Best breeds for marbled meat?

[catherine]

Hey, there was a question that came up in another thread about marbled vs. lean meat, and that got me to thinking...

I know that Jerseys, with their high butter fat content, are supposed to make nicely marbled meat. So, that implies that any high butterfat producing cow should produce well marbled meat, as well. I know that Gearald Fry (on the North American Devon Assoc., www.northamericandevon.com/ArchivedAskGearlds/askgearldMar07.htm) has a lot to say about marbling being the determined by the same gene that produces high milk butterfat, and how to chose those animals from calfhood through physical characteristics like wide escutcheons, yellow flakes in the switch, etc.

Another thought...Wagyu are supposed to be the quintessential highly marbled meat. I read, somewhere, about how they were originally draft animals, only, and that beef consumption was considered verboten. It was explained that the animals needed explosive power in an instant, and that necessitated the fat marbling throughout the muscle, so the energy was there when needed.

THAT...led me to remember an episode of "Dinner Impossible". In it, the chef Robert Irvine, was supposed to cook an entire meal at Colonial Williamsburg, in cast iron over wood fires. He went nuts over the amazing marbling in the gorgeous cuts of beef he was given to prepare, and was told that they came from their very own Milking Devon cattle, which are triple purpose animals...for meat, milk and draft!

Ah ha! The penny is dropping! Would any draft and/or high butterfat dairy animal have exceptionally marbled meat? We have our little Milking Devon herd, but won't be able to butcher our first steer until next spring, in order to test this theory. We also have our lovely little Jersey, but will have to wait even longer to try the meat from any steer from her. I would be VERY interested in any ideas you guys have along these lines! Also, I still think that we really NEED to do some serious taste testing...soon!!! ;D ;D ;D

[spiritedrose]

When looking at Highlanders, the guy said they rate really high on marbling. You can add that to your info.

Next month when I pick up my Jersey steer, I can take a picture or something if you're curious what a steak looks like lol Will that help?

[Stacy]

I wish I could help on this thread because I'd like to know myself what's best! If you taste test, please be sure to post it, and maybe even some pics of the meat raw and meat after cutting into it when it's been cooked. That'd be interesting to see as well for "research" of course.

Stacy

[Tricia]

I have 5 beefers coming back from the butcher on the 15th. All are 100% grassfed, no grain/silage ect..
3 are purebred highlanders - 2 steers and 1 heifer.
1 hereford steer
1 3/4 holstein- 1/4 jersey steer

We are going going to do pictures comparing steaks and burger along with taste testing.

I'll post pics and taste critiques.

From memory the highlanders we raise now have less marbling than the herefords we used to raise (we only ate 3 of those). But then we never did a side by side test.

[buxombeefcowdairy]

I don't know about how the draft animals' intramuscular fat would affect their pulling ability, but metabolically the energy in the fat must be converted to another form (I think glycogen, via the liver? but I'm not remembering my physiology too well right now) before the muscle can use it.

The high marbling breeds are Wagyu- which are usually so much higher in marbling than other breeds that they almost need a new chart- and then Jersey, then Angus. I don't duoble that the Highlands and the Devons can be high marbling, but I simply haven't seen results of high numbers of cattle in the research. I do know that one of the best beef animals that Washington State ever studied were Charolais/Jersey crosses, who had excellent feedlot gain, red meat yield, and fantastic marbling. Hard to produce them, though- Charolais are more of a male-type breed, used for terminal cross breeding systems, so their maternal traits aren't all that great, such as udders, milking ability, and they are BIG calves, 120 pounds is not unusual for a Charolais calf...yikes. So they're a bit too big for many Jersey cows to calve comfortably, though it has been done.

[buxombeefcowdairy]

Oh, and Tricia, take a well-lit photo of a rib steak. That's where the marbling, for quality grade, is observed. I'm looking forward to seeing your results.

[Tim in NY]

I'm not saying that Devons don't have good marbling or anything, but the part about draft oxen needing marbling for fast energy is incorrect IMO. Anyone who's ever worked with oxen can tell you that oxen and the phrase "explosive power" are contradictions in terms. And fat doesn't provide quick energy. Fat is contained inside fat cells, it has to be metabolized back into a mobile form then transported to a muscle fiber cell for it to get used. Thats not a quick process. Oxen are strong, they can pull a lot of weight and do a lot of work, but they never do it fast. Even Devon oxen,which are famous for their speed,can only be considered fast when compared to other teams of oxen.

And oxen that are truly being worked are never fat. I'm betting even Waygu oxen hardly had any fat on them marbled or otherwise when they were in real working condition. If you look at old pictures from New England when oxen were really worked, the first thing you notice is how skinny the cattle are. They were worked hard and fed little to keep them hard. They only got fattened up when they were old and slowing down, then they fattened them for market. I'm sure the same thing happened in Japan. A work animal is for working and a fat animal can't work. The real draft animal for "explosive power" is the horse. Horses store glycogen directly in their muscles to provide real fast energy necessary for "explosive power".
I don't doubt that high butterfat equates to marbling or that Devons might have high marbling, I just don't think their history as draft animals has anything to do with it. The reality is that prior to about 200 years ago, every "breed" of cattle such as they were was a draft animal first, a milking animal second, and a beef animal at the end of its useful life for purpose one and/or two.

