Being that my family raises Angus cattle I have often been asked what makes it so special, why does everywhere have an ‘Angus burger’ or an “Angus Steak’?
First of all for those of you who don’t know, Angus is a breed of cattle, it has nothing to do with how it is fed, prepared, or cooked. Angus cattle are either solid red or black and polled (no horns)
First of all for those of you who don’t know, Angus is a breed of cattle, it has nothing to do with how it is fed, prepared, or cooked. Angus cattle are either solid red or black and polled (no horns)
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| McDonalds Angus Burger |
Angus meat is generally more tender and flavorful than other breeds. It also has superior ‘marbling’. Marbling is a term used to describe the intramuscular fat in an animal. This fat is not like the stuff that you cut off the outside of your steak, but when cooked it melts into the meat to give it more flavor and make it more tender.
for more information about Angus beef check out:
http://www.rancherendorsed.com/info.htm
for more information about Angus beef check out:
http://www.rancherendorsed.com/info.htm
How can you be sure that the beef that is supposedly "Angus" actually is? Can anybody actually tell the difference between breeds when their is a piece of steak set in front of them? I would defy anyone to be able to identify a beef breed by tasting a steak.
ReplyDeleteTo say that one breed of a cattle has better meat than any other of the beef breeds in the world speaks more to marketing then to science. How can you be so sure that the beef that is supposedly "Angus" actually is? Can anybody honestly say that they can pick which beef is Angus in a blind taste test? I defy anyone to be able to identify a beef breed by tasting a steak.
ReplyDeleteFirst of all I would like to start out by apologizing for not getting back to you sooner, but am now going to answer the above questions. First of all I would have to agree with you on the fact that the reason that Angus is everywhere has a lot to do with marketing, but this marketing is based on scientific facts. In general it has been proven that Angus cattle are more likely to have a higher yield grade, and more marbling than other breeds. This increased marbling is what adds to the taste and flavour of the meat. The better the marbling in the beef the better the taste. So what I am trying to say is if you had an Angus steak and a Herford steak (for example) that had the exact same yield grade in front of you, you probably wouldn’t be able to tell the difference (although some people can) there is just a higher probability that Angus meat will have a better yield grade.
ReplyDeleteIn answer to your other question, for an animal to be called Angus beef it must be at least 50% Angus. Each packer and company that markets Angus beef has a different system that they use to confirm that meat is Angus. Some use only calves that they know have either a purebred mother or father guaranteeing that an animal is at least 50%. Others make sure that the animal shows strong ‘Angus Characteristics’ some examples of these are: the animal is not allowed to have a hump on its neck over a certain size, the ears must not be too long, and it must be mostly black or red in colour as these are all very prominent characteristics for Angus cattle.