Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Kobe Beef (worth it?)
vanity ^ | 12/12/04 | self

Posted on 12/12/2004 6:45:34 PM PST by demsux

We're having four couples over for beef tenderloin over the holidays.

My question is: Is Kobe beef all that they claim it is? I don't mind paying more if it really is much better.

Help, please?


TOPICS: Food
KEYWORDS: beef; kobe; ribeye; strip
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-34 last
To: Mr. Mojo; Drango

Woops: that should be "select", not "standard"


21 posted on 12/12/2004 7:13:23 PM PST by RedBloodedAmerican
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 7 | View Replies]

To: demsux

Kobe beef at Nick's No. 1 in Bangkok was one of the 3 best meals of my life. But, the company and the ambience was part of the enjoyment. Unless ypu're an extremely good cook, a prime porterhouse might be a better choice...


22 posted on 12/12/2004 7:15:03 PM PST by 185JHP ( "The thing thou purposest shall come to pass: And over all thy ways the light shall shine.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: RedBloodedAmerican

Costco sells the primo stuff. .....not in the same universe as Wal-Mart. Aged as well.


23 posted on 12/12/2004 7:16:23 PM PST by Mr. Mojo
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 20 | View Replies]

To: AdamSelene235
Adam,

You, my friend, are speaking my language.

BTW, I can afford to have someone else cook it, but I do very well with prime and choice...and I LIKE QING.

24 posted on 12/12/2004 7:19:49 PM PST by demsux
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 19 | View Replies]

To: Iam1ru1-2
Have you actually seen the beef being produced? I have and, beleive me, these cows live the life of Reilley. They are fed top quality grain and hay. Their bedding is changed constantly (almost to the point of being odorless), they are allowed their own paddocks to exercise in and they are fed beer for the days prior to their trip to big cow pasture in the sky.

As long as you are not some PETA type with an attitude, the beef producers are proud to show you how pampered these animals are. The "can't move" stuff is total poppycock-- moderate exercise is a must for developing muscle tone. While it is true that their living quarters and pastures are rather cramped compared to their American counterparts, they are also smaller and stouter than their American counterparts.

I've also toured Japanese dairy farms and the situation is similar-- smaller pastures (in some cases, individual paddocks), top quality feed (one load of grain rejected for impurities was actually sent to another country for human consumption) and individual records of health check-ups, milk production, etc.

25 posted on 12/12/2004 7:25:19 PM PST by Vigilanteman (crime would drop like a sprung trapdoor if we brought back good old-fashioned hangings)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 9 | View Replies]

To: AdamSelene235

"Especially if you practice the fine Japanese art of turning all of your personal luxuries into business expenses."

LOL! too true I'm sure


26 posted on 12/12/2004 7:29:00 PM PST by jocon307 (Jihad is world wide. Jihad is serious business. We ignore global jihad at our peril.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 19 | View Replies]

To: demsux

Angus tenderloin...be sure to get choice cut. Never get select cut. If you can get prime do it. Kobe beef is a marketing ploy.


27 posted on 12/12/2004 7:37:06 PM PST by Texas Songwriter (p)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: RedBloodedAmerican

LAst year about this time, we bought ourselves half a locally raised Angus cow. Pasture fed, no hormones or any of that sort of stuff. Locally slaughtered and packed by a Rose Valley outfit - Scheffelmeyer's, I think the name is. Worked out to $189 a pund cut, wrapped and hard frozen. Picked it all up right there at the slaughterhouse. 420 pounds of the best burgers, steaks and roasts we've had in quite a while. Puts store-bought goods to shame in terms of flavor and texture.

We're going to do a prime rib for Christmans dinner this year - thing's big enough to feed eight, so we're going to have some friends over. Yum yum.


28 posted on 12/12/2004 9:53:27 PM PST by Noumenon (The Left's dedication to the destruction of a free society makes them unfit to live in that society.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 20 | View Replies]

To: demsux

If you're curious, you probably won't be satisfied until you try it. So...go ahead and try it.


