat. To help you make these judgements calls, here are three tips for picking quality meats to prepare and eat.
Understanding Fat
For many people, “fat” has become somewhat of a bad word. While most people don’t want to be “fat” themselves, it’s important for everyone to have a certain amount of dietary fat that they consume each day. Meat is a great way to get this fat in your diet. According to Professional Secrets, fat that’s been marbled into meat, meaning that it’s running throughout the cut that you’re going to eat, will help give that piece of meat more flavor and a juiciness. When buying a cut of meat, the fat should feel pretty solid, as cold fat can get hard and then loosens up once it’s being cooked. If you buy meat that doesn’t have much fat to it, the meat can quickly become flavorless and dried out when you’re cooking it.
Beware Of What Your Meats Are Claiming To Be
A lot of the food you choose to buy comes down to the marketing of the products. Many companies in the food industry know that if they claim that their foods have some specific qualities or characteristics, a certain type of health-conscious person is more likely to buy it. However, the editors of Eat This, Not That warn that you should be careful with how much stock you put into the claims of the meat you’re choosing to buy. Just because a meat says that it’s produced with antibiotics or grass-fed or free range doesn’t necessarily mean what you might think that it means. While these options might be better than the alternative, it’s important that you know just what your food means when it’s claiming things such as these accolades.
Don’t Overlook The Manager’s Specials
When you’re buying meat, you might find yourself overwhelmed at the options available to you at your local grocery store or butcher shop. Many people feel torn between buying a meat product that looks high quality but also have to pay a premium price for it. To compromise between these two extremes, Toby Amidor, a contributor to Food Network, advises that you never overlook the Manager’s Specials when pricing discount meats. As long as you can use the meat within the next day or two, this can be a great way to get higher quality meat as a lower price.
If you want to have an easier time picking quality meats for your family, consider using the tips mentioned above to help you do just that.
