Roasted Sirloin Tip Roast With Garlic and Thyme

An adventurous spirit is possibly the best ingredient when learning to cook the “whole beast,” but there are tools to help you better enjoy the bounty of our farm. An enameled Dutch oven for braising is recommended and a cast iron skillet is ideal for frying up steaks, chops and bacon. We are fans of Chinese cuisine here at Spring Lake Farm and find our wok to be indispensable. A good knife is a cook’s friend too, and a large metal bowl is excellent for defrosting cuts of meat in a water bath.

We are avid cooks and enjoy using our meats in a variety of dishes and cuisines.   Eating the whole animal not only respects the life of the animal; it is also delicious, healthy, economical and might take you down a culinary path you would not have otherwise been introduced to. Livers from our cows and pigs are nutrient dense and delicious. Beef shins are completely amazing. Lamb tongue has a surprisingly addictive texture. Pork rind when braised is lusciously appetizing.

Here are some tips on how to cook our different cuts.

Braising Cuts:

Beef: chuck roast, bottom round roast,  stew meat, short ribs, shanks, brisket, sirloin tip roast(also can be roasted)

Lamb: stew meat, lamb shoulder roast(can be roasted), lamb shoulder chops (can be grilled and baked), tongue, riblets

Pork: shoulder and butt(both can be slow roasted), rind, hocks, head, shins

Grilling Cuts:

Beef Steaks: sirloin, t-bone, porterhouse, flat iron, rib eye, rib steaks, top sirloin, filet mignon, NY strip and grass-fed beef burgers

Steaks that benefit from marination: chuck, London broil, flank, skirt steaks, kebabs

Lamb: shoulder chops, loin and rib chops, boneless leg of lamb, lamb speedies(or kebabs), filet, lamb ribs, lamb burgers

Pork: pork chops, pork burgers, sausages and ribs

Pan Frying Cuts

Beef Steaks: sirloin, t-bone, porterhouse, flat iron, rib eye, rib steaks, top sirloin, filet mignon, NY strip, chuck steak, flank, skirt steaks and burgers

Lamb: loin and rib chops, lamb burgers, milk soaked kidneys, tongue(also wonderful braised)

Pork: chops, burgers, bacon and ham slices

Broiling (similar to grilling)

Some standout broiled meats are London broil, marinated sirloin steak, pork chops and marinated lamb shoulder chops

Roasting Cuts:

Roasts can be luxurious, but there are many frugal and outstanding roasts like the eye round roast and the sirloin tip roast(which is pictured) that can be equally satisfying.

Beef: Standing rib roast, tenderloin roast, sirloin tip roast, eye round, top round, bottom round.

Lamb: Leg of lamb, rack of lamb roast(rib roast), Lamb loin roast, lamb fillet, saddle roast, shoulder roast, shoulder chops.

Pork, Loin Roast, Rib Roast, Shoulder and Butt Roast, Pork Chops, Smoked Ham.

Stir Frying

Have left over steak? Braised meats? Use them in a stir fry! Fresh or smoked bacon is excellent in a stir fry with leeks and a bit of hot sauce and soy sauce! Sliced steak and pork loin are wonderful in Asian stir fries. Ground beef and pork are also excellent in mapo tofu and Chinese cellophane noodles with ground pork.

Curries and Stews

You can use many of the braising cuts in curry. For a special-occasion curry you can de-bone a leg of lamb. In Iceland they use leftover roasted leg of lamb in a pan fried curry, which is so simple and good!

Pasta and Noodle Dishes

Ground beef, pork and lamb are surprisingly versatile and can be used in many noodle dishes.

Some recipes. Rice Noodles with Grass-fed Ground Beef, Onions, Green Peppers and Sichuan Peppercorns

Cooking with Leftovers
Cellophane Noodles with Short Ribs and Wild Mint

“85% of the cooking happens on the farm, the chef only makes up the other 15%.” -Alice Waters

We are very proud of our pork chops and enjoy them grilled in the summer, and all year long either pan seared or broiled. Our pork is full of old-fashioned flavor, with delicious fat and savory meat.

You can use our pork with most recipes; just keep in mind that our pork isn’t as lean as the variety you will find at the grocery store and has a lot more flavor. Our pigs eat a lot of grass and graze and forage all spring, summer, fall,  and even winter if there is no snow.  Their winter ration is also largely made up of hay(between 60-70%) which gives them a delicious flavor. Because our pigs eat so much grass, our pork shares many of the health benefits that 100% percent grass fed meats provide.  We also do not use antibiotics or any artificial hormones or growth stimulants.

Here we pan seared our pork chops and served them with caramelized onions. So simple and so good!

Treat a pork chop like it is a steak! For the most delicious pan-seared pork chop…

1. Make sure your pork chop is fully defrosted.
2. Pat the pork chop dry, bring it to room temperature and season  liberally with salt and freshly cracked pepper.  Heat a heavy bottomed skillet, preferably cast iron, at a high heat and add lard (to cover pan) or another heat tolerant oil like bacon fat or cold-pressed olive oil.  Heat until the pan is nicely hot.
3. Don’t crowd the chops. At a high heat, sear (there will be noise!) for 2 minutes on each side, watching out for spatters—if you have a grease shield use it, and if you have an apron don it; you want the chops to be beautifully browned.
4.  Reduce heat to medium, cover the pan and cook the chops until they are cooked through, flipping once more to cook for about 2-6 minutes depending on thickness.
5. The chops should be firm when pressed with a spatula. Please note that pastured pork will have a firmer texture because of the pigs free range lives.  If you aren’t confident in monitoring the doneness with touch, you can use a thermometer to make sure the internal temperature is between 145 and 150 degrees F.
6. Let rest at least 5 minutes before eating.
7.  Caramelized onions are the perfect accompaniment and can be fried while you let the chops rest. So simple and so good! Enjoy!

Credits

Photography: Ulla Kjarval

Food Styling: Ulla and Melkorka Kjarval

Prop Styling: Melkorka Kjarval