S/O Cheap Meat

pastalady

Someone mentioned that ground beef in a tube. Does anyone on here buy that? I see it and I cannot imagine who buys it and why? My dad bought it once when my mom was out of town and my sister found bone chips in her burger. Even at 10 we refused to eat it, we knew it was gross lol! So if you admit to buying it, why do you? I mean the meat department ground beef probably isn't as good as a butcher but its better than that stuff.

bumpuser8448316

I had never even heard of it before today. Don't get me wrong, we're not a 100% organic all natural healthy family, nor did i grow up that way, but that stuff is the grossest thing I've seen in awhile

notkateanymore

I won't even buy the type that is on a tray with saran wrap. I have to buy it straight out of the case. LOL I'm weird about meat though.

segerama

My mother-in-law does.  One of many reasons why we never eat what she prepares.

joyfullyfound

I've never heard of it, but I'm sure just looking at it would make me gag. That sounds awful. 

*shudder*

Chapter79

MermaidsMagic said:

Fine. I'll admit it. I buy it when I don't get turkey meat. I think it tastes just fine probably because I've never had straight from the farm beef. I've never found bone or anything in there. 

It tastes the same, people lol.  It honestly does.  I don't buy it now, I haven't in maybe 9 years.  When H and I first got married and struggled with money more, I got that meat.  It was way cheaper!  It's still ground beef.  I promise if you put that in chili and serve it, no one will actually tell it's from a tube. It tastes like ground beef.

Chapter79

I'm craving a cheeseburger now.

catycate

I have bought it before, I do not buy it anymore. But I had some broke ass times in my early 20's and honestly, any meat was a treat.

pitterpatter129

We buy it.  It's the same stuff our store sells on a tray though.  You just pay extra for the styrofoam tray.  We buy the extra lean kind.  It tastes exactly the same.

 

pitterpatter129

Oh dear god.  I just found the hundreds of comments on meat post.  I probably shouldn't have admitted I buy it.  I try to stay out of ya'lls food posts.  We buy what we can afford without having to go on WIC. My kids aren't growing a third eye yet.  We don't eat much meat anyhow. This month I did buy the organic chicken (on sale! whoo-hoo!), free range turkey, and a 1lb tube of beef, and a lb of stew meat.  We aren't eating lbs of tube meat.

 

 

notkateanymore

For the record, I don't always shop at a butcher, I usually shop at Whole Foods or a local grocery store chain here...I just mean the case in the meat section. Don't all grocery stores have cases with meat in them? It's cut/ground in the store? That's all I mean.

rockyrollgirl

I buy the kind on the tray in saran wrap. I have seen the kind in the tubes, I never get it because I usually do not need that much meat. I never really thought about the meat in it being different then what I get.

Gcrebel2006

While I prefer to buy the meat on the tray that is freshly wrapped in our local grocery store, I do purchase the tubes of meat when our budget is tight. I grew up eating it, and to be honest, other than being more finely ground, I can't tell a difference at all. It works especially well for tacos. 

notkateanymore

KateMW said:

For the record, I don't always shop at a butcher, I usually shop at Whole Foods or a local grocery store chain here...I just mean the case in the meat section. Don't all grocery stores have cases with meat in them? It's cut/ground in the store? That's all I mean.

We have 1 meat center in 1 grocery store that you can pick meat out of, but it's mostly "previously frozen, farm raised" fish and some marinated steaks/chicken and maybe some kabobs. I've never saw ground beef in a meat counter.

We have got to move you to a real town with shopping.

notkateanymore

MermaidsMagic said:

KateMW said:

For the record, I don't always shop at a butcher, I usually shop at Whole Foods or a local grocery store chain here...I just mean the case in the meat section. Don't all grocery stores have cases with meat in them? It's cut/ground in the store? That's all I mean.

We have a deli, but I didn't think I could go over and be like "grind me up some beef."

Do you live in the town over from Hav?

