Medium: Omaha steaks clearance sale

[ShizNitz]

<< The taking of any life, whether human or not, is murder (is 'slaughter' a better word?); a cow has as much right to enjoy life as you or me...if we discovered that there was a farm in the U.S. where millions of cats and dogs were being raised to be slaughtered for food, and we saw this on the evening news, we would be shocked and appalled. >>



I have to respond. What about animals in the wild? When a cat eats a mouse, would you like to try the cat for murder? This is all part of life, darwinism at it's finest. If animals are killed for mere pleasure, I find that disturbing. However, if life is taken to provide for other life, I consider that part of nature. If assurance is taken to allow for a quick, somewhat painless death, I don't feel any remorse for the lower species nor do I consider the life-taker to be a vicious evil-doer.

PS: Have you ever swatted a fly?

 

[chexi]

Rice? Rice? Yeah, keep eating your rice and other wonderful high-complex carb products, and when you are fat and have adult diabetes, don't come crying to us happy meateaters.

 

[slycat]

so $8.40 /lb right?....assuming u get the $21.
30oz..

and u get 6 hamburgers?...thats a good deal...coz the local supermarket
charges $7.99 /lb NY steak.

 

[grappa]

Yeah, go into a thread about an Omaha Steaks deal and preach about not eating meat. That makes TONS of sense.

G

 

[csc2]

Holy off-topic Batman!!

Anyway, in keeping ON TOPIC first, I too have had plenty of "free samples" of Omaha Steaks just like greg did. (Man, that Marlboro Party Pack was the greatest hot deal in the history of Hot deals!)

While Omaha Steaks are generally good quality, they are asolutely ridiculously overpriced. The first clue of extreme price gouging is the fact that they are ALWAYS offering 50% off sales, buy 1 get something free and various other promotions. Even after the sale the meat is still pretty expensive. Bottom line: Good quality delivered right to your door that will keep well for about 6 months in the freezer but you pay a huge premium for that luxury.

Now to get to OFF TOPIC:

JustinCase,

As a die hard animal lover myself I have to chime in that the 'PETA' mindset is a bit too radical for me. I am a member of the Humane Society, The ASPCA and own 2 cats and 2 dogs. While I love animals I honestly can't understand why some people feel that animals deserve the same rights as humans! If a deer is savagely killed by a cougar would you arrest the cougar? Would you call it murder? Of course not. It's the nature of life. Why is it ok for a lion to eat an animal but not a human? Furthermore as to the notion that the cow has a right to enjoy life as much as you or I - Which do you feel is better: A cow is raised on a farm and eventually slaughtered for food or that the cow is never born to begin with. If people didn't eat these animals it's not like we would have millions of cows roaming the streets you know! We simply wouldn't breed them and then they never would have existed.

If you were given the choice of either being brutally slaughtered at the age of 30 or to have never been born at all you would probably pick the first option. I have an idea, let's get all the cow's together and put it to a vote...

 

[elektronic]

<< Real men only cook with fresh meat. None of this frozen cr@p. I have tried both and prefer fresh any day. Search the web and learn how to grill a steak correctly. >>



Yeah, search the web, you'll learn how to cook a steak there. :disgust:
I don't need a website to tell me how to properly cook a steak.
I've worked as a grill cook for the outback.

 

[elektronic]

<< >>>there are other methods of obtaining the meat humanely.<<<

Hmmm...humane death? Sounds like a great plan. I would like to apply these methods to get me some humane meat...oops, I mean human meat; there are some bums a few miles from here, and I think they would taste just delicious barbequed. Can you explain your methods of murdering 'humanely'? >>



I think what you fail to realize is that humans are the only species to eat their own species, because they are at the top of the food chain.
Without sport hunters, the deer populations would skyrocket, and more deer would die a less humane death, ie. they would be left to die by the side of the road by 20 ton tractor trailers. How's that for humane?

Further, if everyone switched to eating rice, think about the impact to the natives of southeast asia and west africa. In africa, the opprseeive governments already rape the natives for their crops, what is left after exports they can eat, imagine if they had to supply the world. Imagine Japan and China and their overcrowding problems. Rice doesn't just grow anywhere.

