Ancestral Beef Blend
Ancestral beef blend is an easy, cost-effective way to make nutrient-rich ground beef with organ meat blend to use in most recipes with ground meat.
Servings 20 servings
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 pounds ground beef
- 1 pound beef liver heart or kidney
Instructions
- In a food processor, pulse the organ meats until smooth but still has some texture.
- In a medium bowl, mix the finely minced organ meats with the ground beef until evenly combined.
- Use immediately or portion into 1-lb packages and freeze for later use.
Notes
Recipe makes 5 pounds or 20 quarter-pound servings. The nutritional information is per quarter-pound.
Storage: Store ancestral blend ground beef in an airtight container or a quart-size ziplock bag in the fridge for up to 4 days. For longer storage, divide it into portions and freeze for up to 3 months. When ready to use, thaw overnight in the fridge or cook straight from frozen, adjusting cook times as needed.
Helpful Tips:
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- Freeze organ meats slightly - If your liver or heart is too soft, pop it into the freezer for 15–20 minutes. This firms it up, making it easier to chop or pulse in the food processor without turning to mush.
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- Don't overprocess the organs - You want a finely minced texture, not a complete purée. Keeping a little bit of texture helps the organ meat blend better with ground beef and improves the final texture in cooked dishes. You can see the darker parts in the ground meat in the photos above. I promise those cook down and you hardly taste it!
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- Mix gently but thoroughly - You don’t want to overmix the meat too much, especially if you're going to freeze it. Use your hands or a large spoon to mix until just combined. Overmixing can make the texture dense and tough when cooked.
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- Freeze in flat, 1-pound portions - Once mixed, portion the blend into 1-pound amounts (or whatever size you usually cook with). Place them in freezer-safe ziplock bags, remove as much air as possible, and flatten them out. This not only saves freezer space but also makes for quick, even thawing.
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- Texture too mushy? If the blend is overly soft, this usually happens when organ meats are over-pureed or overmixed. Mix in a a bit more ground beef to balance it out and avoid blending the organs too smooth next time.
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- Thawed blend watery? This is normal - organ meats release more moisture. Just drain off any excess liquid before cooking or saute with extra care to avoid steaming.
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- Taste too strong? If your final dish tastes a little too "organ-y", mix in an additional ½ to 1 pound of plain ground beef to smooth out the flavor without having to toss the whole batch (cause that would be a shame, now wouldn't it?).
Nutrition
Calories: 261kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 127mg | Sodium: 76mg | Potassium: 316mg | Vitamin A: 3832IU | Vitamin C: 0.3mg | Calcium: 17mg | Iron: 3mg