The (meat)wolf is back!
A meat grinder used to be part of every good kitchen equipment. But the ever-available minced meat from the supermarket made its existence a challenge - some people only brought it up from the dark cellar at Christmas time to make shortbread cookies. But since grilling and barbecues have increasingly influenced our kitchen culture, the meat grinder has reclaimed its original home.
Good food starts with the selection of food and its processing. While you can still chop the meat by hand for the limited amount of one or two burger patties - assuming you have a suitable, sharp knife or, better yet, a cleaver - making sausage by hand in a private kitchen is difficult to do. The meat grinder performs two tasks for sausage production: grinding the meat and later, when the sausage meat is mixed and seasoned, filling the sausage casings. For this, the meat grinder should be equipped with filling tubes in different sizes in order to be able to process different diameters of natural casings (usually lamb or sheep casings), protein casings (also suitable for vegetarian sausages) or inedible raw sausage casings. However - depending on how often the meat grinder is to be used, for example for (semi-) professional use - it can be worthwhile buying a meat grinder from the professional sector. With these devices, there is no risk of overheating even when processing large quantities (of meat). In addition, they are often made entirely of high-quality stainless steel, which means that the devices are easy to clean and the removable parts can even be put in the dishwasher. With aluminum, cleaning is only possible by hand. If you want to make your own sausages regularly, you may quickly reach the limits of the sausage filling capabilities of your meat grinder, so purchasing a separate sausage filler may be advisable. Sharp knives are the be-all and end-all of every meat grinder; after all, the meat should be cut cleanly and not squashed, which means that the meat can also be heated unintentionally during grinding. This often happens with grinder attachments for standard food processors. It helps to let the meat freeze slightly before grinding. A return function is also practical; it ensures that stuck ingredients come loose again.
Conclusion: A meat grinder is a worthwhile investment for creative grillers, barbecuers and Dutch oven specialists, as it provides minced meat for juicy burgers, the meat for exotic bratwurst ideas - or, minced even more finely, mixed with vegetables or completely as a vegetarian variant - the fillings for pies, pasta, Maultaschen and their Asian and oriental counterparts. For a healthy shot in between meals, it makes smoothies from frozen fruit and of course it processes cookie dough for Christmas in no time. It is a versatile tool that really deserves a renaissance.
A good choice:
Pro-Star meat grinder from Landig
Solid household meat grinder that can process up to 90 kg of meat per hour with an output of 600 to a maximum of 850 watts, whereby the manufacturer says that it can work for up to 45 minutes at a time. The feed bowl is made of stainless steel, the auger is made of cast aluminum with a hardened stainless steel shaft. The scope of delivery includes 3 stainless steel perforated discs with 3, 4, 5 and 8 mm, a stainless steel cross knife, a biscuit attachment and a sausage filling funnel. RRP: 149 euros; www.la-va.com
The Pro-Star is also available HERE in our FIRE&FOOD shop!
Even more information about meat grinders from different brands can be found in issue 04/2020 of FIRE&FOOD.