Why are we addicted to eating these dewy, fresh animals? One of the main reasons is that meat from tender young things is tender. But should tenderness really be the end of eating only meat? Adam Danforth, the author ofSlaughter, a comprehensive guide to humane slaughter and slaughter, believes our approach to meat is wrong. “People have put tenderness above everything else,” he says. “But this prioritization of tenderness means that welower prioritytaste."
Danforth argues that only older animals have had time to do the work and eat the food that makes them taste the way they are. Beef from a four- or five-year-old grass-fed cow will have a distinctly meaty flavor, as opposed to the relatively bland flavor of meat from a younger, pasture-raised cow that has been fattened as quickly as possible on a corn diet. regardless of whether his stomach is not designed to digest such a high starch grain.
"The longer an animal lives and the more work it does, the tastier the meat becomes."
"The components of flavor are in the animal's life and the work it does. The longer an animal lives and the more work it does, the more flavorful the meat becomes," says Danforth. He advocates eating older, "killed" animals. for which there is currently little or no market. When production of laying hen eggs starts to decline after a number of years, farmers often have little choice. With the exception of a handful of well-educated, dedicated CSA subscribers, no one wants to buy "a tough old bird." A retired laying hen makes a tough fried chicken "like chewing gum. However, broiler chickens make the best roast chickens because they have much better flavor than their younger relatives. I would never use a deep fryer as stewed chicken "it has no flavor," says farmer Brett Grohsgal of Even'Star Farm in Maryland. Despite his personal appreciation for the benefits of older birds, Grohsgal struggled to find buyers for his retired laying hens before switching to another business. to just vegetables. “There's just not much of a market for older birds,” Grohsgal says.
While it is undeniable that meat becomes tougher as an animal ages, Danforth says it is possible to get flavorful and tender meat from an older animal. Just follow these three steps.
[mf_h5 align=”left” transform=”uppercase”]Raise it to the right[/mf_h5]
One of the arguments for eating older culled animals is that it gives them time to live a full life. But I'm not talking about prolonging the miserable life of a pig in a gestation crate for years; that would just be cruel. Raising animals properly means giving pigs the space and terrain they need to browse and forage, allowing goats to run, climb and bump their heads while looking at the type of brush they prefer, and having to move chickens to fresh grass every day to scratch and peck up. the insects, grass and seeds they crave. Practicing this form of rotational grazing can also help farmers enrich the soil through manure and provides a cheap, environmentally friendly way to reclaim overgrown pastures. Chasing a herd of goats with a herd of pigs is a particularly effective one-two punch for reducing adverse reactions. vegetation.
[mf_h5 align=”left” transform=”uppercase”]Make it right[/mf_h5]
Killing animals “the right way” means killing them quickly, in a way that is as painless and stress-free as possible. The only way to keep an animal calm until the moment of death is to avoid the stress hormones that make the meat less tasty. Danforth is a strong supporter of slaughtering animals directly on the farm. “It's the ideal situation,” he says. “The animal is in a familiar environment with handlers it knows, rather than being driven to an outdoor enclosure, which can be a very stressful experience.”
Danforth recommends the use of a bolt gun, a device powered by a club or pneumatic device that quickly inserts and withdraws a three-inch metal rod into the animal's brain, leaving the animal alive but insensible for pain. The animal must then be immediately bled, a process mercifully accelerated by the beating of its own heart, and shortly die from lack of blood in the brain. Danforth says, "I like that this method forces you to get very close to the animal and recognize it in a way that you don't have to do when using a gun. I also sit with the animal as it dies. Because for me it's a very powerful and profound moment. I think it's important to be there."
[mf_h5 align=”left” transform=”uppercase”]Live it well[/mf_h5]
Proper storage is the key to making meat from older animals tender and tasty. Aging is an age-old practice that involves hanging the carcass in a cool environment such as a shed or walk-in cooler for several hours, days or weeks. “Aging is controlled decay,” says Danforth. “There are certain enzymes present in the meat that are controlled while the animal is alive and that 'cheat' after the animal dies. They start to cut into the proteins that make the muscles contract and into the connective tissue.' These enzymes make the meat both tastier and more tender. Aging also allows some moisture to evaporate, leading to a concentration of flavor in it and the fat begins to oxidize, giving the meat a desirable nutty flavor.
Exactly how long the animal needs to age depends on a number of factors, including the type and size of the animal and the temperature and humidity of the aging environment. But in general, the larger the animal, the longer it can age.
Not only do older animals offer great taste at bargain prices, the meat goes down easier when you know the animal in question has lived a full, natural life before ending up on your plate. “These animals deserve our respect.” They're delicious and well worth a protein-packed centerpiece," says Danforth.
Photo illustration by Rebecca Katzman.