29 posted on 12/13/2004 4:32:43 AM PST by Khurkris (That sound you hear coming from over the horizon...thats me laughing.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Noumenon

Maybe sometime I will do likewise. A friend has allot of acreage and has about a dozen black angus on it (to get the tax break). He has offered to sell the calves for little (around 50 bucks) and the slaughterhouse will do it from start to finish for 100. Just need a huge freezer!


30 posted on 12/13/2004 4:43:20 AM PST by RedBloodedAmerican
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 28 | View Replies]

To: demsux
"My question is: Is Kobe beef all that they claim it is? I don't mind paying more if it really is much better.

The answer to that question is absolutely not. Kobe beef comes from a breed of cattle called Wagyu. In order to bear the designation "Kobe Beef", the Wagyu beef must come from Kobe, Japan, and meet the "production standards" imposed in that political area.

The problem with producing beef in Japan is the lack of land. The Japanese cannot produce enough beef for their own consumption thus there are many ranchers in the US (most of these are in California)that raise Wagyu beef exclusively for Japan and processed in Kobe.

Kobe beef? Overrated. At ten times the price because the cow was raised on expensive land eating expensive Japanese grain and beer, the quality is not noticeably better than ordinary Wagyu beef that grades out to sub-prime.

Buying Kobe is akin to paying 20,000 dollars for a Yugo(back when they were making them). When you buy Kobe Beef, you have one of two options. You can buy it shipped back over from Japan at some insane cost per pound that includes two transoceanic fares, or you can try to track down a Wagyu rancher who will sell a single carcass. Fat chance as all his production goes to Japan.

How does Kobe beef taste? If it's cooked wrong, lousy. Bland. Not too flavorful and kind of boring. If you try to treat a Wagyu (Kobe) steak as if you were cooking traditional beef, you will be sorry you did, and you will look down at your plate and just say, "Damn, I spent that much money on this?"

So the short answer is no, Kobe beef is not all they say it is and absolutely no better than good ol' domestic beef. In fact if you don't cook it properly, it's worse!!

31 posted on 12/13/2004 6:11:58 AM PST by daylate-dollarshort (http://sv-musashi1.com)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: RedBloodedAmerican

Ooops - that's $1.89 a pound, not $189. Just get yourself an inexpensive chest freezer - 25 cubic feet would do nicely - and you'll be good to go.

Burgers never tasted so good. All you'd need to top one off would be a big slab of sweet Maui onion.


32 posted on 12/13/2004 7:59:26 AM PST by Noumenon (The Left's dedication to the destruction of a free society makes them unfit to live in that society.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 30 | View Replies]

To: demsux

I don't know what you're talking about paying, but you can probably get some top U.S. beef for a considerably lower price, with little dropoff in taste (since I've never had Kobe myself). The fact is, you're probably going to have an extremely hard time finding USDA Prime Grade beef in your grocery store, since most of that goes to restaurants. However, if you can find USDA Prime Tenderloin, you're almost surely going to have a fabulous eating experience. Of course, you're probably goint to pay at least $15.00/pound for it, most likely more.

BTW Choice grade is next on the quality list. It's generally well-marbled and will deliver a good eating experience. Next comes select, which is good beef, but it generally comes from feedlot animals that were not in the lot long enough to fully fatten. This may include English breeds that were shipped early, or other exotic breeds that simply grow so large before they'll fatten out that they are moved beforehand (think Chianina, possibly Brahma). Also, dairy steers and heifers (particulary Holsteins) get pretty large, and will probably grade select.


33 posted on 12/13/2004 4:27:13 PM PST by McGarrett (Book'em Danno)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: RedBloodedAmerican; demsux
not even a decent grade like select or prime

"select" is actually a step below "choice", which is in between - select and prime. Only about 2% of all USDA graded meat attains the prime designation, and a majority of that is destined for restaurants

another factor to consider is yeild grade, which is based on physical characteristics of the carcass & body fat

Dry aged prime (black angus) is probably the best bet

Personally, stay away from "select", "utility", "cutter", and "canner" grades

In order - best to poorest

Prime, choice, select, utility, cutter, canner

34 posted on 01/03/2005 6:11:42 AM PST by Revelation 911
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 20 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-34 last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson