Meat Grinder Reviews

Ground Beef Recall - Here We Go Again

2011-08-18T19:36:00.000-07:00

On August 15, the U.S. Department of Agriculture stated that National Beef Packing Company has recalled about 60,424 pounds of ground beef after an inspection at an Ohio processing plant showed E. coli contamination. The beef was shipped nationwide to distributors for further processing and distribution. Winn Dixie and Sam's Club in Colorado have been notifying customers of the recall.

The tainted meat has been repackaged and sold under different retail names, however, each package should have the number "Est 262" within the USDA mark of inspection.

There have been 35 food recalls through July 2011 involving meat products. At this rate, 2011 meat recalls are on pace to increase almost 10% over all of the recalls that occurred in 2010.

Use a meat grinder and grind your own ground meat at home. Boycott E. coli.

Avoid Deadly Meat Recalls - Use A Meat Grinder At Home

2011-08-10T19:18:00.001-07:00

It might seem unusual to consider obtaining a meat grinder for home use. After all, ground meat is readily available via supermarkets, delis, or through internet food delivery services. However, the last few years have witnessed more and more public notices and grocery store recalls of contaminated ground meat. In fact, per the United States Department of Agriculture’s web site, there have been 34 food recalls through July 2011 involving beef, chicken, pork, turkey and jerky meat and meat products. At this rate, 2011 meat recalls are on pace to increase almost 10% over all of the recalls that occurred in 2010.

Recently, a huge August 2011 recall of over 36 million pounds of ground turkey meat was ordered by the US Department of Agriculture. This was the third-largest meat recall in American history. The USDA linked the contaminated ground turkey, from an Arkansas Cargill, Inc. processing plant, to some 77 cases of salmonella and one death. Incredibly, Federal officials said they found the salmonella at the Cargill plant last year, and then an additional four times this year, at retail stores selling the Cargill turkey, but didn't mandate a recall until the outbreak killed the one person and sickened the 77 others. Apparently, per food safety specialists, meat plants can have 49.9% of tests come back positive for salmonella but still pass United States Department of Agriculture meat processing performance standards. A Cargill spokesman stated that the Arkansas plant had passed all United States Department of Agriculture performance standards. Somehow that fact is not very comforting.

Grinding meat at home with a meat grinder can avoid many of the dangers inherent in high volume meat processing plants. Most of the dangerous bacteria that cause meat recalls are mixed in with meat at slaughterhouses where animals are rendered and prepared for processing and packaging. High volume meat processing involves the slaughter and mixing of numerous different animal parts from many different sources. This raises the risk of E. Coli, salmonella and other harmful bacteria being introduced into the meat. Sadly, many meat plants also fail to maintain a clean environment. Lastly, as evidenced, by the Cargill turkey plant, apparently a meat processing plant can fail to produce clean meat 49.9% of the time and still receive a safe grade.

Using a meat grinder in your kitchen to make homemade ground meat negates these problems and issues. When grinding meat, choose whole, primal cuts of beef to grind. These cuts will be from one animal and one slaughterhouse reducing the risks of slaughterhouse processing and food borne pathogens. You can grind meat at home, under your own supervision, and ensure that no contamination occurs. Furthermore, it gives you an opportunity to look over the cut of meat, smell it and verify that nothing seems amiss.

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Basic Meat Grinder Functions And Features

2011-08-06T14:03:00.001-07:00

Electric meat grinders use the same principles as manual meat grinders to grind meat. Whether electricity or good old elbow grease is used, meat grinders force meat through sharpened blades. Below are the standard features that electric meat grinders should have in order to produce ground meat.

Motor Housing: The large base of the unit which provides an outer shell and protection for the motor mechanism.

Operating Buttons: Typically should include on, off and reverse options. The reverse setting changes the direction of the feed screw, and the ground meat, and is used if the unit jams.

Food Pusher: Used to feed and push meat into the hopper tray opening which feeds into the grinder head.

Hopper Tray: Holds the meat that will be pushed into the grinder head.

Grinder Head: Contains the feed screw, cutting blade, and cutting plates for
grinding.

Locking Knob: Used to hold the grinder head tightly in place. Meat passes through the grinder head right before meeting the feed screw and cutting blade.

Feed Screw: Inside the grinder head. Looks like a big screw and rotates the cutting blade which grinds the meat.

