for those of you whom produce your own food

[toexist]

I'll admit even though I'm a city boy I have a new found respect for people whom raise and produce their own food.

After seeing what real farming life is like...i know it's definitely nowhere near as easy as it looks.

One thing I often wonder though...

After you kill, gut and skin the animals you eat...do you ever get sick of it?

I eat an unhealthy amount of red meat myself. I know where my food comes from but like most Americans I don't go through process over and over on regular basis.

I'm not referring to animal cruelty, veganism or anything like that. I'm talking about going through the motions over and over. I'm not talking about in hypothetical SHTF situation either.

I just wish vegetables tasted half as good as steak does.

 

[toexist]

I asked my buddy whom owns a restaurant why he always orders out from different places even though he makes real good food.

He told me you get sick of it after a while. It all starts to taste the same he said.

 

[Arcticdude]

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I'll admit even though I'm a city boy I have a new found respect for people whom raise and produce their own food.

After seeing what real farming life is like...i know it's definitely nowhere near as easy as it looks.

One thing I often wonder though...

After you kill, gut and skin the animals you eat...do you ever get sick of it?

I eat an unhealthy amount of red meat myself. I know where my food comes from but like most Americans I don't go through process over and over on regular basis.

I'm not referring to animal cruelty, veganism or anything like that. I'm talking about going through the motions over and over. I'm not talking about in hypothetical SHTF situation either.

I just wish vegetables tasted half as good as steak does.

I've never gotten sick of eating any animal that I've processed myself. Vegetables, yes. The key to good tasting meat starts the minute you shoot it, how you skin and gut it, how clean you can keep it and how quickly you can cool the meat down. I personally won't go hunting if the temperature is above about 40 degs. Flys can quickly ruin a lot of meat. You should always check the liver and other internal organs for parisites or anything that doesn't look right. And of course cooking that prime cut of meat is the final step in a great tasting meal. I like making a lot of jerky, salami, pepperoni and sausage from the marginal cuts of meat.

 

[toexist]

I've never gotten sick of eating any animal that I've processed myself. Vegetables, yes. The key to good tasting meat starts the minute you shoot it, how you skin and gut it, how clean you can keep it and how quickly you can cool the meat down. I personally won't go hunting if the temperature is above about 40 degs. Flys can quickly ruin a lot of meat. You should always check the liver and other internal organs for parisites or anything that doesn't look right. And of course cooking that prime cut of meat is the final step in a great tasting meal. I like making a lot of jerky, salami, pepperoni and sausage from the marginal cuts of meat.

I have difficult time eating vegetables so I try to juice them as often as I can. I notice I have a lot more energy and feel significantly better after I juice greens. Often when I eat red meat I feel a little sluggish. I know I eat too much meat and not enough healthier foods. I just wondered what it must be like to have to process/prepare all your own food on daily basis.

Like I said...a new found respect.

 

[Rob Painless]

I don't think I've ever gotten 'sick of it', at least not the 'eating it' part. We've almost always got a pretty good variety of things in our freezers, so we're not eating the exact same thing day after day. The same cut of beef/deer can be cooked in a multitude of ways so is easy to avoid food 'boredom'. As for as doing the processing, I've never really gotten sick of doing it although I will admit, sometimes it gets a bit tedious. I've often been tempted to take it (the animal needing to be butchered) to the locker to have them do it, even if I had the time. But there is just something....a sense of satisfaction, knowing what/how it was processed, sense of self-reliance....something about doing it ourselves.

 

[toexist]

I don't think I've ever gotten 'sick of it', at least not the 'eating it' part. We've almost always got a pretty good variety of things in our freezers, so we're not eating the exact same thing day after day. The same cut of beef/deer can be cooked in a multitude of ways so is easy to avoid food 'boredom'. As for as doing the processing, I've never really gotten sick of doing it although I will admit, sometimes it gets a bit tedious. I've often been tempted to take it (the animal needing to be butchered) to the locker to have them do it, even if I had the time. But there is just something....a sense of satisfaction, knowing what/how it was processed, sense of self-reliance....something about doing it ourselves.

Interesting, yea I can definitely see the satisfaction part of it. Hell I often pride myself after making a salami sandwich like its some kind of accomplishment.