Do all grocery stores seriously not carry meat in a case or meat that they grind in house? Crazy.

notkateanymore

gwapes said:

KateMW said:

For the record, I don't always shop at a butcher, I usually shop at Whole Foods or a local grocery store chain here...I just mean the case in the meat section. Don't all grocery stores have cases with meat in them? It's cut/ground in the store? That's all I mean.

Are you talking about like the meat dept at Costco? 

Is it loose then they wrap it up for you? If so, yes. But our Costco just has pre-packed stuff.

notkateanymore

Like this...

lyingliarlies

we tried it once or twice but found bone chips. these days all we get is the 4 lb. package of costco organic ground beef. it's in vacuum sealed blocks (don't know how else to describe it) so it's kind of the same idea as a tube, but the costco beef tastes really good.

pitterpatter129

KateMW said:

Like this...

I've never in my entire life seen this.  You get meat wrapped on Styrofoam trays.  Our Whole Foods stores has a similar counter to this with fresh fish.  Even their beef is wrapped though. 

jnksmom

For the record, I don't always shop at a butcher, I usually shop at Whole Foods or a local grocery store chain here...I just mean the case in the meat section. Don't all grocery stores have cases with meat in them? It's cut/ground in the store? That's all I mean.

I get our meat from the meat counter at our grocery store as well. I thought all grocery stores had that too. I

jak554

The tube meat is all we buy and I've never had bone chips. I dont buy the ground round that's cheapest but we get 78/20. I'm curious what would be the next cheapest option besides the tube, since I never really looked to see if it said processed leftovers?

Chapter79

I'm flabbergasted some of you don't have a meat department in your normal grocery store- ours do, and yes... it has ground beef.  It has chicken, ground beef, pork, chicken.  You talk to the dude/ette behind the counter and ask for what you want, and they wrap it up and you get it.  Unless it's a budget store (i.e. aldi), I seriously thought all normal grocery stores had this.   And a deli.  And a fish counter/department.

lyingliarlies

see, it seems to me that the ground beef already wrapped on a styrofoam tray (in store) would be fresher than the meat that's sitting out exposed to air. ya know?

Chapter79

Hav=Fath said:

Chapter79 said:

I'm flabbergasted some of you don't have a meat department in your normal grocery store- ours do, and yes... it has ground beef.  It has chicken, ground beef, pork, chicken.  You talk to the dude/ette behind the counter and ask for what you want, and they wrap it up and you get it.  Unless it's a budget store (i.e. aldi), I seriously thought all normal grocery stores had this.   And a deli.  And a fish counter/department.

Nope, our Wal-Mart has a deli that will slice meat and cheese, but no meat department... just meat in trays. We have a Kroger that has neither a deli or a meat department. Our Food City just got the meat department in it and like I said it's mostly previously frozen stuff. AND the weird thing IMO about the Food City meat department they sell meat & non-meat food out of the same cabinet... twice stuffed potatoes etc right beside the slabs of beef, I always think this is weird.

I am not surprised yours doesn't, you don't have anything.. haha!
I assumed most places had this, though.

Chapter79

Diapers&Wipes said:

If I go to whole foods I go to the meat counter. Target doesn't have one so I buy the tray meat. Can someone explain to me the difference between the tray meat that comes wrapped and the meat from a meat counter? Is it fresher, healthier? Does it come from a local farmer?

My guess is freshness?
Also, you can ask for amounts you need. Less waste.  You can ask for 1/4 pound beef if you want one burger.

peacelove&mama

KateMW said:

gwapes said:

KateMW said:

For the record, I don't always shop at a butcher, I usually shop at Whole Foods or a local grocery store chain here...I just mean the case in the meat section. Don't all grocery stores have cases with meat in them? It's cut/ground in the store? That's all I mean.

Are you talking about like the meat dept at Costco? 

Is it loose then they wrap it up for you? If so, yes. But our Costco just has pre-packed stuff.

Loose meat. Giggle.

notkateanymore

lyingliarlies said:

see, it seems to me that the ground beef already wrapped on a styrofoam tray (in store) would be fresher than the meat that's sitting out exposed to air. ya know?