Cutting Blade: .Inside the grinder head. Cuts the meat before it goes through the grinding plates.

Grinding Plates: Grinds meat into the different textures depending on the dimensions of the holes in the plate, whether fine, medium, or coarse.

Cap: Holds the cutting blade and grinding plates in place during
grinding.

Sausage Stuffer:. Attaches to the end of grinder where the meat extrudes and operates as a funnel to fill sausage casings when making sausage.

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May Is National Hamburger Month - Use A Meat Grinder

2011-05-04T17:59:00.000-07:00

The weather is warmer, the start of summer is closer and the hamburgers are grilling. May is National Hamburger Month. For a great tasting hamburger, grind your own beef with a meat grinder. Great meat cuts to grind include beef sirloin, sirloin tip or top round. Grinding your own meat allows more control over the fats, salts or other additives that go into your food and ultimately in your diet. Plus, grinding whole primal cuts of beef will help you avoid the beef recalls that eminate from high volume meat processing plants (22 beef recalls in 2010 and 6 already through March 2011 - see this Meat Grinder Reviews article).

Watching Sausage Being Made - It Is Easy With A Meat Grinder

2011-04-30T11:38:00.000-07:00

You have probably heard the saying, “watching sausage being made” used when referring to a messy, complex, or perhaps, less than clean or straightforward process. Think law making and politics. When it comes to actual food sausage making, however, Meat Grinder Reviews believes you should know exactly how sausage is made. Store bought pre-made sausage can be full of preservatives, excess sodium and other chemicals used to extend its grocery shelf life. Conversely, homemade sausage using freshly ground meat, all natural ingredients and a meat grinder allows you to control the sausage inputs and final product.

Homemade sausage starts with fresh meat. Sausage is traditionally made with pork, however, beef, venison, bison, chicken or lamb, or any combinations of these meats, can be used. Typically sausage is made with up to three parts meat to one part fat. Thus, the fat content of the meat should be about 15% to 25%. A certain amount of fat is important as the fat acts as a binding agent tying the meat together and preventing it from drying out. Herbs, spices, cheese, breadcrumbs or liquids can be added to the meat to give the sausage flavor and texture. Preparing the meat is simple. First, make sure the meat is cold. Then, cut the meat into 1 ¼ to 1 ½ inch slices or cubes, mix it with all of the spices or flavorings and then grind it in a meat grinder. Full steps for making homemade sausage are in this meat grinder article.

Why Buy A Meat Grinder?

2011-04-03T11:40:00.001-07:00

A meat grinder may not immediately come to mind when considering and reviewing needed or desired kitchen appliances. However, meat grinders are becoming a more popular choice for use in home kitchens. Here are some of the main reasons that meat grinders are a popular choice for, and a valuable appliance in, home kitchens:

■Home chefs and gourmet cooks have added control over the ingredients that go into their dishes.

■Cooks that like to experiment with new ingredients and dishes will appreciate the additional control.

■A meat grinder allows more control over fats, salts or other additives that go into your food and ultimately in your diet.

■Meat grinders can save money. Buy larger, unprocessed cuts of meat and later grind and process them yourself.

■Meat grinders can be a hunter’s best tool and ally for processing game

■Lastly, after using a meat grinder, store bought burgers, sausage, ground turkey and other meats will never quite be as good as your own home made specialty combinations.

Turkey Burger Food Recall - Use A Meat Grinder To Make Your Own

2011-04-02T18:52:00.000-07:00

The U.S. Department of Agriculture says Jennie-O Turkey is recalling abouy 55,000 pounds of frozen, raw turkey burger that may be contaminated with salmonella.

The turkey products being recalled are 4 pound boxes of Jennie-O Turkey Store labeled “All Natural Turkey Burgers with seasonings Lean White Meat". Each box contains a dozen of 1/3 pound burgers.

A use by date of “DEC 23 2011” and an identifying lot code of “32710” through “32780” are inkjetted on the side panel of each box. The turkey was packaged on Nov. 23, 2010 and distributed to retail establishments nationwide.

Do you like ground turkey? Do you want to avoid salmonella? Use a meat grinder to grind your own turkey burgers. Buy whole, primal cuts of turkey meat, grind it up, add spices, if desired, and hold the salmonella.

