Spend less on meat – 3 ways

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Prices of meat are increasing

The prices of meats are increasing at an unprecented rate! Year over year the price of beef and chicken has increased between 20-25%.  The Canada food price report predicted a significant increase in the price of meat this year; however, this increase is higher than expected.

3 ways to decrease your meat bills

  1. Use more affordable meats
  2. Add a vegetarian meal to this week’s menu
  3. Combine plant-based and animal protein

The Local Advantage

The silver lining in this increase in the cost of meat is that NOT ALL meats have increased in price. The price of locally and artisanally raised meats has increased by less than 2% year over year! Since the price of meats at the grocery store has increased so much in the last few months, why not explore our local options to purchase high quality meats.

In this blog, you will find the information for:

  • Local producers that ship and/or deliver
  • Local grocery stores
  • Farmers markets near you

1. Use More Afforable Meats

Chicken breast and steaks are some of the most expensive meats. Cooking with slower to cook cuts like chicken thigh and stewing meats you can save over 60%! Beef ribeye steak is $6.17/100g while stewing beef is $2.20/100g. 

Located by Prince Albert, Bison Ridge Farms‘ bison stewing meats are $2.64/100g. With a price difference of 0.44$/100gr for locally raised, high quality bison that enrich the land and is sustainable! Why not buy and eat local?

bison stew

Bison Stew

Bison stew is  an easy and agile recipe that can be made with the vegetables you have at hand. In this recipe we used: butternut squash, onions and potaotes.

This stew is going to warm you up! Seriously! On a colder night this stew heats you up within minutes. We tested it a few times and everytime within minutes we could feel warmer. The reason is a mistery – it may be due to the bison meat. Regardless, if you need a seriously warming dish – this is it!

  • Prep Time 25 Minutes
  • Cook Time 2.5 hours
  • Serves 6-8 People

Ingredients

  • 6 cups largely diced vegetables (butternut squash, potaotes, celery, rutabaga, parsnips, cabage)
  • 1 large onion diced
  • 28 oz diced tomatoes
  • 4 cups beef broth
  • 1 cup tomato sauce
  • 3 leaves bay
  • 2 tsp savory
  • salt & pepper
  • 1/3 cup flour

Instructions

  1. Turn on the oven to 350F. In a small bowl combine the flour, 1 tsp salt and pepper to taste. On a pan on medium heat, add oil to roast the meat. Roll each cube of bison in the flour and place them in the pan. Cook the cubes until brown.
  2. Once the bison cubes are browned, add them to a dutch oven or oven-safe pot.
  3. Add the red wine to the pan and deglaze the pan.
  4. In the dutch oven or oven-safe pot, add the red wine, beef broth, the tomatoes, vegetables, spices, salt and pepper to the stew.
  5. Cover and bake at 350F for 2.5 hours.

2. Vegetarian Recipes

Pasta dishes are an easy way to add comforting vegetarian recipes to your menu.  These 2 pasta recipes are some of our favourites:

  • Baked macaroni & cheese
  • Rotini Puttanesca
Baked macaroni and cheese

Baked Macaroni and Cheese

This classic Baked Macaroni and Cheese is ultra cheesy, creamy, and topped with a crunchy Panko topping. Two “secrets” make this recipe amazing:

  1. Cheese sauce is a bechamel with tons of cheese makes this the perfect creamy sauce
  2. Panko and butter topping adds a buttery crave worthy “crunch” 
  • Prep Time 35 Minutes
  • Cook Time 15 Minutes
  • Total Time 50 Minutes
  • Serves 6-8 People

Ingredients

  • 1 pound macaroni
  • 1/4 cup butter or margerine
  • 1/4 cup flour
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 2 cups milk
  • 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
  • 1/2 cup panko
  • 1/4 cup butter

