How to Choose High Quality Meat

Are you overpaying for poor quality meat?

How many times have you gone to the grocery store in search of the perfect, succulent cut of meat for your family dinner only to end up with a cut that’s so tough, even your dog’s not a fan?

If your answer is “one too many times,” let us help you with that. Put down the takeout menu and let’s talk about how to find the tastiest, highest quality meat that the store carries.

How Do I Know if My Meat is Good Quality?

It’s a good thing they teach you about the five senses when you’re a child because that skill is about to come in handy in a big way. Every single cut of meat you purchase can be assessed by using three of your five senses: sight, smell, and touch.

When you’re overwhelmed with the sheer amount of choices on the shelf, use your sight to weed out any bad cuts. You don’t want to choose any meat that has any tears or holes in the packaging, is essentially swimming in its own liquid, or is off-coloured.

Once you’ve identified the undesirables, you want to concentrate on the feel of the meat. It should go without saying that you should be looking for packages that are cold to the touch. You don’t want to bring home any meat that feels like it’s been sitting out, because you know… bacteria.

You can also smell when meat has gone bad. Obviously you don’t have to hold the meat up to your nose and take a big whiff, but if you notice any strange odours coming from the package, leave it on the shelf.

How to Choose the Best Beef

Beef is a staple because it’s so versatile. But how do you know if it’s good quality? That’s easy: look at it.

See those white flecks and streaks of fat distributed through the beef? That, my friend, is called marbling and it will have your tastebuds giving you a standing ovation. While beef with marbling is typically more expensive, the flavour payoff is so worth it.

Can you really put a price tag on mouth-watering flavour and tender beef? Didn’t think so.

If you’re not looking for something too fancy but you still want to make sure the beef you’re getting is tasty, look for a cut that is a bright, cherry-red colour. If it’s in a sealed bag, it will usually be dark purple, but once it’s been exposed to air it will turn bright red.

How to Choose the Best Chicken

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This cannot be stressed enough: if the chicken is grey, stay away. It doesn’t matter if it’s on sale or if they’re giving them away for free. Unless you want a nasty case of food poisoning, avoid grey chicken at all costs.

The same rule applies for chicken that has a weird smell. History has taught us that the funky chicken is never a good idea at the dinner table or on the dance floor.

If you want moist chicken that will have you drooling even after the last dish has been washed, it’s important to know what to look for:

  • Chicken breast: spring for a package that contains plump, pale-pink and light-on-the-fat pieces.
  • Dark meat: you want something that’s dark pink with white fat.

How to Choose the Best Pork

When you have company coming over and you know that only your famous pork dish will suffice, it is absolutely critical to make sure that you are choosing the best pork that will have even the pickiest of eaters singing your praises.

The key to doing that? Look for pork with fat.

The days of picking through dozens of perfectly good, fatty pieces of pork to find one with as little fat as possible are over. If you want a flavourful and moist experience, look for pork with firm pale pink flesh and an abundance of fat. Whether or not you choose to eat the fat is up to you, but simply cooking with the it will elevate your dish.

If that all sounds like a lot of work, not to worry. You can make sure you're getting the best quality meat by purchasing through a reputable supplier (like, cough, Farm 2 Fork). When you buy from a company that knows the farmers and is dedicated to bringing you the best, you can show off your meat-quality expertise with confidence

Your family depends on you to provide nutritious and delicious meals.

Make your job easier by choosing the best of both worlds with the Fill The Freezer Family Bundle.

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