Meat Grinder Maintenance Tips

2011-03-20T09:03:00.001-07:00

Meat grinders are a great appliance for making homemade sausages, hamburger meat, ground turkey and or chicken. Meat grinders are easy to use appliances that will last for years if properly cared for. Common meat grinder issues can include poor grinding quality and jamming and problems with keeping them clean. Following some easy preventative measures can help keep common meat grinder problems at bay. Follow these basic meat grinder tips to keep your machine working properly:

■After grinding meat, grind some stale bread through the meat grinder to help get the meat grinder completely clean. The bread will attach to tiny meat particles in the grinder and help carry residue out. After running the bread through the machine, wash the grinder parts in hot water, dry them thoroughly and occasionally coat the parts with a few drops of cooking oil before storing.

■To ensure a smooth consistent grind, cut meat into cubes a bit smaller than the meat grinder’s hopper or funnel opening. Also before grinding, make sure all bones and tendons are removed. Chilled meat grinds best.

■Lubricate the internal conveyor and blades before running the meat through with the excess fat that you cut from the meat.

■If the grinder jams up during operation, put the machine in reverse to clear the jam, run fat through the machine to lubricate it and start grinding again.

Meat Grinder - FAQ

2011-03-20T06:36:00.001-07:00

What size meat grinder grinding plate should I use when making sausage?

A 1/4 inch or a 3/16 inch grinding or extrusion plate is typically used.

Meat Grinder - FAQ

2011-03-20T06:35:00.001-07:00

Why is my meat not extruding properly through the grinder plate?

The meat is likely too warm. The meat is not being cut properly and is blocking and building up behind the grinder plate. Before grinding, put the meat in the freezer to form ice crystals.

Tips On Buying An Electric Meat Grinder

2010-10-23T21:28:00.000-07:00

Are you looking to upgrade from a manual meat grinder to an electric meat grinder? Or are you considering grinding your own homemade ground meat at home? Either way, consider these helpful tips for choosing the best electric meat grinder to suit your needs:

Tip 1: Get enough power - Electric meat grinders typically range in power from 150 to 1,000 watts. As a rule of thumb, 150 watts can grind about 1 to 1.25 pounds of meat per hour, depending on the type of meat you will grind. Consider your needs and buy enough watts or power.

Tip 2: Get the reverse option - Electric meat grinders should have a reverse switch that can help unclog any jams that can occur. The reverse option is one of an electric grinder’s best benefits versus a manual meat grinder.

Tip 3: How many extrusion plates? - There are typically five different sizes of meat grinder extrusion plates that produce a coarse to fine meat grind. More plates give you more grinding options.

Tip 4: Get a sausage funnel - Sizzling sausage on the grill, few foods smell and sound better when cooking. Making homemade sausage is easy with an electric meat grinder and a sausage funnel.

Tip 5: Read consumer reviews - Learn from other meat lovers’ experiences. Read and learn from meat grinder reviews here.

Meat Grinder Maintenance

2010-10-23T21:12:00.000-07:00

Follow these steps to clean and care for your meat grinder. These tips will prolong the life of your meat grinder, protect your investment and allow many years of making homemade meats.
- Always unplug the meat grinder’s motor when it is not in use. Also make sure it is unplugged before inserting or removing any parts and before cleaning.

- The base of the meat grinder, which houses the motor, should never be immersed in water or any other liquids.

- You can wash all of the meat grinder’s parts, excluding the motor unit, in hot soapy water. Make sure the sharp blades are handled very carefully.

- Do not use a dishwasher to wash the meat grinder’s parts.

- After washing, rinse the parts with clear hot water and then dry them thoroughly.

- The grinder’s base motor unit can be wiped with a clean, damp cloth. A mild cleanser can also be used.

- To prevent rust, after washing and drying, the cutting blades and cutting plates can be coated with cooking oil. When not in use, the blades can be wrapped in non-greasy paper in order to keep them lubricated and ready for the next meat grinding.

By: Meat Grinder Reviews

How To Make Sausage Links

2010-08-07T14:25:00.000-07:00

Many meat grinder models come with sausage making attachments or sausage stuffers that allow you to transform your machine into a sausage maker. Popular meat grinder brands like Waring Proand Weston offer sausage attachments as additional features. How do you use a sausage stuffer? First, as outlined in this Meat Grinder Reviews article, use your meat grinder to make the ground sausage mixture. Secondly, follow these steps to easily make homemade sausage:

■Certain meat grinder models have sausage making rings that screw onto the grinder’s feed screw. The feed screw is where you would normally add the cutting blades and coarse cutting plates if you were grinding meat.

