Inflation is coming! (according to my mother) And the price of groceries is going to skyrocket. Are you getting a good deal on your meats? Will you be able to afford to eat the same high-quality food if/when it does hit? Do you shop around? Do you check your weekly ads? I personally answer ‘yes’ to all three of these questions and so can you.
Of course, we all know it is best to purchase free-range meats but this is not always possible for a number of reasons. When I am unable to do so, I shop around and buy what’s on sale. This means that each week, I search the weekly ads of the local stores online to see what’s on sale (i.e. vons.com, Albertsons.com, Ralphs.com, henrysmarkets.com). It is only after doing so that I plan what I will be cooking for the week.
I used to cook for anywhere from twenty to one hundred people per day when I ran M Good Meals. Sometimes I even catered for groups of up to 300 people! Because of this, I learned how to spot a deal and I am about to pass my knowledge along to you.
I recently went to Henrys with a friend and he was amazed that I walked out of there with four bags of groceries and spent less than $30 on them when he had one bag that cost nearly $50. It’s all about the sales and knowing what price is a good price.
Here is a handy reference guide that I have pulled from deep within my noggin for you! Buy these items when they meet these standards. Don’t be afraid to buy extra and freeze in portions you will use. For example, the pork loin roasts listed below are usually on sale at Vons about once a month. They come in eight to ten pound hunks. I buy the whole thing and divide it into three or four roasts. Each roast is about five or six hefty portions that cost under a dollar per serving—holler!
Poultry
Boneless skinless chicken breasts, chicken tenders >$2/lb.
Boneless skinless thighs > $1.79/lb.
Bone-in chicken breasts > $1/lb.
Whole chicken > $.69/lb.
Cornish game hens > $.99/lb.
Ground turkey > $3.50/lb.
Whole turkey > $.99/lb. (unless it is Nov. or Dec. in which case it should be > $.50/lb and is sometimes free with a $25 purchase at Vons or Ralphs)
Pork
Pork loin > $2/lb.
Pork tenderloin > $3.50/lb.
Pork butt, Boston butt, picnic roast > $.99/lb.
Beef
Tri-tip, ribeye steak, strip steak, flank steak > $5/lb.
Ground beef > $1.29/lb.
Pot roasts > $.99/lb.
Prime rib > $4/lb.
Fish & Seafood
Salmon, cod, mahi, scallops > $5/lb.
Tilapia/snapper/calamari steaks, clams > $3/lb.
Halibut > $6/lb.
Shrimp > $4/lb.
Lobster tails > $5 each
Lamb
Rack > $10/lb.
Shank > $3/lb.
Roast > $5/lb
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Tony Tatonka's Debut Dinners
First off, let me apologize for such a long gap in entries. I was “homeless” for two months while house sitting for friends and looking for a place of my own. One month ago, I bought a house and finally moved into my very first home! Over the past month, I have been busy unpacking, painting, arranging, and more so unfortunately this blog has suffered.
I am back in action now and ready to spread The M Good Life once again. I have so many stories to share already about the adventures with friends in my new place and can’t wait for you to read them!
I just bought a bison (affectionately named Tony Tatonka by my friend Cynthia “Sinner” Lumley) with some friends from the gym and got an amazing deal (about $8/pound) and a variety of meat—roasts, steaks, shanks, tenderloin, stew meat, and ground…lots and lots of ground.
I really look forward to cooking the shanks so I can enjoy the tasty and nutrient-packed marrow and I plan to cook the roast and stew meat in a crock pot with some assortment of veggies and spices yet-to-be-determined. They await in my freezer for the perfect occasion.
So far, I have cooked the ground bison two different ways and both have been amazing. I had some friends over for Sunday Funday and served up “sandwiches” of lettuce wrapped turkey and bison burgers with sliced tomato, avocado, and three homemade sauces: ancho-garlic mustard, chipotle barbecue, and roasted cherry tomato balsamic (see August 27th entry for this recipe).
I roasted a turkey on Saturday and made gravy out of the pan juices reduced with fresh mushrooms to test some ideas for the first Thanksgiving dinner I will be hosting at my new place. Since there was extra gravy and gravy shall NEVER be wasted, I decided to use it in the bison burgers to make sure they didn’t dry out on the grill.
Bison is a very lean meat and therefore can dry out and become tough when cooked. The mushroom gravy was a perfectly delicious way to make sure this didn’t happen while adding amazing flavor to the meat because in my opinion, turkey gravy is the BEST gravy.
For lunch today, I made Anaheim chilies (from my CSA Box) stuffed with ground bison and baked with my homemade marinara sauce. To keep the meat moist while baking, I added fresh yellow squash and caramelized onions to the mix before stuffing the peppers. You can use any veggie you want, that’s just what I happened to have on hand. Be creative and share your ideas!
Gluten-Free Turkey & Mushroom Gravy
Ingredients
Pan juices from roasted turkey (about a 23 pounder)
2 packages of pre-sliced mushrooms
Directions
Strain most of the fat off the pan juices and put in a sauce pan. Simmer on medium heat until it reduces by half. Add mushrooms and simmer until it reduces by half again. You will know when it is ready when it can coat a wooden spoon.