A good comparison of the quick energy style that horses have vs cattle is to watch them at a pulling contest. You can see both at New England fairs. The oxen, even when they are worked up just lean into the yoke and push HARD. The horses are usually so worked up they are barely under control. Often they are sweating profusely just from excitement. When they feel the doubletree hit the hook they rear up on their hindquarters and SLAM into the harness. That is "explosive power". I understand the glycogen in the meat gives horsemeat a distinctive taste. I've always wanted to try some. Maybe if I ever get to France or Iceland someday.

[catherine]

Oh Tricia...yes! Perfect! Please, please, please do a photo comparison between Ribeyes from each animal??? And then a taste test comparison of each, too? You know...aroma, texture, marbling content, juiciness, taste. Remember, grass fed meats need to be cooked "low and slow" or they go tough, but then I may be preaching to the choir, there. Wow, such a comparison would be so cool...almost as neat as having each of us over for dinner! lol. No, really, I think we could all learn a lot from your comparisons. THANKS!!! I can hardly wait for the results! What a delicious research project!!!

And not to worry, Bux and Tim. You've not put me on the defensive about my beloved Devons! lol. Though I have hopes for their meat quality, I've only eaten hamburger from a 10 yr. old bull Devon (which was quite tasty, but gave no means to judge tenderness), so I have no idea what their meat is going to be like. I know what their reputation is, and that both Milk and Beef Devon are supposed to marble well, but can't call it fact or fiction until I've tried it myself. Thanks for the description of the differences between ox and horse drafting and the different ways in which they metabolize fat. That's all new to me, but I'm learning!

In fact, I'd be very interested in learning a lot more about draft animals, in general, if you guys ever feel like doing a whole thread on the subject! Thanks! ;D

[buxombeefcowdairy]

Another note on horse power vs ox power:
Horses have enormous lungs compared to cattle, in an equal bodyweight comparison, I believe I read something like a horse's lungs are 5 times as big! This means that the horse can run, for a while. Cattle simply can't- they can run a short burst but for prolonged effort, must walk, or their lungs can't supply enough oxygen.

And Catherine, I'm sure your beef will taste fabulous. To me, beef that is fed at a feedlot tastes dreadfully bland. Home-raised meat can vary in marbling and tenderness, according to degree of fat/finish and age- but the flavor is almost always delicious.

[eric]

Tim, it sounds like you are or have been involved with draft animals. Is that so? Where can I find a fair to attend where they have pulling contests with horses and with oxen? Is it true that oxen just aren't suited to warm, humid climates like North Carolina? I know oxen are used in very hot parts of Africa, though. I wish we had a good zebu-type dairy breed in the States!

[buxombeefcowdairy]

Eric, you could pretty easily breed your own by crossing a Brahma with a Jersey
I would use a Brahma heifer, and AI to a very high milk Jersey, if you want more dairy than dual purpose. Probably most AI Jersey sires would have plenty of milk for a family cow, though.

[catherine]

Well, I know that the Milking Devon were mostly saved from extinction by old farmers interested in using them in ox contests up in New England. You might want to check out Rural Heritage at www.ruralheritage.com/ox_paddock/index.htm. So, Milking Devon do well up in Northern Climes, and seem to be doing quite well down here in our hot one, too. My question is why do you think Milking Devon oxen wouldn't be suited to hot, humid places like where you and I live? After all, oxen are generally defined as "steers with an education"!

P.S. Don't tell my boys, but I hope to train a couple of heifers to be my oxen, so I can get the draft ability (ok...they probably won't be able to pull quite as much as the boys, but that's ok) from a milk cow, and not have to keep feeding single taskers! lol.

[Tim in NY]

Eric, If you want to see a fair like that you pretty much have to go to New England. There are few fairs like that in New York as well but they are mostly within spitting distance of Vermont and Connecticut too. THE BEST fair to go to is the Fryeburg Fair in Fryeburg, Maine or the Big E (the Eastern States Exposition), the Big E is in 5 days though so you'd really have to hustle. The Big E is in Springfield, Massachusetts. The Fryeburg Fair starts on the 28th thru Oct 5. It isn't exactly true that oxen are unsuited to hot humid climates. It is true that most of the common breeds that are kept in this country couldn't handle doing a lot of hard pulling work in mid-summer in North Carolina. But neither could most of the draft horses you see these days. For a good hot weather team you'd probably do just fine if you could get your hands on some longhorns or some Pineywoods cattle. They are descended from Spanish brought over by the Conquistadors. They are VERY heat adapted. Not as well as Brahmas but good enough for logging year-round in the long-leaf pine industry down in Georgia and Alabama up till WWI. So I don't think you can go wrong with one of those in a hot climate. And honestly, it is unlikely that you would have the kind of hard work in hot weather like they used to do. If you are interested in oxen look into Rural Heritage Magazine, they are a great resource and they have a website with an on-line forum for asking questions- its called "the Front Porch". They can get you hooked up with good info.

