Is Korean Hanwoo the Best Beef in the World?
That is what the USA Today publication is claiming:
Korean beef, not Japan’s wagyu, “might be the best meat on earth,” according to an article in USA Today last week that seems to reflect fresh global recognition.
“Wagyu from Japan is often held up as the best beef in the world,” says an article by Bloomberg’s published in March last year. But the headline asked “Is Wagyu the World’s Most Overrated Steak?”
Wagyu is loved for its tenderness, but some complain that it is too soft and buttery and does not have enough flavor. On the other hand Korean beef, or hanwoo, is said to have great flavor as well as texture to the palate. They are both highly marbled but are distinctively different in taste.
The key to the difference in taste is the fat-to-protein ratio. Wagyu ribeye is about 70 percent fat and 30 percent protein, whereas hanwoo ribeye has 40 to 50 percent fat. It strikes a fine balance between the strengths of wagyu and less fatty and tougher American or Australian beef. [Chosun Ilbo]
You can read more at the link or the original USA Today article at this link.
An empty comparison. A cow left alone in nature will graze on grass…exclusively. Even if grains are available, a cow won’t touch them — can’t digest them. Cows, as all bovines, are herbivores and their four stomachs are the world’s perfect grass fermentation machines. The largest stomach, the rumen, thus the term ruminants, begins the digestion process, but it cannot digest grains. Grains make ruminants sick (wheat grain, soy grain, corn grain, you-name-it). Thus ruminants in the wild are exclusive grass grazers. The very best meat comes from grass-fed ruminants. Ask any lion in the Serengeti. Think water buffalo, wildebeest, zebra, impala, etc.
Many are surprised to learn grass-fed beef has more Omega-3 fatty acids than wild salmon, as well as an appropriate Omega-3 to Omega-6 ratio of 3:1. Grain fed beef not only flips that ratio upside down but Omega-6’s can be grotesquely higher; one study (conducted in Korea) recorded a 1:90 ratio. The reason this is concerning is Omega-6’s, while a necessary part of the diet in correct proportions, cause inflammation which leads to the whole list of pathologies such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, autoimmune dysfunction, etc.
The best way to raise beef is to mimic nature. Small herds, grazing on grass, moving from one paddock to another every day. The sad thing is the majority of cattle raised in the US is fed a lifelong diet of grains, antibiotics (because the cows get sick from grains), growth hormones, and animal protein (think by-products from chicken and pork processing facilities, animal shelters — yes Fido from the shelter is fed to the cows). It costs too much and takes too long to allow cows to graze on grass.
Fortunately, there are farmers who still know how to farm. Check out Polyface Farm in Swope VA. This guy raises cattle all on grass without using chemicals. His “mimic nature” approach means he’ll move the herd from one grassy paddock to another every day. He’ll then brings his chickens in to “clean-up” after the cows — just like in nature where birds follow bovines. He brings this sanitation crew in three days after the cows have been in a paddock. This allows flies to plant their larvae in the pies. The chickens scratch through all the cow pies to eat the now fattened larvae left behind, thus he doesn’t have a fly problem. THIS is how beef should be raised. Anyone interested to learn more should read The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan.
Bottom line, unless beef is raised exclusively on grass, the comparison this article tries to make is is apples and oranges.
We need to bring back the Thumbs Up function.
I’ll stick with American beef.
Country Burger’s Double Double is a great cheeseburger, and you can get sweet potato fries and a drink with it for $11.53… http://www.countryburgertx.com/
If you catch it on sales, you can find sirloin for $2.99 a pound at Tom Thumb in Dallas or Randall’s in Houston (folks outside of Texas might use Safeway) and grill it up yourself, if you aren’t too proud. (I prefer charcoal over propane; but it’s up to you.)
Rocktroll probably grills tofuburgers.