 

[chexi]

lol. Grill cook for the Outback? No offense, but then you may need to do a search and find out. My experience with the Outback Steakhouse is that they have no idea how to grill a steak. Every steak I've ever received there came one way... raw. Now I realize that a good steak should be rare, but there's a big difference between rare and raw.

 

[chexi]

Let's face it, eating rice is one step above eating paper.

 

[elektronic]

<< lol. Grill cook for the Outback? No offense, but then you may need to do a search and find out. My experience with the Outback Steakhouse is that they have no idea how to grill a steak. Every steak I've ever received there came one way... raw. Now I realize that a good steak should be rare, but there's a big difference between rare and raw. >>



then, obviously you need to know the steakhouse definitions of rare, medrare, med, med well, and well.
The true test is comparing the firmness of the steak to your hand, for example:

rare: that patch of skin btwn your thumb and index finger with your hand held relaxed, wiggle it back and forth with your other hand. Feels like jelly? That's rare.

medium stretch out the skin btwn your thumb and index finger to make an 'L,' now push on it with your other thumb, that's medium.

well: flip your hand over, push the skin at the base of your palm on the thumb side near the wrist (ie, right bottom on the right hand, left bottom on the left hand) thats well.

Ask any grill cook at any steakhouse or that want to the CIA, they'll tell you the same thing.

Colors:

rare: red w/ cool center
med rare: read w/ warm center
medium: pink w/ touch of red at center
med well: cooked w/ still some pink
well: cooked throughout

Again, ask any grill cook at a *real* steakhouse and this is what they'll tell you. This isn't Charlie Browns.

 

[chexi]

Maybe it's the Outbacks I've been to. The first steak there I ordered medium rare. It was came crimson on the inside (all but the very skin) and cold in the center. The next one I ordered was medium well. It came exactly the same way. That was all I needed to never go back to that one. That was in Virginia. In Wisconsin, I went once and ordered medium and got the exact same thing as in Virginia. This has happened to other people as well. So while I do agree with you on your chart and you do appear to know what you are talking about, my experience with the two Outbacks I've been to did not measure up to your standards. Again, no offense to you personally, but Outback's 0-2 with me.

 

[elektronic]

<< Maybe it's the Outbacks I've been to. The first steak there I ordered medium rare. It was came crimson on the inside (all but the very skin) and cold in the center. The next one I ordered was medium well. It came exactly the same way. That was all I needed to never go back to that one. That was in Virginia. In Wisconsin, I went once and ordered medium and got the exact same thing as in Virginia. This has happened to other people as well. So while I do agree with you on your chart and you do appear to know what you are talking about, my experience with the two Outbacks I've been to did not measure up to your standards. Again, no offense to you personally, but Outback's 0-2 with me. >>



Well then, you can always tell the quality of the grill cook by the number of cook-ups and recooks he has to do in a night.
These are marked by a blue ticket, and if the guy repeatedly gets stacks and stack of them, he's gonna be in trouble, not only when it comes to his job, but during the night, when he is running out of room on his grill.

I don't blame you for disliking the way that outback cooks their steaks after your experiences, i probably wouldn't go back either.

 

[Patchmaster]

<< edit: forgot one thing - Costco is supposed to have a better grade of meat than regular supermarkets. We were going to get a membership at Costco but when we stopped by on a weekend it was too much of a zoo plus the card checking at the door and the receipt checking at the exit looked pretty annoying. Have to consider that... >>

All of Costco's beef is choice. The average supermarket sells select; the better ones will sometimes offer choice grade, usually behind a special counter, at a much higher price. Costco is a kind of odd place, but I'm glad I have a membership. The receipt checking at the exit is as much for your protection as for theirs. The last time I was there they spotted that the guy in front of me had been charged twice for one item. It does get to be a hassle when the exit line is almost as long as the checkout line, but they do a pretty good job of keeping things moving. If you can go during the week there are usually no lines to speak of.

