For the most part, store-bought sandwiches don’t carry much meaning for me, except the McRib. I don’t really like it (the sauce is too sweet), but the McRib makes me think of my mother. She loved it, and when it would ‘come back’ we had to go to McDonalds and get one. Now, every time it resurfaces, I smile and think of my mom and the joy she got out of a sweet BBQ pork sandwich. Mom with Wyn at a Meat Conference  in Nebraska The McRib is actually a fun, meat science success story. In the 1970’s, a meat scientist at the University of Nebraska named Dr. Roger Mandigo worked with ..read more

  It seems so simple to just freeze something. You get meat really cold, it lasts a long time. But, we all know it is not that simple. Lots of questions arise with freezing. Questions about packaging, timing, size of cuts, type of freezer, how to thaw it and what it does to quality, all come up when freezing meat. So, let’s talk about them. Packaging Air is the enemy when you are freezing foods. Air allows for oxidation and freezer burn. You want to keep air away from the surface of the cuts in any way you can. For meat, the best packaging method when freezing is vacuum. Some butchers u ..read more

Dates on food packaging are often used by consumers to determine if food should be eaten or not.  Actually, there is no requirement to put sell-by or use-by dates on foods (except baby formula). Those dates are provided for convenience to allow the stores and companies to know when the food will start to lose eating quality. It helps them know when to take foods off the shelves of stores. These dates are NOT indicators of food safety. Best by/ Best if used by dates: Tell when a product will be best flavor or quality. These are not a purchase-by date. Sell by dates: Tell the store how ..read more

I've been sharing posts on Facebook with new cuts to try and I wanted to put them all in one place to make them easier to find ..read more

Some folks are very worried about taking trips to the grocery store.  Please know that the USDA does not know of any cases of  COVID-19 being spread through food or food packaging, but the virus may be found on lots of surfaces. So, some extra precautions after you visit the grocery store may help keep your family safe. WASH YOUR HANDS - Washing your hands for at least 20 seconds with soap and warm water is one of the best ways to keep yourself safe from all germs you may encounter. Its especially smart to wash up when you get home every day, before you cook, after you handle raw ..read more

This is a scary time. Our entire society is fighting an enemy we can't see and have never fought before.  Everyone is worried and stressed. There have been news reports this week about the virus spreading in meat packing plants and those plants shutting down or significantly slowing production. What does that mean for our food supply? First, we are not going to run out of food. Yes, a slow down in production may affect the variety of protein available in some parts of our country, but we are not going to run out. We may have to get more creative or open minded about what we cook a ..read more

Meat alternatives have been in the news a lot lately. A certain Royal burger chain has recently launched a burger that was once considered Impossible, and I can’t open my inbox or walk through a crowd at a conference without hearing something about lab-grown meat. So, it’s about time that I write something about it. First. Is it Impossible? We are really talking about two completely different products here.        1.      Plant based meats – Products made to taste and feel like meat, but made from plants.        2.      Lab-grown meats – Meat grown in a petri dish from cells and media ..read more