Month: June 2023

We always celebrate with beef steak, especially on our birthdays! Even though our beef is dry-aged for 14-21 days, we typically further wet-age steaks in the fridge for a week or more before cooking, although 3-4 days is sufficient. This process enhances tenderness and truly brings out the flavors. It’s also exciting to select the steak ahead of the special day and eagerly await that juicy and delicious beef. For some time now, we’ve considered birthday steak as a treat and birthday cake as a punishment. Of course, feel free to indulge in a guilt-free slice of birthday cake if you prefer.

Birthday Steak

Ingredients:

• 2 of your favorite beef steaks
• 1 tablespoon Bariani olive oil
• 1 teaspoon Kenny’s New Mexico spice rub or salt and pepper to taste
•  3 tablespoons butter divided

Pan Sauce (optional but worth it-afterall, it’s your birthday!)

• 2 cloves garlic minced
• sprigs fresh thyme (or 1/4 teaspoon dried), more to taste
• 1 sprig fresh rosemary chopped, (or 1/2 teaspoon dried)
• 3 tablespoons beef broth
• ¼ cup heavy cream

Instructions:

• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• Heat a large cast iron or stainless steel skillet over medium-high heat.
• Rub steaks with olive oil and generously season. Brown 2-3 minutes per side and place the pan in the oven.
• Bake 10-15 minutes or until steaks reach the desired doneness. Remove steaks from the skillet and rest at least 5 minutes while making the sauce.
• If making sauce, add 1 tablespoon butter, garlic, rosemary and thyme to the pan. Stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add beef broth and simmer 2 minutes while scraping any bits off the bottom. Stir in cream and simmer 2-3 minutes more.
• Top steaks with remaining butter and serve with sauce.

Notes:

• If your steaks are thin (under 1″), you will need less cook time.
• Ensure frozen steaks are completely thawed.
• Remove steaks from refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature. Sit out for 30 minutes before cooking.
• Preheat the pan to ensure it’s very hot before browning the steaks.
• Use a meat thermometer and be sure not to overcook.
• Rare – cool, red center – internal temp at 125° F.
• Medium Rare – warm, red center – internal temp at 135° F.
• Medium – warm, pink center – internal temp of 145° F.
• Medium Well – slightly pink center – internal temp of 150° F.
• Well Done – little or no pink – internal temp of 160°F
• Do not press on steaks as they cook, this presses out the juices.
• Once cooked remove the steak from the pan to rest. If you leave it in the pan, it will continue cooking.
• As with all meats, rest steaks at leat 5-10 minutes before cutting.

Happy Birthday! 🎉🥩

Kenny & Brenna

In the early days of my commercial fishing career, I was invited on a few clean-up halibut trips after the salmon season was over. I quickly realized that it takes years of training to endure working for 30 hours straight with knives and hooks while maintaining a smile. My hat is off to the men and women who tirelessly grind away until the last fish is on board, only to start re-baiting thousands of hooks for the next set. Granola bars and hot pockets become the most amazing experience shared with a tight crew under a dim light while being tossed around on a wet deck.

It is rare to get a glimpse of how small and insignificant we are in a world made accessible with technology and transportation at our fingertips. It takes a perceived emergency with time constraints and limited access to resources for me to truly appreciate the present moment as precious. My worst boat emergencies are cemented in my brain as hours in slow motion with vibrant details, lasting only minutes in real time, while the glorious moves I made are foggy and vague.

Some people see expensive food sitting in the meat/fish counter, but I see a chance for feast or famine for the producer, tilting in the balance.

“It’s no fish ye’re buying, it’s men’s lives” -Sir Walter Scott

I have maintained healthy relationships with respected fishing boat captains in Alaska. After catching millions of pounds of fish, I am an expert on grading fish quality. I am proud to share the highest grade of halibut I have seen in years. Pearly white, boneless, skinless 8 to 10 ounce portions with a pedigree. Come see us on Saturday at the Los Ranchos Growers Market for halibut filet! Here’s a new recipe to try:

Lemongrass Poached Alaska Halibut

Ingredients:

• 1 stem lemongrass
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 Tablespoons sliced or chopped ginger
• 1 chopped shallot
• 3 cups chicken or vegetable stock
• 4 Alaska Halibut filets (approx 8 ounces each)
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt   

Instructions:

1. Prepare poaching liquid
Break up the lemongrass, smash the garlic, slice the ginger and chop the shallot. Place stock, lemongrass, garlic, shallot and ginger into a large pan; bring to a simmer.

2. Prepare halibut
Turn off heat and add halibut to stock. Return heat to a simmer (stock should simmer, not boil).

Once simmering, cover the pan tightly and cook 4 to 5 minutes for frozen halibut or 2 minutes for thawed fish. Turn off the heat and let the fish rest in liquid for 5 minutes, or until opaque throughout.

3. Serve
To serve, season with salt and baste with a bit of broth.

Prep and cook in 15 minutes total, yields 4 servings.