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Butter a baking dish.
  2. Bring water to a boil in a large pot. Add 2 tbsp salt and macaroni. Bring the water back to a boil and cook the macaroni until tender, about 12 minutes. Drain.
  3. Make the cheese sauce: While the macaroni is cooking, melt the butter in a pot. Using whisk, stir in the flour and salt, stirring and cooking over medium heat until the flour turns a very pale brown - 2-3 minutes. Slowly whisk in the milk. Continue to cook, stirring constantly, until the sauce thickens - about 5 minutes. Add the cheese and stir until it is fully melted. Add the drained macaroni to the cheese sauce and combine.
  4. Make the topping: For the topping: In a small bowl, stir the breadcrumbs with the butter.
  5. Transfer the macaroni and cheese to the buttered baking dish and top with the buttered breadcrumbs. Bake until the dish bubbles around the edges, about 15 minutes.
IMG_9729

Rotini Puttanesca

This Rotini Puttanesca is quick and comforting. It’s a classic and simple pasta dish with cherry tomatoes, olives and capers and a perfectly pan fried ribeye steak.

Makeover – Dinner: If you’d like to make it extra special you can top it with a steak and pair it with an Italian red wine.

  • Prep Time 35 Minutes
  • Cook Time 10 Minutes
  • Total Time 20 Minutes
  • Serves 4 People

Ingredients

  • 12 oz rigatoni
  • 4 cloves garlic - minced
  • 1 pint cherry tomatoes - cut in half
  • 1/2 cup Kalamata olives
  • 2 tbsp capers
  • 1/2 cup grated parmesan
  • 2 cups spinach

Instructions

  1. Bring water to a boil in a large pot. Add 2 tbsp salt and rotini. Bring the water back to a boil and cook until desired texture. Save 1 cup pasta water. Drain.
  2. While the rotini are cooking, in a pan, melt a bit of butter. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant.
  3. Add the tomatoes, spinach, olives and capers to the skillet then season with salt and pepper. Saute for about 2 minutes until the tomatoes soften and the skins begin to wrinkle a bit. Add the pasta, reserved pasta water, Parmesan cheese and parsley to the skillet then toss everything together.

2. Combine plant-based and animal protein

Combining legumes and meat is common in moroccan dishes. This lamb moroccan stew includes chickpeas for a nourishing and warming dish. 

Saskatchewan raised lamb is available at the Wootton Farms – close to Lumsden.  
Stew lamb is available at $10/lbs

Moroccan lamb chickpea stew 1

Lamb chickpea stew

Moroccan lamb and chickpea stew is a delicious and easy way to enjoy the flavours of Morocco: apricots, cinnamon, bay leaf, ginger, all spice and Ras El Hanout (turmeric, cloves, allspice, cardamom, ginger, mace, nutmeg, and a touch of cayenne).

This recipe can be served with mediterranean salad, couscous, rice, pita or any rustic bread. 

  • Prep Time 30 Minutes
  • Cook Time 2.25 hours
  • Serves 6 to 8 People

Ingredients

  • 1 diced large onion
  • 2 cups cubed carrots (about 3)
  • 3 cups cubed potatoes
  • 2 lbs stew lamb
  • 4 cloves minced garlic
  • 1/2 cup dried apricot
  • 1 stick cinnamon
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 tsp ground allspice
  • 2 tsp ras el hanout
  • 1/2 tsp ground ginger
  • 28 oz diced tomatoes
  • 3 cups beef broth
  • 19 oz can chickpeas

Instructions

  1. Heat the oven to 350F. Season with salt and pepper. In a pan on medium heat, add oil and brown the lamb cubes on all sides.
  2. In a large dutch oven or oven-safe pot on medium heat, add oil, onions, carrots, and potatoes. Stir and cook for 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 addtional minute.
  3. Add the lamb to the vegetables. Add the dried apricots and spices. Combine.
  4. Add the tomatoes and broth and bake covered at 350 for 1 1/2 hours. Add the chickpeas and cook an additional 45 minutes.

Local advantage

There are many ranchers and farmers in Saskatchewan who offer high quality meats. 

A ressource we love to discover some of the many Saskatchewan farmers and food artisan is this book: Flat Out Delicious. 

Some artisan producers that ship and/or deliver include:

Local grocery stores

Farmers markets near you