Mastering the Grill_ The Owner's Manual for Outdoor Cooking - Andrew Schloss [31]
* * *
1. Marbling
2. Adipose fat
* * *
Much of the flavor of meat is in its fat. Because fat cells are essentially energy storage containers, any fat-soluble substance eaten by an animal can end up stored in its fat. This means that the content of fat tissue varies from animal to animal, depending on the species, where it lived, and what it ate. These variations in the fat give each piece of beef, lamb, chicken, or pork its unique flavor.
Unlike surface fat, which bastes only the outside of meat, marbled fat melts into the fibers individually, spreading its flavor impact into every bite. Fat itself has flavor, but it also plays an essential role in the perception of all aromatic flavors. So the marbling in a piece of meat doesn’t just make the meat taste better; it also helps to carry the impact of the seasonings and sauces on the meat.
As we mentioned before, juiciness comes from the water content of meat. But really, the sensation of juiciness happens on two levels. The first comes from actual moisture held in meat fibers that is released when the fibers are broken during chewing. The secondary perception of juiciness is due to saliva flow stimulated by the presence of fat in the mouth. That is why a well-marbled meat will taste juicy even when it has been cooked relatively dry, while a bite of veal (too young to be thickly marbled) may start out moist and tender, but will dry out in the mouth before it’s swallowed. Fat is necessary to carry flavor.
When buying meat, look for pieces with a minimum of exterior fat (about ¼ to ½ inch) but a good degree of marbling. It isn’t necessary to have large globs of fat striated through the lean protein, but neither should you seek out fat-free pieces of meat. If fat and cholesterol are dietary concerns, the best option is to limit your quantity of meat, but don’t sacrifice the quality and succulence of the small amount of meat your diet allows.
03. Grass-Fed, Grain-Fed, and Organic
As we mentioned earlier, an animal’s diet and lifestyle affect the flavor of its meat. Completely grass-fed animals tend to have stronger-flavored meat and less consistent flavor than those fed a regulated diet of grain for part of their lives. Since the 1950s, almost all animals raised for meat in the United States develop at least 30 percent of their weight by being grain-fed in feed lots for 100 to 200 days before slaughter, which allows meat producers to standardize flavor (through a consistent diet), tenderness (by discouraging exercise), and the time it takes to bring an animal to market (by maximizing calorie expenditure and minimizing energy expenditure).
* * *
KILLING WITH KINDNESS
The techniques used for slaughtering are those that produce the best-tasting meat. Fortunately, they are also the most humane. Animals have a small amount of glycogen (animal starch) stored in their muscle fiber, which is used for quick bursts of energy, especially when an animal feels threatened. If an animal senses danger during slaughtering, its glycogen stores will be used up, a phenomenon that can ruin its meat. That’s because muscle cells continue to live after an animal has been
* * *
In other countries, raising an animal completely on grass is the norm. Pasture-fed Argentinean beef is world famous, and grass-feeding has gained popularity in England since the outbreak of mad cow disease there. But in the United States the movement against grain-feeding is still small. Typically, feed-lot cattle are grazed for at least a year before being finished with grain. The opponents of this system argue that keeping an animal on grass throughout its life gives its meat a more complex flavor, a sweeter aroma, and a meatier texture. But even though a steak from a grass-fed steer can be excellent, grass-fed beef tends to be inconsistent in quality, reminiscent of the early days of organic produce, when tough fibers and a gnarled appearance had to be overlooked for