Mince.

bobbydog24

Talking of mince. Why does mince now come in long strings you have to break up or chop up before browning. It never used to be like this and was called ground mince and much easier to cook with. No matter how you break up stringy mince it’s still lumpy when cooked. Or is it me.

I don't like the stringy, worm-like appearance of mince now either. It seems to be the shop-bought varieties rather than the independent butchers though which tends to look like 'proper mince' .
Obviously something to do with the preparation process I imagine.
Tesco mince looks and feels awful, we stopped buying it and now get ours from a small butcher - still 5% fat content but looks like the traditional stuff we bought years ago.

Dorrain ,
So I'm not the only one !
I'm not too keen on pork cooking either .
If requested , I cook mince and pork with the kitchen door wide open .
I can't cook lamb if my daughter is in the house .
My other daughter has thrown up at the sight of chicken .
We do eat meat , but if it has the slightest smell -it goes to the many pets next door.
As a child , I had to get the shopping .
Each trip meant going to the butcher in the blood dripping on sawdust days .
When the butcher saw my mother - they asked her not to send me anymore !
Our problem - an over developed sense of smell and probably we are not that great with carcasses either !

Hi Esmay, I am definitely not a fan of mince.

I've known a few butchers over the years and they have told me some awful things about what actually goes into the mince. All sorts of animal body parts, not just the actual flesh.

The smell of mince cooking actually makes me gag, so no mince for me!

MayBee70

I always add a bit of Bovril to mince. It really brings out the flavour.

I do the same. And I can't stand the 'stringy' supermarket mince - I always buy mine from the butcher.

4allweknow

Mentioning mince. Does anyone else find it hard to get 15, 20% fat mince. Loads of 5% and 10% both which I find like grains of sand when cooked. The higher fat levels seem to keep the meat softer. Haven't seen Tom K cook mince and don't thik I'd bother using the oven that long.

I saw both 10% and 20% fat mince in Sainsbury’s yesterday.

I usually use 5%, and don’t find it like grains of sand. But I always add red lentils and a lot of finely chopped veg to any batch of mince and simmer it all for a good hour - I don’t know whether that would make a difference

I don’t buy mince as I like to know what I’m eating! Mince is only meat trimmings that can’t be sold for anything else. I buy lean cheap beef and my faithful Kenwood does the rest!

Mentioning mince. Does anyone else find it hard to get 15, 20% fat mince. Loads of 5% and 10% both which I find like grains of sand when cooked. The higher fat levels seem to keep the meat softer. Haven't seen Tom K cook mince and don't thik I'd bother using the oven that long.

I agree. I always make the sauce first then add the mince as I find it stops the mince going into hard lumps and it absorbs the sauce better. I was told by a butcher years ago not to fry the mince first and I believe Italians always make the sauce first so the mince absorbs more flavour from the sauce.

I always add a bit of Bovril to mince. It really brings out the flavour.

I fry mine briefly with chopped onion, before adding stock, red lentils, and finely chopped carrot and celery, plus mushrooms if I have any. I simmer it for a good hour.

With various different additions it then turns into e.g. shepherds pie, spag Bol, chilli, or what is known in this house as School Dinner Mince - not that it beats much resemblance to that!

May I add I was taught this trick by my sons Sicilian mother in law who is a great cook.

If you are doing for instance a spaghetti bolo, dry fry the mince until it’s brown on all sides almost slightly burnt, this give the same effect and we found that it makes the dish tastier

If batch cooking mince I roast it in the oven. It does not need oil to brown it and no standing over a frying pan cooking numerous lots. Also if a little fat comes off it can be skimmed and used to fry off the veg
Another advantage is it is a little more textured as some sticks together

Reminds me to buy some mince tomorrow, to make a bolognese. Two packets of pasta in my cupboard !!

You can just use leaner mince or drain the fat
He’s supposed to be a chef

I followed Tom's recipe a few years ago, cooking my mince in the oven first. Didn't see the point. It did nothing to enhance the taste and I soon went back to my own tried and tested method. Also have a feeling he added red wine vinegar. That was a bit weird.

Nope...brown mince, carrot and onion. Add beef stock,put in slow cooker. Thicken the stock prior to serving.....simple and yummy with mashed potatoes...😋😋😋😋

Supermarket mince, which I do understand people purchase for lack of time, will be long stringed to fit the industrial process putting it in the plastic pack. I get my mince from local butcher and it's a ball of mince like it has always been. I would like people to support their local butcher if they can. It's good meat and a decent price at mine

bobbydog24

Talking of mince. Why does mince now come in long strings you have to break up or chop up before browning. It never used to be like this and was called ground mince and much easier to cook with. No matter how you break up stringy mince it’s still lumpy when cooked. Or is it me.

I find supermarket mince goes stringy and is hard to breakup . I get my mince from a farm shop and doesn’t do this .

I have never heard of celery, onion and tomato sauce and would very much dislike it as an accompanment to mince.

I prefer my mince as my Scots grandmother and great-aunt made it. In other words boiled with chopped onions, salt and pepper in just enough water to cover it, stirring to make sure it neither sticks to the saucepan nor boils dry. Twenty minutes cooking time, so pop the potatoes on ten minutes before starting the mince.

No televison chef pays the electricity bill himself, but I do, and I cannot imagine that mince it not horribly dry and tough if cooked for so long.

I have just made a large cottage pie for tea using 5% mince. It looks delicious, I always put peas, carrots and a little celery in and some gravy with a good splash of Worcester Sauce.

I always think there will not be enough mash on top to cover the mince mix but I just did it with none over today. Must be 47 years of cooking!

Talking of mince. Why does mince now come in long strings you have to break up or chop up before browning. It never used to be like this and was called ground mince and much easier to cook with. No matter how you break up stringy mince it’s still lumpy when cooked. Or is it me.

I dry fry my mince so that it is browned, probably the same outcome as oven cooking it.

For years , I lived on a diet of mince meat-cooked in as many ways as I could .
My mother used to make the most unappetising mince dishes as well .
I recall the horrible smell of it cooking !
She didn't fry it .
She boiled it .
Therefore ,
I'm not a fan .
I do eat it very occasionally .

I am guilty of saying if friends ask me what I'd like them to make if invited -
Anything , but mince
!
But if they surprise me with shepherd's pie or spaghetti bolognese - of course I say nothing .

gtandMattie I use Tom's method of cooking mince as it does intensify the flavour, his chilli recipe is delicious. I do cook it in the air fryer in one of those silicone bowls.