■Place the sausage attachment or sausage tube, that will be used to extrude the sausage mixture through, on the meat grinder’s sausage ring, or feed screw or feed head if there is no ring, and tighten. Many meat grinders have small and large sausage attachments and tubes to allow for different sized sausage links.

■Slide the sausage casing, that the sausage mixture will be extruded into, over the end of the sausage attachment. Leave at least 2 inches of the casing’s end hanging over the end of the attachment.

■Put the previously ground sausage mixture into the hopper and turn the meat grinder on. Use the meat grinder’s pusher to force the sausage mixture into the hopper. Use the pusher until the mixture appears and extrudes out of the end of the sausage attachment.

■While extruding the sausage, keep the casing moist by watering it frequently. Continue extruding until the casing is approximately 2 inches from being full. Turn the meat grinder off.

■Twist the sausage filled casing at various intervals to make the sausage link sizes desired.

By: Meat Grinder Reviews

Ground Beef Safety Questions

2010-04-30T18:49:00.000-07:00

Ground beef related safety questions are consistently among the top five most popular calls into the U.S. Department of Agriculture's telephone hotline. Practice raw meat food safety. Keep meat refrigerated at 40 degrees Fahrenheit or below, cook the meat, or freeze it, within 2 days of purchase, wash and sterilize any areas and body parts that contact raw meat and cook meat to an internal temperature of 160 degrees Fahrenheit.

Ground Beef Versus Hamburger

2010-04-30T18:40:00.000-07:00

Is there a difference between hamburger meat and ground beef? Yes, fat can
be separately added to hamburger meat, but cannot be added to ground beef. Both hamburger meat and ground beef can contain a maximum of 30% fat, however, fat can be an additive to hamburger meat.

Control the amount of fat in your ground beef. Grind whole, primal cuts of beef in a meat grinder to make delicious ground beef.

How To Make Home Made Sausage

2010-03-27T20:24:00.000-07:00

Follow these easy steps to make home made sausage:
- Buy a pork shoulder roast and cut it up so it can easily be fed into the funnel of a meat grinder.
- Grind up the meat
- Add spices to the ground meat like salt, pepper, garlic, sage, rosemary, chile pepper, coriander, fennel or ginger. Use your imagination and try different combinations of spices.
- Mix thoroughly. You can add a quart of water per 20 pounds of ground meat to make the mixing easier and to help the meat flow through the sausage stuffing tube.
- Feed the meat into the stuffing tube and crank away.

Meat Safety - Why Isn't Contaminated Meat Traced?

2010-03-06T18:20:00.000-08:00

What is one of the biggest and most consistent problems with meat safety? After finding contaminated meat, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) does not try to identify the ultimate source of the contamination. Instead, the USDA tries to take all of the contaminated meat out of the supply chain.

Why wouldn't the USDA try to trace back the contaminated meat to its ultimate source? This could identify slaughterhouses and or processors that practice unsafe habits and consistently cause contaminated meat.

Kroger - Beef Recall

2010-03-03T03:14:00.000-08:00

During late February, Kroger, the country's largest grocery store chain, issued a food recall notice on their corporate web site. Kroger recalled five different beef products because of potential E. coli contamination.

The beef products recalled included burritos and tamales sold under the brands Little Juan, Tina's, Don Miguel, XLNT, and Deli.

A review of the U.S Food Safety and Inspection Service's web site, does not show this recall on their current list. Buyer beware.

Expanded Beef Recall And Criminal Investigation

2010-02-21T19:44:00.000-08:00

As previously disclosed, Huntington Meat Packing Inc. expanded their initial 864,000 pound beef recall to include a further 4.9 million pounds of meat that was potentially contaminated with E. coli.

The US Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) recently confirmed that the Huntington recalls were because the company had failed to follow its own food safety plan since at least January 2009.

“The products are adulterated because the company made the products under insanitary conditions failing to take the steps it had determined were necessary to produce safe products”, said an FSIS statement.