Well, it's wrapped and sitting there for a couple of days, whereas the stuff in the case is ground/cut that day usually at our stores. And they're closes cases.

pastalady

Like someone said the expiry date is way longer on the tubes, like over a month. And it's processed somewhere else which means to me, it could have anything in it. To start with, ground beef is pretty much the scraps they cannot sell any other way. Unless you have had a butcher, even one in the meat department, ground up some sirloin steaks for you. It cannot compare. Our Walmart flyer was advertising the chubs of meat ( that is what they are called lol) with a picture of a hamburger made from it. They didn't form a patty, just cut an end off. I wish I could find it, worst food styling ever lol!

notkateanymore

Lamb29 said:

Diapers&Wipes said:

If I go to whole foods I go to the meat counter. Target doesn't have one so I buy the tray meat. Can someone explain to me the difference between the tray meat that comes wrapped and the meat from a meat counter? Is it fresher, healthier? Does it come from a local farmer?

There is no difference, they just package it in the back instead of you saying "I'd like 2 lbs of ground beef"  you have to go find a 2 lb package yourself. I guess it's all in presentation.

That's actually not true. The meat in the case is fresher and the stuff in the packages comes in larger packs, therefore more waste.

pastalady

I think the difference in buying the meat already ground on the styrofoam plate is you don't know what cuts of meat it is from, or what scraps. It could be a gross piece with tons of blood vessels and cartilage or silver skin. If I pick out some steaks and my guy grinds it in front of me I know what it is. I know I am extreme but I am weird about it lol.

LoriLee14

my husband hunts so we have venison. We usually get the bulk made into ground meat. He adds beef fat to it and puts it into one pound tubes. It is then frozen. I haven't bought actual hamburger meat in a long long time

notkateanymore

scatteredtrees said:

Just when I thought this board had judged every aspect of life- we've moved on to the type of ground beef we buy. 

Wow.

FTR, I am not judging anybody. I just said I have a weird thing with meat. Somebody else started the judging.

How are you, btw?

notkateanymore

Diapers&Wipes said:

Just when I thought this board had judged every aspect of life- we've moved on to the type of ground beef we buy. 

Wow.

I often leave these conversations feeling dumb. I never thought twice about the ground beef in the plastic tray. I love whole foods ground beef but I didn't have one close to me until recent so I just bought what was at the store.

I don't think there is anything "wrong" with it, I just personally like to buy the stuff from the case since at my stores it's ground that day. I have issues with ground beef and red meat in general.

rockyrollgirl

Yes, we have the meat counters everywhere. I do not normally get ground beef from there unless I need a specific amount that wasnt available on those trays

lyingliarlies

Lamb29 said:

KateMW said:

Lamb29 said:

Diapers&Wipes said:

If I go to whole foods I go to the meat counter. Target doesn't have one so I buy the tray meat. Can someone explain to me the difference between the tray meat that comes wrapped and the meat from a meat counter? Is it fresher, healthier? Does it come from a local farmer?

There is no difference, they just package it in the back instead of you saying "I'd like 2 lbs of ground beef"  you have to go find a 2 lb package yourself. I guess it's all in presentation.

That's actually not true. The meat in the case is fresher and the stuff in the packages comes in larger packs, therefore more waste.

How does it come in larger packs?  It's normally only in 1 lbs packages. I don't see how it causes more waste.  And they have they packaging date on the package so you can see how fresh it is.

exactly. @KateMW what are you doing, making one burger and throwing out the rest of the package?

for us, one pack (1.33 lb. to be exact) makes 5 burgers, goes into a big batch of spaghetti sauce, or makes one meatloaf. no waste at all.

Chapter79

Lamb29 said:

KateMW said:

Lamb29 said:

Diapers&Wipes said:

If I go to whole foods I go to the meat counter. Target doesn't have one so I buy the tray meat. Can someone explain to me the difference between the tray meat that comes wrapped and the meat from a meat counter? Is it fresher, healthier? Does it come from a local farmer?

There is no difference, they just package it in the back instead of you saying "I'd like 2 lbs of ground beef"  you have to go find a 2 lb package yourself. I guess it's all in presentation.