Want another halibut recipe? Try Alaska Halibut with Lemon Dressing

Catch you later,

Kenny

Over the years, we’ve learned so much of what we know about health and nutrition from our customers. Some of our best recipes have been suggested by those of you who frequently cook at home. Conversations start, curiosity is sparked, and then we begin the research. As you can imagine, pork bones are not a hot selling item and many have never heard of them; a few others wonder how to use them. Last spring at Roadrunner Park Farmers Market, I was stunned when a customer approached and specifically asked for pork bones. I inquired about her cooking plans and she briefly described an old recipe for traditional Italian meat sauce using pork bones. After thoroughly scouring the internet and a bit of experimentation, we came up with a great recipe for authentic Italian Sunday Gravy:

Pork Bone Spaghetti Sauce

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds Pork Bones
• 32 oz Tomato Sauce
• 16 oz Tomatoes (diced)
• 1 Yellow Onion (diced)
• 1 Green Pepper (diced)
• 8 oz Mushrooms (sliced)
• 2 Tbsp Bariani Olive Oil
• 2 Tbsp Tomato Paste
• 2 Tbsp Garlic
• 1.5 Tbsp Oregano
• 1.5 Tbsp Parsley
• 1.5 Tbsp Basil
• 1 tsp crushed Red Pepper

Directions:

1. In a saute pan, over medium-high heat, add olive oil, garlic, yellow onion & green pepper. Cook until the vegetables are a little soft.
2. Add the mushrooms, pork bones, tomato paste, and continue to cook, flipping the pork bones so they brown on all sides.
3. Once the pork bones are browned on all sides, pour all the pan into a slow cooker.
4. Pour tomato sauce, diced tomatoes and seasonings into slow cooker, and mix together.
5. (Optional) Add pork and beef meatballs to slow cooker. We use one pound of each (ground beef & ground pork) with simply salt and pepper. The sauce seasons the meatballs well.
6. Let the slow cooker cook on low for 6-8 hours.
7. Remove pork bones (picked clean of any excess meat – reserve in the sauce), pour meat sauce over your favorite pasta and enjoy!

Our fresh harvest pork is back in stock! Come by the Los Ranchos Growers Market on Saturday’s to check out our selection! Be sure to ask for pork bones! 

Looking for another pork recipe? Try our Roasted Pork Belly

Mangiamo!

Brenna & Kenny

We are excited to announce that we are currently accepting pre-orders for our next harvest to include whole, side, or quarter beef to be available in July 2023. We wanted to reach out to provide you with information about our bulk beef purchase options.

First off, we recommend tasting a variety of beef from different producers before you commit to a bulk beef purchase. Before your freezer is full, you really need to know you’re going to enjoy the taste of the beef. It’s also a great opportunity to familiarize yourself with the preparation and cooking of a various beef cuts. So, go out to two or three of your favorite farmers markets and try $50-$100 worth of mixed cuts of beef from two or three different beef producers. A basic variety may include a steak, a roast or shanks and some ground beef. Maybe even cook each cut the same way on the same day for a side by side comparison. In the words of an admired Texas panhandle rancher, “I measure the value of beef in my mouth.”

Purchasing beef in bulk has many benefits, including convenience and variety. With this option, you will receive ALL cuts from a whole beef, meaning you’ll have mostly ground beef, lots of roasts, ribs, and shanks, and a variety of mixed steaks. Bones and organs are optional. Here are our approximate yields of finished beef for your freezer:

-Whole Beef: approximately 450-500 pounds

-Side of Beef: approximately 225-250 pounds

-Quarter Beef: approximately 110-125 pounds

All weights are approximate, each beef is different, and individual cuts will vary. All beef is packaged to our specifications at a USDA processing facility. Individual beef cuts will be vacuum sealed or paper wrapped, boxed, and ready for your freezer.

Our herd is raised and finished on native ancient prairie grasses near the Kiowa National Grasslands on the high plains of northeastern New Mexico. Our goal is to produce the finest beef in the world! We are setting a standard for fully finished grassFAT beef: our cattle are born and raised on the same ranch their entire lives, about 3 years, eating all grass all the time; truly grassfed to finish. Since 2020, we have diversified our processors and currently use two different small USDA plants which are each family owned and operated. Our beef is dry aged 14+ days and stores well in a 0°F freezer for one year and a -20°F freezer for at least two years.

We also offer Kelvinator commercial chest freezers which will maintain -20°F.

The average American consumes 50 pounds of beef per year. Our own family of 5 consumes slightly more, mostly ground beef. If you don’t need beef in bulk, we gladly accept custom orders. The most popular has been a case of ground beef and a few steaks and roasts. 

We hope that this information helps you in making a decision about purchasing beef in bulk. Please let us know if you have any further questions or if you would like to place an order.

Thank you for your consideration and support, we appreciate you. If you’d like to order or further inquire, please contact us.

Eat Well,

Brenna & Kenny