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November
16, 2006
“What’s a hot dish anyway?” my friend from another state asked as we ate dinner. We were talking about foods common to our regions. “I suppose you’d call it a casserole,” I said. “It’s an all-in-one meal. Often a hot dish contains a protein, such as ground beef or another kind of meat, a starch, such as potatoes or rice, and some vegetables. If you’re having hot dish, you might have bars for dessert. Do you know what bars are?” I teased. “That’s where alcohol is served,” she said with a laugh. I described the desserts we commonly call “bars.” “Oh, we call those cakes or cookies,” she said. As we talked, we discovered that similar foods in different parts of the country can carry different names. Our discussion brought to mind the thousands of food products in supermarkets. We have numerous choices with different names at the meat counter alone. Sometimes all the terminology can get a little confusing. Let’s consider beef, one of the most popular meats and a major regional commodity. How do you know a tender cut from a less tender one by its name? What’s the best way to cook the meat cuts? What do the percentages on the label mean? The tenderness of meat generally depends on the animal’s age, sex and amount of exercise it had. The most tender beef cuts often carry these names: rib, sirloin or short loin. These cuts also tend to be more expensive and often are higher in fat. Broiling or grilling the meat is a way to capitalize on the tenderness and prepare these cuts without adding additional fat. Cuts of meat from the round, flank or chuck areas are flavorful and lean, but often less tender. They can be tenderized by marinating in an enzyme-containing or acidic marinade to slightly break down the protein. You can use a moist heat cooking method, such as braising, slow cooking or stewing, to tenderize these cuts, too. Fairly new to the market are cuts from the chuck and round, such as the flat iron, ranch cut and western griller. They are cut differently to enhance their tenderness and be reasonable in price. Ground meat is always tender, but it varies in fat content and calories. Regular ground beef typically is 80 percent lean and contains about 20 grams of fat and 254 calories in a 3.5-ounce portion. Extra lean ground beef often is 93 percent lean and contains about 7 grams of fat and 156 calories in a 3.5-ounce portion. An Iowa State University study showed that the fat content in cooked ground beef “crumbles” can be greatly reduced by blotting the cooked meat with paper towels and then rinsing the cooked meat with very warm water (150 to 160 degrees). Meat that initially had 10, 20 or 30 grams of fat per 3.5 ounces was reduced to having 3 to 4 grams of fat per 3.5 ounces in the final product when researchers used the cook, blot and rinse process. If the recipe calls for onions or garlic to be browned with the meat, the additional ingredients can be added during cooking. The meat-onion mixture still can be rinsed without greatly reducing the flavor. Following this procedure won’t work for meat loaf, but it just may reduce the fat and calories in some recipes, such as this favorite hot dish. Beef and Bean Hot Dish 1 pound ground beef,
browned and drained Cook ground beef and onions. Drain fat. Add remaining ingredients and mix. Spray a large baking dish with nonstick spray and add mixture. Makes eight servings. Each serving has 340 calories, 8 grams (g) of fat, 9 g of fiber and 30 percent of the daily recommendation for iron. ### Source:
Julie Garden-Robinson, (701) 231-7187, jgardenr@ndsuext.nodak.edu |
Market Advisor: |
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North Dakota State University |