If you do decide to get a membership, consider all products at Costco to be targets of opportunity. Aside from a very few staple food items, you never know if they'll still have an item you spotted on your last visit. That's probably my biggest gripe. I wish they'd specifically mark the items that are one-time purchases or that they're discontinuing so you can make an informed decision about buying this trip or waiting till next time. As it is, if you see something you think you might want, you better buy it now because you never know if it will be there next time. Even their private label stuff is like that. For several months they carried Kirkland (their house brand) AA batteries in packs of 48 for a really good price. I bought a couple packs and they were just as good as Duracells. Then they disappeared and I haven't seen any more since.

Back on topic, Costco's meat is very good quality. Even the fresh chicken seems to be better than you normally find in the grocery stores. I bought a bulk pack of boneless chicken breasts last trip and all twelve of them were huge. It was almost like they halved the breasts unevenly and consistently put the larger piece in the Costco package and the smaller one in the package going to the regular grocery stores.

 

[grappa]

Two different people said:



<< I think what you fail to realize is that humans are the only species to eat their own species, because they are at the top of the food chain. >>



Um, no, they're not. If a shark is injured, other sharks will rip it to peices. Pirhanas will devour any fellow pirhana they sense is weak. Hyaenas have been known to eat each other. Crickets eat each other. Male lions have been known to kill and devour the offspring of a competing male when they take over a pride. There are literally dozens of such examples.



<< then, obviously you need to know the steakhouse definitions of rare, medrare, med, med well, and well.

The true test is comparing the firmness of the steak to your hand, for example:

rare: that patch of skin btwn your thumb and index finger with your hand held relaxed, wiggle it back and forth with your other hand. Feels like jelly? That's rare.

medium stretch out the skin btwn your thumb and index finger to make an 'L,' now push on it with your other thumb, that's medium.

well: flip your hand over, push the skin at the base of your palm on the thumb side near the wrist (ie, right bottom on the right hand, left bottom on the left hand) thats well.
>>




So what you're saying is that when I eat at the Outback some guy's been pressing his grubby fingers into my steak?? :Q

G

 

[DrPizza]

Sorry, I think Outback steaks are decent, but being trained to cook there makes one no more an expert in cooking steaks than someone trained to cook at McD's is an expert in cooking hamburgers. Sure, you can tell when a steak is "rare, med, etc", but good cooking depends a lot on the temperature and speed at which they're cooked as ~how it feels when you press it~. Internal temperature matters! I don't think it would be too hard to even burn the outside of a steak and still have it cold on the inside. For really gourmet steak cooking though, look at the (sp.?) Basques in France. They sandwich 3 steaks together, cook them, then throw out the outside steaks and eat the center steak.

 

[hudster]

<< look at the (sp.?) Basques in France. They sandwich 3 steaks together, cook them, then throw out the outside steaks and eat the center steak. >>

boy, that would be a hot deal if they'd give us those outside steaks for free, since they're just gonna chuck them out anyway!

yes, I try to see the "hot deal" in everything.


-hudster

 

[ChrisCramer247]

<< >>>there are other methods of obtaining the meat humanely.<<<

Hmmm...humane death? Sounds like a great plan. I would like to apply these methods to get me some humane meat...oops, I mean human meat; there are some bums a few miles from here, and I think they would taste just delicious barbequed. Can you explain your methods of murdering 'humanely'? >>



*sigh* yippee bring on PETA

.

GREAT DEAL!

That human meat thing made me sooooo hungry I ordered $80 worth of steaks.

PS: I don't eat vegetables because they aren't as cute as baby cows.

 

[Tominator]

<< You don't even want to know what supermarket steak cows are fed,i believe sawdust is one of the ingredients >>



This is one of the most uninformed threads in a while...

I sold fresh and frozen beef for 5 years directly and was aware of the processing for over 9...

Nearly ALL beef you buy was 'corn fed.' Corn is cheap! That cow might have had a handful or fed only on corn it's whole life! There are no Government regs that tell them to specify which...

