Pax wrote:

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I'm running a small burger joint. My recipe for the beef is pretty simple ... 80 - 20 meat/fat mix. The meat and the fat that i use is non frozen.

The burgers come out really nice and juicy but i still think that my process for making them is still far from perfect. 

 Currently for the fat, i'm using fat that's there around the kidneys(of beef).  

I have two questions:

1) Would using frozen fat and non frozen meat work? I know that ground beef from frozen meat is not as juicy as the fresh stuff but what if i use frozen fat with fresh meat? Fat at room temperature can sometimes get a bit mushy when grinding.

2) Is all Fat the same? To ensure quality what sort of checks should i keep on the type of fat that goes into the meat? Sometimes its yellow fat that's going in. Sometimes its white. I need to standardize.

Will keep asking you Gurus for more help.

Thanks!

 

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 I would guess that the fat/suet from the kidney area is not a good choice, but I'm not sure. We did have a thread talking about the different kinds of fat. If you're interested, here's the link to that discussion.

http://meatcuttersclub.activeboard.com/t52895798/what-are-some-differences-between-fat-and-suet/

Thanks for the feedback guys! Just a question. 

"I wouldn't freeze it solid but with a good crust on it, if you get my meaning. As for what type of fat to use, I say it is a matter of taste. Play with it to find what tastes best to you and then go with it,or maybe get some trusted advisors to taste test for you and give you their opinions. Personally with only 20% fat content I don't think it will matter much where the fat comes from"

Why can't i keep my fat frozen? Rather then having a crust on it, would fat that is totally frozen be hard to grind?

Also, i went through the thread that someone posted. For me its still not clear what the different sorts of beef fats are. Is there an article or a website that lists them? Also, sometimes in my patties/ground meat.. there tend be certain unchewable parts .. where's that coming from? The fat or the tendon like stuff from the meat?/

Thanks! 

Burgermeister wrote:

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Pax wrote:

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.......... Also, sometimes in my patties/ground meat.. there tend be certain unchewable parts .. where's that coming from? The fat or the tendon like stuff from the meat?/

Thanks! 

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Do you grind it twice?  Do you clean out the head between first and second grinds? There shouldn't be any problems.

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 Yep i grind it twice! Nope, don't think that we clean out the head between the two grinds. I'll ask the person who's in charge of our meat processing( a novice really with no experience ... he just handles it as we instruct :( )

1) What can be the cause of such unchewable parts? Beef Sinew?

 2) Are any guides available online that outlines the process for cleaning meat for grinding, so that its free from such unchewable parts? :)?

3) Also, i'm still not clear on what the different types of fat are. Can it broadly be classified as 1)Kidney Fat  2) Fat from elsewhere ? Or are there more classifications within it?

yes...dont use suet,,,,, !!!!!!!! use beef fat..

85% of there about is a good mix....use clods or chuck rolls and grind it yourself on site,,,,or even chuck tenders and add beef fat,,not suet..

3 types of fat...
kidney suet,,,runs along the short loin,,,firm/hard, good for birds,,not grinding..

beef fat...on exterior of steaks,,,,outside of muscles-sometimes runs in the middle of beef primals, like a rib -eye -kernel fat

marbling,,,the white specks of fat within the muscle itself,,,,,this is how they largely determine grades of beef..


if i were in the business of making patties,,,,i wouldnt buy any tube burger,,,id buy chuck clods, chuck rolls, chuck/mock tenders

depending on the grinder,,,bench trimmings ,,may go thru three times,,,


the head of a grinder consists of a knife and a plate,,the plate has the holes  in it,,,if you have a plate with large holes,,then larger pieces of sinew will go thru,,,,get a fine plate,, (small holes)


also for something different,,,grind some raw bacon in,,right in with the burger,,,for bacon burgers,,,a mix of 75% ground chuck and 25% slab bacon) call em bacon burgers

Hello

Trimmings are cuts off steaks and roasts. Tubes of beef are in rolls now and they can be made into hamburgers.

Today many meat professionals such a Pat Lafreida are using combinations of meat and fat. Fat especially from the between the first and second cut brskets, Kidney suet is not good for burgers.

I like the other meat men suggestions of using chucks, shoulders and every chuck tenders for burgers. Its best if you use whole mucsles meat. but take any glands out,

have fun and taste tests are very important.

regards

Alan Lazar