Man! That IS a lot of BULL!
Posted on 01/08/2009 6:29:35 AM PST by Red Badger
Japanese scientists said Thursday they had successfully cloned the ancestral bull of a luxurious brand of beef, possibly opening the way to distribute cloned beef.
At the start of the Year of the Ox, researchers announced they had kept frozen for 13 years the testicles of a bull named Yasufuku, the progenitor of the expensive Hida-gyu brand of beef in central Gifu prefecture.
The researchers at Kinki University and Gifu's livestock research institute said they had cloned four Yasufuku calves between November 2007 and July 2008, although two of them died afterward.
"Yasufuku's testicles were frozen for a decade without any special treatment," the team said in a statement, calling it a breakthrough as specimens used for cloning are usually preserved carefully.
Japan has a variety of beef marketed as high-end. Ranchers sometimes massage the animals or feed them beer while they are being raised for slaughter.
A Japanese government panel is studying the safety of cloned beef and is reportedly leaning towards allowing it. US and European safety authorities last year gave the go-ahead for sales of food from cloned animals.
But the researchers said that for now they planned to use cloned animals to study what kinds of gene and protein structures make tasty beef rather than applying them directly to produce food.
Kinki University said it also hoped to advance an ambitious long-term project -- to restore extinct animals.
"Our dream is to create a mammoth, although it is a big dream," said Kazuhiro Saeki, professor at Kinki University.
To revive the huge Ice Age mammal, researchers would need to find a way to implant a cell nucleus into the egg of an elephant -- the mammoth's closest modern relative -- and then implant it into an elephant's uterus.
Cloned Mammoths ping.............
“the testicles of a bull named Yasufuku,”
BWAAAA! Maybe I’m just pronouncing it wromg!
Sometimes there is a reason why things go extinct.
And,,,, it’s at “Kinki University!”
Again,,,BWAAAAA!
LOL!!!
I’ve got to get one of their sweatshirts.
They're talking about Kobe beef.
What is Kobe beef?
Kobe beef is a truly high-end luxury. Cuts of this meat are upwards of $100 bucks a pop, much of this cost due to the slow, organic manner in which the cattle are raised. Kobe beef comes only from a Japanese black-haired breed called Wagyu cattle ("wa-" means "Japanese," and "gyu" means "cattle." Considered the foie-gras of beef, Kobe is so highly marbled that the fat seems almost as prominent as the lean. However, this is the "good," unsaturated fat, and well worth the occasional indulgence.
What makes it so special?
Kobe beef, or the Wagyu cattle, are fed organic grains, Japanese beer, and even sake mash. Some Japanese farmers reportedly even brush sake on their cattle's coats, in the belief that this will soften their skin and improve the quality of the meat. While this concept may be debatable at best, it illustrates the care and respect given to the cattle as they are being raised.
How does Kobe beef taste?
When it's cooked right, a filet mignon of Kobe beef is utterly transcendent. Juicy, buttery, with a melt-in-your-mouth quality that puts even prime rib to shame, Kobe beef epitomizes luxury food. You shouldn't even need to use a steak knife; it's that tender. There is a subtle sweetness to Kobe beef that makes even sirloin burgers perfect without ketchup.
Is it hard to cook?
In a word, yes. Kobe beef's rich flavor comes predominantly from its high fat-to-lean ratio, and overcooking a Kobe steak or Kobe short ribs will dry it out. Kobe beef is expensive, so be careful! If the fat melts off, you've cooked it too long, and it will be tough. Don't treat a cut of Kobe beef like a regular steak on the grill; flip it fast, and get it off the grill. Alternatively, sear it quickly on an iron skillet. Kobe beef is so delicious that it really doesn't need any seasoning. But if you insist, a little salt and pepper before the grill, or a brushing of soy sauce after searing it, can serve to enhance the flavor.
I had some Kobe beef in Japan back in the mid '80s.
Overrated.
Thank you for the morning giggles! :-)
As in:
“I’m talkin’ to you buddy! Cut the bull! Yasufuku!”
Imagine the shirt “Frozen balls make good lovers.”
While the cloned bull might be good for beef, I hear that mammoths taste like chicken. And we’ve already got plenty of chickens.
When it says they sometimes massage the animal, what exactly does that mean? HMMMMMMMMM
How about this, “For good meat, massage here!” I would wear that shirt.
I nearly choked on my coffee when I read it.
baddest bull in history by far.
Kinki !
My wife and I got some Wagyu from my wife’s boss (we were living in Kyoto). You had to panfry the stuff for a short time.
I’ll tell you, I was really disappointed. It was like eating half cooked pork. The problem with Japanese beef is they only make Wagyu style beef, and you CAN’T BUY the American stuff half the time because they’ve banned it for a year due to a suspicious case of BSE that may have happened.
One time they banned it Yoshinoya almost went bankrupt because they only use American beef.
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