Most of the beef you eat at resturants is 'no-roll.' Some is 'choice.' And only the very best Steak Houses can afford to charge for 'Prime.'

Those are grades given by USDA Inspectors, but the grade given might have little to do with the taste of the meat. The taste and overall quality are up to God....save cooking a piece of meat there is NO WAY to tell how it will taste!

The best way to tell the quality of frozen beef, and we are talking Omaha Steaks here as well as other brands. is to look at the ingredient list. That is there by federal law! The meat contains more of the first ingredient and each a lessor amount by the listing in order...

Look at the list of ingredients....graded meats have no ingredients! Frozen steak contain tenderizers and flavor enhancers. That is CHEMICALS!

Guess where old tough dairy cows go?....That's right! They get tenderized and sold to you at a huge mark up and all kinds of claims are made....except the grade! If they tell you it is something it is not in regards to the grade they are in violation of federal law! They can brag about it all they want until they mention the Grade...

I did not say that it is crap, but at least know something about it....I'll buy fresh!

Remeber seeing an advertisement for 'aged steaks?' Ageing is the art of letting natural proteins break down the fibre of the meat. That's the beginning of rot folks! Then you cook it just before it goes bad....

Btw, the US has the very safest food supply in the world....

Ask me about chocolate sometime...


Here's another sad fact for you....Guess what grade United States Federal Pens buy? That's right Federal Prisons? Your tax dollars buy PRIME GRADE! You cannot afford it at home, but that's what they eat! The nicer resturants I serviced could not afford to serve it! I was involved in the bidding at Menard and Marion Federal Prisons....I can tell you some stories....

 

[Patchmaster]

<< Most of the beef you eat at resturants is 'no-roll.' Some is 'choice.' And only the very best Steak Houses can afford to charge for 'Prime.' >>

By "no-roll", I assume you mean the meat is not graded. From my understanding, that's less a statement about the meat than it is about the trust between the supplier and the restaurant.

<< Frozen steak contain tenderizers and flavor enhancers. That is CHEMICALS! >>

Oh no, not CHEMICALS! I'll bet you're talking about that awful chemical NaCl. Boy, that's a nasty one. Most of life is chemistry. Don't have a cow (pun intended).

<< Guess where old tough dairy cows go?....That's right! They get tenderized and sold to you at a huge mark up and all kinds of claims are made....except the grade! If they tell you it is something it is not in regards to the grade they are in violation of federal law! They can brag about it all they want until they mention the Grade... >>

I haven't purchased from Omaha Steaks in a long time, but I'd swear the last time I bought from them they advertised that their beef was USDA Prime. Today all their web site says is "premium" and USDA inspected. If they were selling USDA Prime I'm sure they'd be advertising it. I'd certainly like to think they aren't selling old, tough dairy cows, but you never know these days.

<< Remeber seeing an advertisement for 'aged steaks?' Ageing is the art of letting natural proteins break down the fibre of the meat. That's the beginning of rot folks! Then you cook it just before it goes bad.... >>

Aging beef is a long recognized and perfectly legitimate method of tenderizing and flavor enhancing, not some insidious plot to sell you rotten beef. Omaha Steaks claims to age their beef for 21 days. A quick search on "aged beef" shows it's common practice to age beef from two to four weeks. The most famous steak houses in the world -- places like Ruth's Chris and Morton's in Chicago -- serve aged beef. If that's rot, then I say bring on the rot. And then I'll add some of that flavor enhancer, the dreaded chemical NaCl!

 

[elektronic]

<< Sorry, I think Outback steaks are decent, but being trained to cook there makes one no more an expert in cooking steaks than someone trained to cook at McD's is an expert in cooking hamburgers. Sure, you can tell when a steak is "rare, med, etc", but good cooking depends a lot on the temperature and speed at which they're cooked as ~how it feels when you press it~. Internal temperature matters! I don't think it would be too hard to even burn the outside of a steak and still have it cold on the inside. For really gourmet steak cooking though, look at the (sp.?) Basques in France. They sandwich 3 steaks together, cook them, then throw out the outside steaks and eat the center steak. >>



sorry, but you are misinformed, color and texture of steak is directly proportional to its temperature. If a a steak is "burned" on the outside, it is called searing it, and the inside would be purple if a steak was only seared. "rare, med, etc" is a temperature unit, and coresponds to a certain temperature.

