Guess what? My husband got a very generous Christmas gift this year from a colleague at work. Several hundred pounds of meat. Yup, you read that right: meat. Several hundred pounds of it.
Here's what our deep-freeze looks like now:
And yes, that does say "ground buffalo" on the smaller packs:
My husband figures it's nearly two hundred pounds of meat. Free! That's gotta be worth upwards of a thousand dollars, since many of the cuts are premium ones, like top loin, sirloin, rib steak, etc. Which would be great except for the one thing...it's not beef, it's buffalo (or, more accurately, bison).
This would not be a problem for a lot of people...in fact, 'round these parts, bison, elk, deer and moose are all the rage in avant-garde Canadian Cuisine at fancy restaurants, especially in Banff. I guess the rich tourists like to sample the local game?
But I just can't. And we're talking about farmed bison, here. I haven't even mentioned the wild elk and moose meat that also made its way into our freezer.
My hubby and his friend were genuinely surprised when I balked at the thought of bison meat. "It's BEEF!" They insisted. And, technically, they're right. According to Wikipedia, "beef is muscle tissue obtained from bovines". Bovines, in turn, are "a diverse group of about 24 species of medium-sized to large ungulates, including domestic cattle, Bison, the Water Buffalo, the Yak, and the four-horned and spiral-horned antelopes". Okay, so it IS really quote-unquote beef, but in my mind, eating cow is okay, eating bison...not so much.
Yes, yes, eat me! Ummm...no thanks.
This irks my husband and his friend, because they feel it's backwards for me to be grossed out about the bison which, after all, was grain-fed and raised on a farm, then humanely slaughtered and butchered by a local (health-board certified) professional butcher. They maintain that what should really gross me out is the grocery store meat, raised in industrial feedlots and processed at huge industrial packing plants. Ergh.
So here's the deal...Husband and M. were trying to make me feel better about the bison by contrasting it to the stuff I buy at the grocery store. I'm sure it seemed like a good plan, but it backfired. Their vivid depiction of feedlots and packing plants did not, in fact, make me slather at the mouth for some lovely bison. It made me completely turn off meat altogether. I couldn't even eat the (cow) steak I made for dinner last night.
Isn't it amazing, the power your mind has over your tastebuds? I've actually tried bison meat on two occasions before, and you know what? It does taste exactly the same as cow. But my mind knows it's not, so I have to make myself eat it. And then I don't enjoy it.
Is it just me? I actually went through a phase as a child where I wouldn't eat eggs or honey, after seeing movies in school about where they came from. Oh, and if I ever go to your house for dinner, don't tell me if there are mushrooms in the sauce. See, I really like the taste of food made with mushrooms, I just can. not. eat something if I know it has mushrooms in it.
So I think for the next little while, my life is going to be meat-free...at least until I can wrap my mind around all that bison in the freezer.
What do you think? Is Elizabeth nuts? Do you have mental blocks about certain foods? Or perhaps a good recipe for bison, moose or elk? Let us know below in comments.
That's SO true, Elizabeth! Although I'm not a huge meat eater I love a good juicy burger or mouth watering steak every now and then but could NOT bring myself to eat bison, elk, or Yak (just the name makes me want to, well, yack!). Sometimes I smell the slaughter house in downtown T.O. or see a truck with chickens or pigs on the way to slaughter and think "ugh, never again" but for some reason I forget and habit and familiarity make it OK.
Even more strange, give me a hot dog once in a while and I'll quite enjoy it but I have a mental block about eating anything that came from the water! No fish - not tuna, salmon, fresh fish, shelfish...nada. It totally grosses me out, why? No idea.
Anyway, I can sympathize if not fully understand it either. I hope your husband enjoys his 200lbs of meat!!
I can totally relate. I can't eat "cute" animals - lamb, veal (calves), rabbit, horse (I spent quite a lot of time in France, in case you were wondering.) I also couldn't eat venison (deer meat) that came from an animal that my vetinarian brother-in-law knew - seemed too close to eating an aquaintance or colleague.
The mind and perception are amazing things, those who love escargot cringe when they see snails crawling on the ground. Eat what you want to eat, and call it what you want.
My husband hated calimari/squid, he had never tried it before, just the idea of eating squid grossed him out. But the first time he tried it withouth knowing what it was, he like it. Personally, I've had moose steak and bison burgers. Other than being dry, they were okay.
One day at work, someone told my husband about farm raised deer, and how it was fantastic and lean. So we went to the little butcher shop where it was sold and bought some steaks (expensive). So, after researching the best way to cook venison, I attempted a recipe. I couldn't stand the smell of it cooking and it's not visually appealing either. I told my husband, and he told me to throw it out. So I did. The next day he asked the guy at work if he would like the rest of the steaks we still had in the freezer, and he said No way, he wouldn't eat that..... Thanks a lot!
Don't ignore those feelings of squeamishness about eating meat! I think if most people actually thought about WHAT they were eating, there would be a lot more vegetarians in this world! I ignored those feelings for the first 30 years of my life and then 17 years ago "woke up" and thought "Wow! I wouldn't eat my cat or dog... what am I doing eat cows and chickens and fish....?" Amazingly my diet has improved immensely since giving up meat and my health shows it! Instead of relying on old (unhealthy) standbys I am now inspired to try all sorts of wonderful ethnic foods. My daughters who were raised as vegetarians are now in there late teens/early 20s. It seems like most of their friends are struggling with weight issues and bad skin but my girls easily maintain a healthy weight and rarely have facial breakouts! Meat Free is THE way to be!
I am with her, just the thought of eating buffalo does my head in. While in Hawaii this past fall we encountered many restaurants that only served that and NO beef whatsoever so people do eat it..just not me! Also there was a time I wouldn't eat beef because I found out it was from a cow...yet I ate hamburgers by the yard not even considering it to be beef..go figure! I got over that as an adult but I can live w/o it and eat chicken if I had to.