How to Easily Grind Your Own Beef.

How to Grind Beef

If you're grinding your own beef the main reason to do this is for flavour.  If you only plan to do this occasionally then make it for an event where the beef is the star of the show, like Hamburgers.

→BEST CUTS FOR GRINDING INTO GROUND BEEF←

Look for roasts/meat labelled:

Blade Roast
Chuck Roast
Blade Roast
Cross Rib Roast

(Some are the same thing but labelled differently depending on what country you're in or what your butcher labels them as.)

These all come from between the neck and the shoulder of the cow.  THIS is the area that's going to have a good fat to meat ratio.

• The BEST ground meat will have a ratio of 15-25% fat in it.
• If your cut of meat doesn't have that, ask whoever is behind the counter if they can throw in some fat for you to add to your meat.

If you have a package of stewing beef in the freezer, it's the perfect thing to turn into ground beef! 

It's already cubed & usually has plenty of fat. It's perfect.

That tough, cheap steak that's been sitting in the freezer for a year, it can also be turned into ground beef!

WAYS TO GRIND MEAT

With a hand crank grinder.

One way to grind your own meat is by using a hand grinder that you clamp to your counter.

1. Clamp the grinder to your counter with a bowl beneath it.
2. Cut your fat and meat into cubes small enough to fit into the funnel of your grinder. Freeze them for about half an hour to firm them up and help prevent them from getting sticky and pasty when you grind.
3. Feed the cubes into the top funnel of the grinder, pushing down with the tamper.
4. Whirl away on that handle until all your cubes are ground.
5. Then do this again two more times with the already ground meat to get the proper consistency of ground beef.
   

   ---

With a Cuisinart (Food processor)

A Cuisinart can do a fairly good job of grinding meat as long as the meat is partially frozen. It shouldn't be frozen solid, just firm.  Partially freezing the meat is also the easiest way to cut steaks from a roast. I do this all the time. I buy a large tenderloin roast and then cut it into individual steaks.

To grind with a food processor:

1. Cut your fat and meat into 1" cubes trimming off the silverskin (that's the rubbery, very tough tissue). The cubes need to be small so they grind quickly and easily.
2. Drop cubes of meat into the Cuisinart until the container is half full.

3. Pulse 10X for one second each time and assess your meat. If the consistency looks good, you're done. If not, pulse a few more times.
4. Remember PULSE, do not run the Cuisinart steady. If you do you'll end up with pasty baby-food like meat.

5. Once I've finished grinding, I poke around looking for gross bits, like silverskin that I missed or hard fat that didn't get ground up.

Poking around for chunks of fat or silverskin is only necessary if you use a food processor for grinding. An actual grinder (hand or electric) will take care of those things.

With a Stand Mixer Attachment with grinding attachment.

*note, you don't have to buy the expensive, stainless Kitchen Aid grinder, less expensive ones work just fine on it.

Along with an electric meat grinder, a stand mixer will give you great ground beef. It's done exactly the same as using a hand crank grinder.

1. Cut your fat and meat into cubes small enough to fit into the funnel of your grinder. Freeze them for about half an hour to firm them up and help prevent them from getting sticky and pasty when you grind.
2. Meanwhile, plug your stand mixer in and attach the grinding attachment with the finer grinding plate. Set a bowl under the grinding attachment.
3. Feed the partially frozen cubes into the top funnel of the grinder, pushing down with the tamper.
4. Process until all your cubes are ground.
5. Then do this again two more times with the already ground meat to get the proper consistency of ground beef.

Continue to Content

How to Grind your own Beef

How to grind your own meat with a hand grinder, food processor or Kitchen Aid with grinder attachment.

Print

Materials

• Knife
• Beef, Chicken, Lamb or Venison

Tools

• Hand meat grinder
• Food processor
• or
• Kitchen Aid

Instructions

Hand Grinder

1. Clamp the grinder to your counter with a bowl beneath it.
2. Cut your fat and meat into cubes small enough to fit into the funnel of your grinder. Freeze them for about half an hour to firm them up and help prevent them from getting sticky and pasty when you grind.
3. Feed the cubes into the top funnel of the grinder, pushing down with the tamper.
4. Whirl away on that handle until all your cubes are ground.
5. Then do this again two more times with the already ground meat to get the proper consistency of ground beef.

Food Processor

1. Cut your fat and meat into 1″ cubes trimming off the silverskin (that’s the rubbery, very tough tissue). The cubes need to be small so they grind quickly and easily.
2. Drop cubes of meat into the Cuisinart until the container is half full.
3. Pulse 10X for one second each time and assess your meat. If the consistency looks good, you’re done. If not, pulse a few more times.
4. Remember PULSE, do not run the Cuisinart steady. If you do you’ll end up with pasty baby-food like meat.
5. Once I’ve finished grinding, I poke around looking for gross bits, like silverskin that I missed or hard fat that didn’t get ground up.

Food Processor

1. Cut your fat and meat into cubes small enough to fit into the funnel of your grinder. Freeze them for about half an hour to firm them up and help prevent them from getting sticky and pasty when you grind.
2. Meanwhile, plug your stand mixer in and attach the grinding attachment with the finer grinding plate. Set a bowl under the grinding attachment.
3. Feed the partially frozen cubes into the top funnel of the grinder, pushing down with the tamper.
4. Process until all your cubes are ground.
5. Then do this again two more times with the already ground meat to get the proper consistency of ground beef.

Notes

Partially freezing the meat helps stop it from becoming like baby food.