 

[Maverick]

I never have gotten sick from home processed animals, I did off my fish (least I think it was the fish) never off the garden. The meat including red meat is far healthier than the commercial meat sold in stores given the live stock diet is far better controlled not to mention fewer hands involved in meat process. As far as getting tired of the raising of live stock and working the garden, canning etc.., sometimes I do get tired of it but the end results make up for it. I never get tired of eating what we produce given the diversity of the food one can produce. As long as the garden is diverse one shouldn't never get tired of it, we grow a lot of pinto beans every year given it is very universal in making a lot of different food products from it like making flower for making pinto bread

One's imagination will make it boring and bland or a happy meal. Diversifying is key! though make no mistake, very very long hours from start to finish but very satisfying during the winter, it really is a way of life and unfortunately a dyeing way of life

 

[Danil54grl]

I love the fact we raise most everything we eat. It is far healthier in the long run. . . with eating it along with all the calories you burn throughout the day. . . just a healthier lifestyle. If I am not in the garden everyday to combat weeds, I hate when I have to play catch up. Life happens unexpectedly and you feel over whelmed with everything that needs done. Sometimes I get tired of canning so then I'll start drying. Some days its just blanch and throw in freezer. All depends on what needs done that day. As for meat, the only thing I really get tired of is grinding deer meat. . . all those white membrane gets caught up in the grinder and I have to stop frequently to clean out. I try to cut most of it off first, but I also don't want to lose any meat so trade off there. If you take your animals in to get butchered, they don't give back the whole animal. Only the meat that people would normally want. If you want tonge, hearts, ect, you have to ask for it. You should always honor an animal and use everything it has to offer. Its definitely not a 9-5 job, and if you have a sick critter it can be an all nighter. You don't have sick days and you don't get vacation time, but what you do get is the ratification of what you can accomplish. The critters make my days sometime. . . to just sit out in a pasture and they come surround you wanting attention. Or the big cow licks given by our bull. The hardest part for me was processing our bull calf. He was one of my bottle fed babes and even though I knew what his outcome was going to be, you have a tendency to bond with the animals you tend to everyday. It can be a rough and tough life, especially working with some of the cattle, but the rewards outweigh anny negatives.

 

[Arcticdude]

I have difficult time eating vegetables so I try to juice them as often as I can. I notice I have a lot more energy and feel significantly better after I juice greens. Often when I eat red meat I feel a little sluggish. I know I eat too much meat and not enough healthier foods. I just wondered what it must be like to have to process/prepare all your own food on daily basis.

Like I said...a new found respect.

You live in a good area to try different breeds and types of beef. Try some grass fed beef, see if you can find some Scottish Highland beef. Both are much lower in fat and colorestreral. Most commercial raised beef is finished (fattened up) in feed lots with a high grain diet with GMO feeds, growth hormones, antibiotics, etc. None of which is good for a body, in my opinion.

 

[Arcticdude]

I have difficult time eating vegetables so I try to juice them as often as I can. I notice I have a lot more energy and feel significantly better after I juice greens. Often when I eat red meat I feel a little sluggish. I know I eat too much meat and not enough healthier foods. I just wondered what it must be like to have to process/prepare all your own food on daily basis.

Like I said...a new found respect.

You live in a good area to try different breeds and types of beef. Try some grass fed beef, see if you can find some Scottish Highland beef. Both are much lower in fat and colorestreral. Most commercial raised beef is finished (fattened up) in feed lots with a high grain diet with GMO feeds, growth hormones, antibiotics, etc. None of which is good for a body, in my opinion.

 

[Silent Earth]

Gotta admit to liking well hung 21 day beef and Buffalo meat.

 

[Maverick]

Gotta admit to liking well hung 21 day beef and Buffalo meat.

Though age of cattle and bison will dictate cooler hung time, generally 14 days works for me.

 

[Gazrok]

I have difficult time eating vegetables so I try to juice them as often as I can

Tip: eat veggies FIRST, while nice and hot. Farm fresh veggies taste WAY better than those in your local market (and yes, often even those in "organic" markets). There are usually at least a few options open to folks to actually get things pretty soon from the farm, these days.

I don't grow my own yet (hoping to next season), but those I do get, are from farms within a couple miles of me. (via a few produce stands that get directly from them).