BTW, in case you didn't know, McD's hasn't 'cooked' their burgers in years, take a look at their 'cooks' working the hot side line, they throw already cooked patties into the mic for 30 seconds.

Also, to lead the chemical debate, take some oil and salt and rub them into your steak next time you cook a steak from the store. Taste like omaha steak, don't it?

Most of the chemicals in Omaha steaks that give it its flavor is good ole sea salt. Just LIGHTLY rub some in on your steak nest time.

 

[sygyzy]

Just remember that salt SUCKS your steak dry so only rub some lightly on right before you cook it!

 

[Tominator]

Patchmaster

We did not disagree.

The term 'no-roll' is a term used to denote that the USDA Inspector did not grade the meat at choice or better. It has not a thing to do with 'trust,' supplier or otherwise.

No roll refers to the action of rolling a blue stamp on choice or higher grade. Sometimes you see the remnants of the blue stamp on certain cuts. The blue ink is harmless.

When I buy a piece of meat, be it pork or beef, I do not want a bunch of chemicals added to try and make it paletable! Those chemicals are used to make poor grade taste better and to charge more as a result. There is no other reason to use them. Most are hign in sodium to boot. I'll salt my own meat thanks! The chemicals break down the cell walls in the meat and that can make it more tender that it would otherwise be. Unless you buy cheap tough meat why would you do it?





<< , but I'd swear the last time I bought from them they advertised that their beef was USDA Prime. Today all their web site says is "premium" and USDA inspected >>



You see, I made you think! The word premium is NOT regulated. They can sell you premium bones! It means nothing. All meat sold in the US is USDA inspected. Even the local butcher store or slaughter house is inspected...for cleanliness mostly.

I see nothing wrong with ageing unless it leads to food poison and the more it is aged the more likely that is to happen.

Also, frozen steaks are 'flushed' with a gas containing oxygen and bacterial reducing agents. It is oxygen that gives meat it bright red color. They then flash freeze the meat in a shrink wrap with liquid hydrogen. That keeps in the oxygen and keeps the meat red.

Come on folks you are eating this stuff! At least learn a little about it.

 

[DrPizza]

 

[hudster]

<< Come on folks you are eating this stuff! At least learn a little about it. >>

I just did...thank you Tominator for the informative posts.


-hudster

 

[sueyko]

<<

<< >>>there are other methods of obtaining the meat humanely.<<<

Hmmm...humane death? Sounds like a great plan. I would like to apply these methods to get me some humane meat...oops, I mean human meat; there are some bums a few miles from here, and I think they would taste just delicious barbequed. Can you explain your methods of murdering 'humanely'? >>



I think what you fail to realize is that humans are the only species to eat their own species, because they are at the top of the food chain.
Without sport hunters, the deer populations would skyrocket, and more deer would die a less humane death, ie. they would be left to die by the side of the road by 20 ton tractor trailers. How's that for humane?

Further, if everyone switched to eating rice, think about the impact to the natives of southeast asia and west africa. In africa, the opprseeive governments already rape the natives for their crops, what is left after exports they can eat, imagine if they had to supply the world. Imagine Japan and China and their overcrowding problems. Rice doesn't just grow anywhere. >>



Humans are not the only species to eat their own kind. Chimpanzee's do as well as quite a few other animals.

As for sport hunting? Your idea of deer population escalating is a bit flawed. If the wolves and other predators weren't killed off by humans the deer population would be in check. Wolves and other predators weed out the weak and sick. Sport hunting will usually weed out the largest bucks. Don't get me wrong, I think hunting is fine when the purpose is for food. If you get a thrill outta hunting, GREAT! but don't waste the end product.

Mookow...Hitting the deer in the heart sounds like a great idea except that I'll bet far more people miss the heart than hit it!