There is something simply delicious about a well-cooked burger – juicy and succulent, perfect for a midday snack or a romantic dinner for two. Americans love to eat their burgers with other condiments such as humble ketchup, spicy mustard, and simple mayo. However, many kids (and sometimes even adults!) wonder where the burger meat comes from? Keep on reading if you want to know where the nation’s favorite food comes from. Let’s know Where Does Burger Meat Come From?
Hamburgers or commonly known as burgers, their meat typically comes from bovines. Bovines refer to cattle, and more specifically cows, from which burger meat comes. Regardless of their sex, burger meat comes from cattle, such as cows, buffalo, and kudus.
Source Of The Burger Meat
The upper part of the cow is commonplace from where the meat comes from since they are cheap and tasty without having too much fat on them, making them the perfect go-to for burgers. Sometimes, for the cheaper version of a hamburger, scraps from the bovine family are used to make them.
Exclusively being made from skeletal muscles, muscle attached to the bone, and no organs, ground beef differs from hamburger meat in this manner. While some retailers and shops may market their ground beef as ground round, sirloin, or chuck, these cuts exclusively refer to the primal cuts. This can also mean that trim from specific cuts is added to ground beef.
Moreover, both ground beef and hamburger meat may contain the following added items such as phosphates, extenders, or binders. The key difference lies in the way fat is added to the hamburger or the ground beef. Ground beef can only be made using fat from the meat trimmings and no extra or additional fat can be added to the product. But a lump of hamburger meat can have additional fat content added to it to reach the desired level of fat.
Cows And Burgers
On average, a cow yields 200 pounds of beef. This ends up as minced meat from the cow, so it will yield about 800 burger patties. So, the rough answer to how many burgers from a single cow is either: 1600 quarter-pound burgers if you mince all the beef.
The interesting thing is that one burger patty could contain meat from over 100 cows. The fibers of various cows are mixed in one or even more! The age of the cow, when they are slaughtered is between 12 to 22 months since some calves are weaned and then directly sent off to get slaughtered.
Lean Vs Extra-Lean Meat
The quantitative description and the product composition give an overall picture of the lean-to-fat ratio. So for instance, a package that is labeled 80% fat-free means that the fat percentage in the product is less than or equal to 20. It can otherwise also be labeled as 80/20, which means the same time.
This is referred to as having 80% lean meat and 20% fat, therefore, this is also known as lean meat. Lean meat also needs to have less than 10 grams of fat with every 100 grams of fat, so that indicates less than 10% of fat.
To be extra lean meat, there needs to be less than 5 grams of fat per 100 grams or 5% of fat. A large part of the fat in lean meat will be rendered and cut down when you cook it so while it may seem like a lot of fat in the meat, it will all be evaporated. This results in the ultimate burger that is both moist and juicy.
Conclusion
There are various and a lot of ways in which ground meat can end up on the plate. The most common form of meat getting to our plate is varied. The most common way Americans eat beef is through the consumption of burgers! Typically served on two sesame buns, with other veggies like lettuce, onions, tomatoes, and pickles, burgers are a well-loved and staple food in the world.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Does Hamburger Have Pork In It?
Beef is the most common method of making hamburgers, but sometimes, pork or other meats can also be used in it.
- What Is The Highest Quality Of Ground Beef?
Ground chuck is the highest quality of ground beef since the meat comes from the shoulder and it is perfect for burger patties since it also has 15 to 20% of fat.
- What Can Be Made With 80/20 Lean Meat?
Burgers are your best bet when it comes to making beef patties since the fat content is not too extreme.
- What Are The Trimmings That Make Up Ground Beef?
Technically, trimmings are small and tiny pieces that contain both fat and lean. These trimmings come from beef carcasses which are then made into primal or individual cuts or more intricate cuts.
