How To Use A Meat Grinder Without Wrecking It

How to use a meat grinder

A meat grinder is an essential item to have at hand in the kitchen if you are a carnivore. Whether you are debating to buy one, or don’t want to get one in the first place, this article is just for you! First of all, let us see what are the various parts of a meat grinder. Once you know the individual parts, you can operate them with impunity.

Parts Of A Meat Grinder

 

how-to-use-a-meat-grinder

(from http://www.northerntool.com/)

1) The Hopper and Pusher
2) The blade and plate
3) The screw
4) The cover

How To Use A Meat Grinder

In all types of meat grinders, the process is the same although the quality of result may not:

You need to place the pieces on the tray. As said above, the larger the tray is, the more meat you can grind at a time. Once this is done, you turn the Screw while using the Pusher to push the meat inside. The screw activates the blades which cut pieces equally. The output is given from the end of the Hopper.

Now here are somethings which you need to know. Animal tissues and sinews can spell disaster for your meat grinder as. Fat and tissue may stick to the blades bring it to a standstill or may affect the circuits in case of the most advanced models.

To keep your grinders in optimal condition:

1) Always use chilled meats: You don’t want to introduce warm meat pieces to the grinder. When the meat is warm, it tends to smear to the sides and make a mess within the grinder. Secondly, warm meat has fat which leaks out during grinding. What you get in the end is a dry and pulpy mess. Totally eww! The best way to do this is to put your meat in the freezer at least one hour before. For best results, let it freeze overnight.

2) Trim meats before loading on grinder: Have you ever wondered why smearing of meat is problematic to the grinder’s mechanism? This is because it sticks to the blade, making it dull. You need to trim it well rather than mindless chopping it.

3) Grind multiple times and clean blades to remove smears: If you ask which is the most important part of the grinder mechanism, then the answer is the blade itself. If it is sharp, it will cut and grind through anything. If the blade is dull, which happens when meat smears on it, it cannot work as effectively. Get your blade sharpened at least once a year. Alternatively, you can also buy a set of replacement blades instead, which come at economic rates.

4) Grind multiple times: When it comes to grinding well, there is a special technique. Try grinding from large to small pieces. Why? This comes especially handy when you want to prepare extra fine grind for sausages, for which you need to grind twice before chilling them. This effectively prevents smearing, gives a better ground meat and sausages with better texture.

5) Clean the plate regularly: The only reason you may want meat to dry up and stick to the blades is if you want to get sick to your stomach, literally. To avoid this, it is suggested that you wash all parts of the meat grinder and remove leftover meats before using.

Why Buy A Meat Grinder?

1) A meat grinder is safer: Nutrition specialists don’t recommend pre-packaged meats. This is because such products contain meat not from one animal, but from thousands of animals. Another problem is that the quality of meats may not be good. However, when you buy chunks of meat from your local shop and use the meat grinder, you can choose what goes into your meal.

2) Better control and flavor: Using a meat grinder enables you to control what goes into your mouth. When you buy pre-packaged meat from the supermarket, you have to take what is already packaged.

3) Keeping a better texture: Pre-packaged meats get oxidized and compressed slowly with limited moisture levels, while fresh ground meats are looser and better moisture levels.

4) Its easy and cool: With a meat grinder at home, not only can you start enjoying your meals faster, but you will also earn kudos from your peers, friends and family.

Types Of Meat Grinders

Now that you know how the mechanisms work, it is time for you to buy one! But which kind of meat grinder should you buy? There are many kinds of products in the market. Below are 3 kinds of meat grinders, which should help you to decide which one to buy.

Hand Crank Meat Grinder

LEM Products #10 Stainless Steel Clamp-on Hand Grinder

1) Manual Grinders– If you are on a budget, manual grinders are sure to fit the bill. These are highly affordable and work just as well. These are perfect for grinding fresh meat at the comforts of home, without having the guilt of buying an expensive set. It is also ideal for casual users.

how to use a meat grinder

LEM Products W777 #5 LEM Stainless Steel .25 HP Big Bite Grinder

2) Stand Mixer Attachment: If budget is not your first priority, then you may want to level up to a Stand Mixer Grinder Attachment. Think about this as a powerful machine which will grind through any tough meat you want. The motor in such products is quite powerful.

how to ues a meat grinder

STX INTERNATIONAL STX-3000-TF Turboforce 3-Speed Electric

3) Standalone Grinders: These are the most expensive of meat grinders, but also the most powerful. If you cook large quantities of meat daily, are selective about the output and don’t care about your budget at all, then you’ll love these. Standalone grinders come along with additional parts to make life easier. These come with a Reverse function which is handy if you want to fine-tune your meat output.

Conclusion

In this tutorial, you have learned the importance of a meat grinder, its various types, the different parts, how to use a meat grinder and lastly, how to take care of it. This is a wonderful piece of equipment as it saves you hours of manual work and provides you with high-quality results. Using a meat grinder, you can have any kind of preparation as you want, such as sausages.

We hope you have enjoyed reading it, and if you have, please tell us what piqued your interest. Please feel free to share as well.

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