The FSIS said the recall expansion was based on evidence collected in an “ongoing criminal investigation”.

A company knowingly sold contaminated meat products for over a year? That certainly does not inspire much confidence in the meat processing industry.

Buy whole cuts of meat that have less risk of contamination and process and grind your own meat in a meat grinder.

Organic Beef - Definition Of Organic Beef Improved

2010-02-20T11:17:00.000-08:00

What makes beef organic? How should cattle be raised and fed to have their meat qualify as organic?

The U.S. Agriculture Department just significantly narrowed the definition of organic beef. The new rules, which take effect in June, say that organic beef must come from livestock that spend at least four months out a year grazing on pasture and that at least 30% of cattle's overall feed must come from grazing.

The old rules on organic beef were incredibly loose and only stated that animals must have access to pasture and grazing. Obviously, the old rules left a large amount of wiggle room that beef producers no doubt exploited.

Why should you eat organic beef? Organic food is grown without pesticides, hormones, antibiotics or biotechnology. Plus, cattle that is fed at pasture is leaner and healthier than corn fattened beef.

Buy organic beef and grind your own beef in a meat grinder. It will be the best ground beef you've ever tasted.

An Expanded Meat Recall

2010-02-13T12:30:00.000-08:00

The Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service announced that an additional 4.9 million pounds of meat products packed and processed by Huntington Meat Packing Inc. were being recalled. The original meat recall covered about 864,000 pounds and was issued January 18, 2010. The meat carries the Huntington, Imperial Meat Co. and El Rancho brands and carries the establishment number "EST. 17967" inside the USDA mark of inspection.

Make your own ground beef with a meat grinder, you won't have to recall it.

Beef Recall....Again

2010-02-04T20:14:00.000-08:00

Approximately 14,000 pounds of beef products were recently recalled due to the possibility of E. coli food poisoning.

The US. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced the beef recall after FSIS inspectors found evidence of E. coli pathogens at West Missouri Beef, LLC's facility.

The meat was distributed by the company to wholesalers in the Chicago area.

Each package is marked with “EST. 5821″ inside the USDA mark of inspection.

Another reason to get a meat grinder and control your own meat processing.

Almost 3 Million Pounds of Meat Recalled In 3 Months

2010-01-24T16:49:00.000-08:00

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS)recently anounced that Daniele International Inc., a R.I. firm, is recalling approximately 1,240,000 pounds of Italian sausage products

Including the Daniele International, Inc. recall, there have been over 2,880,000 pounds of meat products recalled since November 2009 because of E. coli or salmonella contamination.

Make your own sausage with a meat grinder. Buy your own meat, add spices and grind it all together to make home made sausage.

E Coli Strikes Again

2010-01-18T14:36:00.000-08:00

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced today that Huntington Meat Packing Inc., a Montebello, Calif. firm, is recalling approximately 864,000 pounds of beef products that may be contaminated with E. coli.

The following ground beef products were produced between January 5, 2010 to January 15, 2010, and are subject to recall:

40 lb. boxes of "Huntington Meats Ground Beef"
40 lb. boxes of "HUNTINGTON MEAT PKG. INC. BEEF GROUND FOR FURTHER PROCESSING"
40 lb. boxes of "BEEF BURRITO FILLING MIX"
10 lb. boxes of "IMPERIAL MEAT CO. GROUND BEEF PATTY"
20 lb. boxes of "IMPERIAL MEAT CO. GROUND BEEF PATTY"
10 lb. boxes of "El Rancho MEAT & PROVISION ALL BEEF PATTIES"

Each box bears the establishment number EST. 17967 inside the USDA mark of inspection on a label. The products were shipped to distribution centers, restaurants, and hotels within the State of California.

The number of contaminated ground beef recalls continues to rise. Protect yourself. Buy whole, primal cuts of beef and make your own ground beef with a meat grinder

U.S. Ground Beef Banned By Taiwan

2010-01-05T17:10:00.000-08:00

On January 5th, Taiwan's parliament gave final approval to a legislative bill that banned the importation of U.S. ground beef into their country. Taiwan has banned U.S. beef products off and on since 2003, after the U.S. had its first documented case of mad cow disease. The U.S.' recent, continual recalls of E Coli tainted ground beef has certainly not helped the perception of the U.S.' beef supply.