Soup Bones

Hi there,

One thing you may have noticed about really good-quality, sustainable, locally-raised meat is that compared to that stuff at the supermarket, it's pretty pricey.  So how do you get around that?

User cheaper cuts.  Soup bones come to mind (and you can use this for supermarket meat as well).  Yesterday I had some neck chuck pieces (less than $5.00).  The neck of the animal gets a good workout, so if you wanted to just cook them up like steak, you'd find them really tough.

Instead, brown them in a pan with some salt and pepper.  You don't have to cook them through; just get some nice brown color on them.  Put them into your crock pot (you do have a crock pot, right?) with 4 cups of water and a can of tomatoes.  Cover and let cook on low for about 4 hours.

Add 1 1/2 cups pearled barley (about $1.29/lb in the bulk section) and turn up to high for 2 hours. Take out the soup bones and shred the meat.  Don't keep any of the gristle, though.  Put the meat back into the pot and add 1/2 - 1 c. each sliced carrots and celery.  Check after about an hour - the barley should be tender and the veggies should be cooked, but not mushy.  Add salt and pepper if you want more.  You're ready to serve!  And the good news is, the crock pot does most of the work.  All you need is a good slice of crusty bread and maybe a small salad, and you've got a great meal.

I hope you'll venture into some of the cheaper cuts of meat.  Until next time -- I'll see you at the market!