Tonight, I experimented sous viding another cut of grass fed beef, rib steaks from Full of Life Farm. Rib steaks, a.k.a. cowboy steaks, are rib eye steaks with the rib bone still attached.
When I opened the package I immediately noticed that these steaks were way more marbled and fatty than the grass fed ones I normally get from other ranches.
Yes!
One of the things I dislike about grass fed beef is that it’s normally really lean which results in tough cooked meat. Could it be that the 100% grass fed and grass finished cattle breeds at Full of Life Farm are similar to the Red Poll breed described in the latest Saveur 100? Red Polls are a particularly fatty grass fed breed with extensive marbling that “has the effect of melted butter, bringing with it all the complexity of the pasture.” Sounds tasty, huh?
I’ve already sent an email to farmer Bernard over at Full of Life Farm asking about his breed of cattle.
(UPDATE: they raise two different breeds, Angus and Hereford. Per Bernard, “we really do have exceptional grass up in the Willamette Valley with our soil quality and all the water up there. And the alfalfa we feed in winter is also the best quality, coming from Eastern Oregon where the dry climate allows them to cut, cure, and bale the alfalfa in less than 48 hours. Quick curing of alfalfa is key to keeping all of the proteins and nutrients in the alfalfa, and not oxidized and evaporated into thin air.”)
Time to make Sous Vide Grass Fed Rib Steaks!
Serves 2-4
Ingredients:
- 2 grass fed rib steaks
- Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
Equipment:
- All of my recommended kitchen tools are listed here.
Method:
I dried my steaks and liberally salted and peppered them…
…before vacuum sealing them.
(Check out these tips over at The Food Lab at Serious Eats on how to make perfect steaks.)
Then, I put the packets in the fridge for a few hours.
I filled and preheated my SousVide Supreme to 130 F (for medium rare) and when it was up to temperature, I dropped in the steaks and let them cook for 7 hours (Douglas Baldwin recommends 6-8 hours).
I removed them from the plastic bags, dried them off…
…and then blasted them with my kitchen torch.
I topped the charred steaks with a sprinkling of Aleppo pepper finishing salt.
These steaks were delicious! They were tender, fatty, and had big beefy flavor. The meats from Full of Life Farm truly are remarkable. I can’t wait to pick up my ½ hog on Sunday!
Looking for more recipe ideas? Head on over to my Recipe Index. You’ll also find exclusive recipes on my iPhone and iPad app, and in my cookbooks, Nom Nom Paleo: Food for Humans (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2013), Ready or Not! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2017), and Nom Nom Paleo: Let’s Go! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2021).
PRINTER-FRIENDLY RECIPE CARD
Sous Vide Grass Fed Rib Steaks
Ingredients
- 2 rib eye steaks or cowboy steaks
- Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Aleppo pepper finishing salt
Instructions
- Dry your steaks and liberally salted and pepper them before vacuum sealing them. Put the packets in your fridge for a few hours or until you're ready to cook them.
- Fill and preheat your SousVide Supreme to 130°F (for medium rare). When it is up to temperature, drop in the steaks and let them cook for 7 hours.
- Once they're done cooking, take the steaks out of the bag and dry them off. Blast them with your kitchen torch to char the skin.
- Finish off your steaks with a sprinkling of Aleppo pepper finishing salt.
Greg says
Did you do them so long because they were grass-fed, in an attempt to make them more tender? I usually only do steaks about 2 hours on the soups vide but have been struggling to get my grass fed beef as tender as the “normal beef” from the grocery store. I was thinking of going longer, in the 6-8 hour range tonite and came across this article…. How did it turn out In terms of tenderness?