[Tim in NY]

OK Eric,
You don't have to go anywhere, just sit in front of your computer!
I forgot all about YouTube! Just go to YouTube and search for Ox Pull. You'll see quite a bit of good stuff. Horse Pull too.

Catherine, if you want to see some Devon oxen doing some work, look at the video called "Oxen in Medieval England" couple of really nice teams plowing and stuff. A real working team would not be that fat though, those are Fair teams, very well trained but never worked very hard. You can tell it especially in the clip where they are plowing, the oxen are saying "Hey, this is way to much like HARD WORK", and are waggling all over the place.

[Deleted]

Catherine,

I have actually done quite a bit of research into Wague, and one thing I can tell you, is that there is some misunderstanding about Wague.

Wague, simply means Japanese or Japanese-style ( Wa ) cattle ( gue ).

There are 4 breeds or strains of Wague, each with their own characteristics. Those breeds are Tottori, Tajima, Shimane, and Okayama.

Tajima, were chosen for heavy forequarters, and they were used to pull small carts, and they are generally smaller than the others.


It's the Tajima strain that is the basis for the famous Kobe Beef.


The Japanese beef rating system, has a scale of 1 to 12, with 12 being the best quality. In comparison, the USDA rating of Prime, is the equivalent of about a 4-5 in the Japanese rating system.
www.blackgoldfarms.com.au/grading.html

It's said that the best quality Kobe Beef, should be treated much like Foie gras, when cooking, IOW, just heated through, otherwise you melt the fat, and loose all the flavor. One recommended way of cooking it, is to slice very thin ( like sandwich meat thin ) and then just before serving put a couple of slices on top of a steaming hot bowl of rice, and the heat from the rice will do all the cooking that it needs.
members.tripod.com/~BayGourmet/wagyu.html#wagyu


I was talking to some people who raise Wague earlier this year, and they said with their first slaughtering, there F1 Wague was USDA rated at being a much older animal ( and as such received a lower USDA rating ), because the amount of marbling, the animal had is just not normally found on young beef here in the US.

[Shawn]

Am I the only one in the world who doesn't like a steak all full of marbling/fat? I love my meat that's lean and I can eat the whole steak without cutting around anything.
Shawn

[buxombeefcowdairy]

No, you're not alone, lots of folks don't like to see fat in the steak.
There is, however, a correlation between marbling and tenderness.
This means a well marbled steak is much more likely to be- though not absolutely always-tender.
The 'rejection rate' for a Prime steak in a steakhouse- that is, a steak that gets sent back to the kitchen because it is too tough- is much lower for a Prime steak than a Choice steak. The rate for a Select steak, one with little visible marbling, is pretty high unless it has been mechanically tenderized.

Some genetics do produce a lean, tender steak but it isn't very common in the US beefherd gene pool.

A less-marbled carcass can be dry-aged, or "hung", to increase tenderness. A carcass aged for 21 days will probably have tenderness associated with a much higher marbling score, because enzymes and other processes break down tough connective tissues during the aging process.

What ends up really amazingly tasty, to me, is a grass finished (properly fat at butchering) 2-year-old, that is both well marbled and dry aged for 2 or 3 weeks. WOW, you can't find that at the store, for sure.

[spiritedrose]

I'm going to try to get them to hang my Reuben 21 days and he's 2 and grass fed. Hope they let me!!!

Also hoping I can sell it at the neighbor's store and make some moo-lah!

[catherine]

Bux, I've also read a great deal lately about how tenderness is a product of genetics, temperment (laid back cattle make for tenderer meat), feeding, stress levels prior to slaughter, and carcass handling after slaughter...with the later two items the MOST important towards the final eating experience. Apparently, corn fattened carcasses have more insulating fat and take longer to chill down, allowing them time to go fully relax before the meat is properly chilled. Lean grass fed carcasses chill too quickly, when treated the same as corn fattened. Therefore, they are still in rigor mortise by the time they are thoroughly chilled, so the meat fibers tend to stay drawn up and tight, resulting in unnecessarily "tough" meat. I need to find the research I read on all of this for you guys, but I'm sure you professionals know ever so much more about this than I do.

I do know that when we butchered our first batch of roosters, we chilled them down immediately, and the meat was so tough that it never did tenderize, remaining rubbery even after being simmered in the soup pot for hours and hours. Our next batch of roosters were allowed to go through the stiff phase and relax before they were chilled down, and were quite tender and delicious. That's my only experience along these lines, but it makes sense to me. Rigor mortise = tough meat. Relaxed carcass = tender meat. How's THAT for my tip of the day?! lol.

[Jenn]

The fat you have to cut around is different than marbling. Marbling is little flakes distributed throughout the meat. You can have well marbled meat with minimal "trim" fat and poorly marbled meat with lots of "trim" fat.
A grass fed does not have to = lean and tough if finished properly. Aging does some tenderizing, but mostly it's to remove excess moisture from the meat and intensify flavor. The length of time for dry aging is dependent on the amount of back fat the animal has.
Most commercial meat is wet aged, you are buying water by the pound.
-Jenn