That's actually not true. The meat in the case is fresher and the stuff in the packages comes in larger packs, therefore more waste.

How does it come in larger packs?  It's normally only in 1 lbs packages. I don't see how it causes more waste.  And they have they packaging date on the package so you can see how fresh it is.

Ours doesn't come in 1 pound packages on the trays. It's anything from .75 ish to 6+ pounds. Always weird numbers... Like 1.42 pounds. FWIW, I have a meat counter but buy the styrofoam tray meat 99% of the time.

MountaineerMomma

I buy the prepackaged meat on trays usually. I use the counter for things like fish, roasts, pork chops, and sometimes steaks. Some of our good friends used "tube beef" for cookouts in college and never complained about them being gross. I didn't used to eat red meat, so I doubt I tried it (and if I did, I wasn't sober enough to know the difference).

pastalady

I don't think I was being judgemental but maybe truthfully I am. If that is the only protein a family can afford then fine. I am sure it's meets safety regulations etc. I just personally would rather eat peanut butter for protein than a chub of meat processed in another country. To me, it's no more judgemental than saying I don't like a certain brand of cookies. As for being healthy, I usually take my butcher ground organic beef and make so etching very unhealthy, like bacon cheeseburgers lol! I just don't get the mentality of cheap food. I have to agree with the pp who said, you get what you pay for. Our food currently makes up only a small percentage of our household income. People seriously spend more on entertainment. I think the us has the smallest percent spent on food. It's a crisis. Small farms cannot compete with big conglumarates who factory farm and process their meat in disgusting ways. I do not want cheap meat, no one should. I would rather forgo the new iPhone or a movie night out to eat well. Our biggest expenditure is food in our household. I think it's a cop out to say well, I'm lucky I can afford to eat well. It's not about being a food snob, etc. it's keeping small famil farms and butchers in business too.

Louiej

@pastalady...I was going to quote you...but it was way too long and full of elitism.

bumpuser924057

The styrofoam tray meats and the meat at the counter are the exact same thing. The only difference is the butcher dudes in the back break some of it up into pre-weighed and labeled packages for your convenience and put some of it behind the counter in case you need a specific amount. The tray packages don't sit out longer, and in fact, I would bet that stuff moves faster and is replenished more often than the meat counter stuff because most folks don't have the time to spend waiting for someone to weigh, wrap, and label their meat on the spot. I have not noticed a huge difference in price between the beef tubes and the regular ground beef, but I confess that I don't even bother looking unless there's a sale. I guess I take the opposite approach from everyone here in that I seek out cheap meat, and I will even buy the marked-down packages that are a day or so away from expiration if I know I can use it that night.

notkateanymore

lyingliarlies said:

Lamb29 said:

KateMW said:

Lamb29 said:

Diapers&Wipes said:

If I go to whole foods I go to the meat counter. Target doesn't have one so I buy the tray meat. Can someone explain to me the difference between the tray meat that comes wrapped and the meat from a meat counter? Is it fresher, healthier? Does it come from a local farmer?

There is no difference, they just package it in the back instead of you saying "I'd like 2 lbs of ground beef"  you have to go find a 2 lb package yourself. I guess it's all in presentation.

That's actually not true. The meat in the case is fresher and the stuff in the packages comes in larger packs, therefore more waste.

How does it come in larger packs?  It's normally only in 1 lbs packages. I don't see how it causes more waste.  And they have they packaging date on the package so you can see how fresh it is.

exactly. @KateMW what are you doing, making one burger and throwing out the rest of the package?

for us, one pack (1.33 lb. to be exact) makes 5 burgers, goes into a big batch of spaghetti sauce, or makes one meatloaf. no waste at all.

I think we're learning that meat is different everywhere, aren't we class. The prepackaged stuff I see is larger than 1lb. Anyway, the waste thing is just a side issue to the real prepacked thing that I hate. But for example, for spaghetti I can get a little ground pork, beef, sausage and not have to put a whole package of each that I don't need.