 

[Rob Painless]

a lot of pinto beans every year given it is very universal in making a lot of different food products from it like making flower for making pinto bread

Ok...have you got a recipe for that? I have ground pintos into flour several times, but only ever used them for quick re-fried beans or in soups.

 

[Maverick]

Ok...have you got a recipe for that? I have ground pintos into flour several times, but only ever used them for quick re-fried beans or in soups.

I will post it when back in the house

 

[Maverick]

Ok...have you got a recipe for that? I have ground pintos into flour several times, but only ever used them for quick re-fried beans or in soups.

The flour is only milled from dry beans, make sure you have a good mill, if you only have a grain mill then you will have to run the dried bean through a blender first before it can be milled in the smaller grain mills also note, under cooked bean flour can be toxic to some people, I have never known anyone getting sick from the flour, it was something my Grandmother told me.

4 cups of flour for each pound of beans, most beans can be milled into flour. Different recipes for different bean flours, tons of recipes are out their using these types of flours. The wife has a recipe for Cherokee bean bread, I couldn't find it at the moment. You can also cook the pinto beans then mush them then add to muffin recipes, white bean flour can be used to to cut back on wheat flour if your low say 50/50 taste will be affected. if you are gluten intolerant then learn to use bean flour You can also mill peas, add a little salt and bag to make a quick hot thick trail drink, add a little honey to sweeten Small sampling below

Biscuits

2 cups bean flour (some people prefer navy beans)
3 TSP baking powder
1/2 TSP salt
1/4 cup unsalted butter (room temp butter not hard)
3/4 cup 1% milk

1. Mix everything except milk and butter.
2. Mix butter till all blended. Add milk, stir well, you may need might have to add more flour for handling. Roll out until about 1/4 inch thick, cut using what you have like a cup or cooky cutter or just a knife into whatever size you want

Bake on a cookie sheet (greased) for 12-15 minutes @ 450 deg.

Corn Bread

1 cup hot milk
1 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup pinto bean flour
2 TBS honey or sugar
2 TBS vegetable oil
1 egg
1 TSP salt
3 TSP baking powder

1. Mix the cornmeal and bean flour together in a bowl.
2. Stir in the hot milk and mix well.
3. Mix in the egg.
Add in the remaining ingredients and stir just until moist.
Pour into a greased 9×9 pan or a medium cast iron frying pan that has been pre-heated and greased.
Bake at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes.

Refried Beans substitute

1 cup water
3/4 cup pinto bean flour

Bring water to a boil stir in bean flour. Cover and cook 5 minutes stirring occasionally, let cool to thicken.
This can be used in place of store bought canned refried beans add chopped hot and mild peppers, onions etc.. 2.5 minutes into the cooking process and use it for burritos, dips by adding taco seasoning. Use your imagination.

 

[Rob Painless]

Cool beans!! Thanks, Mav!

 

[Maverick]

Cool beans!! Thanks, Mav!

Looks like the girls took the index cards with the recipes to transfer them to the iPad reason I didn't have more listed here but many more recipes.

 

[Kevin L]

I was a very strict vegetarian until this hurricane business...and I should have planned better.

I ended up eating meat and egg products because of the logistics of waste and the demands of the situation...but this may have been an excuse.

I could have used the hurricane as an opportunity to undergo a cleansing fast coupled with meditation...but instead, I reverted to meat-eating with the idea that I needed to be flexible.

I found subtle, but positive changes within myself from being a vegetarian.

My body odor changed, and I was no longer as attractive to mosquitoes. Also, the 90° heat obviously caused me to sweat buckets...but I didn't reek as much as I normally would have (I was working outside).

I had more energy, I slept better, and (this is embarrassing) some mild prostate issues resolved themselves. I also felt more clear-headed.

My vegetarian diet imposed some difficulties on my girlfriend...who loves to cook (I do too).

I'm actually allergic to gluten (ie: wheat products) and dairy, so adding vegetarianism to those restrictions was an imposition on my girlfriend with regards to her cooking...and made her crazy.

Don't get the wrong idea--she was very supportive, but I still made her crazy.

Other than occasional cravings, avoiding meat was very positive.

 

[Gazrok]

I'm just the opposite if I don't eat meat for a bit. Total lack of energy, brain a bit fuzzy (lack of protein), and I never feel "full"....