Bison Burgers w/ Turkey-Mushroom Gravy
Ingredients
1 ½ pounds ground bison
1 cup turkey-mushroom gravy
1 tablespoon minced garlic (from jar)
Fresh pepper (no need to add salt since the gravy has plenty)
Steak rub
Directions
Mix all ingredients and form into patties (6-8 patties depending on size). Sprinkle with steak rub. Grill to medium (or however you like your burgers). Remember that bison meat is lean and dries out if overcooked.
Ancho-Garlic Mustard
Ingredients
1 cup Gulden’s Mustard
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 tablespoon dried ancho chile powder
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon paprika
Directions
Mix all ingredients. Chill and serve.
Chipotle-Barbecue Sauce
Ingredients
15 ounce can tomato sauce (make sure no sugar is added)
7 ounce can chipotle peppers in adobo
1 tablespoon cumin powder
Directions
Blend all ingredients in your Magic Bullet or food processor. Chill and serve.
Bison Stuffed Anaheim Peppers w/ Marinara
Ingredients
1 ½ pounds ground bison
2 cups marinara (Use your favorite. My recipe is secret but I might share it with you someday)
4-6 Anaheim peppers
1 yellow squash, finely diced or shredded
1 red onion, caramelized
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt & pepper
Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Thinly slice onions and put in small pan with olive oil, salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat until they begin to brown (about 10 minutes). Chop or shred yellow squash. Mix onions and yellow squash with the garlic and bison. Pour marinara in baking dish. Stuff peppers with meat mixture and stuff inside peppers. Place peppers in baking dish and dollop with marinara. Bake for 30-40 minutes.
I am back in action now and ready to spread The M Good Life once again. I have so many stories to share already about the adventures with friends in my new place and can’t wait for you to read them!
I just bought a bison (affectionately named Tony Tatonka by my friend Cynthia “Sinner” Lumley) with some friends from the gym and got an amazing deal (about $8/pound) and a variety of meat—roasts, steaks, shanks, tenderloin, stew meat, and ground…lots and lots of ground.
I really look forward to cooking the shanks so I can enjoy the tasty and nutrient-packed marrow and I plan to cook the roast and stew meat in a crock pot with some assortment of veggies and spices yet-to-be-determined. They await in my freezer for the perfect occasion.
So far, I have cooked the ground bison two different ways and both have been amazing. I had some friends over for Sunday Funday and served up “sandwiches” of lettuce wrapped turkey and bison burgers with sliced tomato, avocado, and three homemade sauces: ancho-garlic mustard, chipotle barbecue, and roasted cherry tomato balsamic (see August 27th entry for this recipe).
I roasted a turkey on Saturday and made gravy out of the pan juices reduced with fresh mushrooms to test some ideas for the first Thanksgiving dinner I will be hosting at my new place. Since there was extra gravy and gravy shall NEVER be wasted, I decided to use it in the bison burgers to make sure they didn’t dry out on the grill.
Bison is a very lean meat and therefore can dry out and become tough when cooked. The mushroom gravy was a perfectly delicious way to make sure this didn’t happen while adding amazing flavor to the meat because in my opinion, turkey gravy is the BEST gravy.
For lunch today, I made Anaheim chilies (from my CSA Box) stuffed with ground bison and baked with my homemade marinara sauce. To keep the meat moist while baking, I added fresh yellow squash and caramelized onions to the mix before stuffing the peppers. You can use any veggie you want, that’s just what I happened to have on hand. Be creative and share your ideas!
Gluten-Free Turkey & Mushroom Gravy
Ingredients
Pan juices from roasted turkey (about a 23 pounder)
2 packages of pre-sliced mushrooms
Directions
Strain most of the fat off the pan juices and put in a sauce pan. Simmer on medium heat until it reduces by half. Add mushrooms and simmer until it reduces by half again. You will know when it is ready when it can coat a wooden spoon.
Bison Burgers w/ Turkey-Mushroom Gravy
Ingredients
1 ½ pounds ground bison
1 cup turkey-mushroom gravy
1 tablespoon minced garlic (from jar)
Fresh pepper (no need to add salt since the gravy has plenty)
Steak rub
Directions
Mix all ingredients and form into patties (6-8 patties depending on size). Sprinkle with steak rub. Grill to medium (or however you like your burgers). Remember that bison meat is lean and dries out if overcooked.
Ancho-Garlic Mustard
Ingredients
1 cup Gulden’s Mustard
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 tablespoon dried ancho chile powder
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon paprika
Directions
Mix all ingredients. Chill and serve.
Chipotle-Barbecue Sauce
Ingredients
15 ounce can tomato sauce (make sure no sugar is added)
7 ounce can chipotle peppers in adobo
1 tablespoon cumin powder
Directions
Blend all ingredients in your Magic Bullet or food processor. Chill and serve.
Bison Stuffed Anaheim Peppers w/ Marinara
Ingredients
1 ½ pounds ground bison
2 cups marinara (Use your favorite. My recipe is secret but I might share it with you someday)
4-6 Anaheim peppers
1 yellow squash, finely diced or shredded
1 red onion, caramelized
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt & pepper
Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Thinly slice onions and put in small pan with olive oil, salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat until they begin to brown (about 10 minutes). Chop or shred yellow squash. Mix onions and yellow squash with the garlic and bison. Pour marinara in baking dish. Stuff peppers with meat mixture and stuff inside peppers. Place peppers in baking dish and dollop with marinara. Bake for 30-40 minutes.
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