One thing that I was really excited about when I moved my kids back to La Sal was that they would have that down home country experience I grew up with. I wanted them to have chores, and work around the house and learn responsibility. I wanted them to know the lessons of life the way I learned them, and appreciate the way the world naturally gives and takes. Then we had the DOVE EXPERIENCE, and then the CHICKEN FIASCO, and the TIME THEY BEAT THE MOUSE WITH THE BROOM, and I wasn’t so sure anymore. But my kids have loved every second of it. They have loved having animals and responsibilities, and all that comes along with that, and by far, their very favorite part has been raising our own beef. My parents have raised beef off and on since we moved here, and each time it comes time to slaughter it I worry how my kids will handle it. I shouldn’t though. They realized early on that the taste of beef far outweighs their love of a playmate. As Adia said to me once when I asked her about it, “Yeah Mom, I love Big Red, especially when he’s cooked on the grill!” . This last spring my parents ended up with three dogie calves somehow. My kids have loved feeding them and watching them grow. But alas, a few weeks ago it was time for all three of them to go the way of the world. They came back in individually wrapped packages each numbered according to which steer it came from.
So one day we were wondering which beef was the best. One of them had been fed more corn than the others, one was much larger, one was smaller, we wanted to know if you could actually taste the difference. Was one more tender than the rest? Did one have a better flavor? How would we ever know? Well, that’s simple, really, we decided to have a taste test.
Now when it comes to beef, there is one prime cut according to Adia. It’s the t-bone steak. She can eat an entire steak all by herself. She cherishes ever single bite, and if you don’t keep a close watch she will even steal bites from your plate too. So when planning out this taste test we knew there was no better piece of meat to help us make our decision.
So one warm Saturday afternoon we fired up the grill and set out on a once in a lifetime taste testing experience. We seasoned our three steaks the same, we cooked them over the same heat to the same done-ness. And then we tried it out.
We each made little piles with little flags so we didn’t get confused. And we very carefully tried each one. And what did we discover? Well… we discovered that we like steak. And that’s about it. I liked the flavor of #2 best, but it was a little tougher than the rest. But basically we all had a different opinion, and the only thing we could actually agree on was that it was GOOD!
Oh, and though I’m slightly embarrassed, for the sake of keeping an accurate account, I have to disclose that Ethan ate a hotdog instead of steak. I’m pretty sure my grandpa rolled over and groaned in his grave… (I did NOT take a picture of that!)
Adia loved them all, with each bite she kept saying, "Oh, this one it totally by favorite!" ...until she would try another one and then THAT one was her favorite.
My dad tried to play it cool, but he was every bit as excited as Adia. It's not every day you have a gluttonous adventure like this one!
So, what, you might ask, does one serve at a steak taste test? You want it to be light and not too filling. And you don’t want overwhelming flavors, the steak should be the main focus. We had melon, and my famous coleslaw. (do you ever notice that when I make the same recipe more than once I always refer to it as “My Famous…” I’m not sure why I do that, I’m pretty sure none of my recipes are actually famous. I guess it’s just wishful thinking that someday someone will make one of my recipes and love it, and then think of me when they eat it, and we will have a fond moment that translates through space and time…
ANYWAY, the coleslaw:
There are a couple of secrets to this recipe, and if you don’t do it you won’t love it as much, so just do it! The most important secret is that the cabbage needs to be shredded small. It allows the cabbage to really absorb the sauce. I know it sounds insignificant, but trust me, it matters. I like things to be easy, so I usually buy the slaw in the bag (I like the kind with carrots and broccoli hearts and both green and purple cabbage, but to each his own on that part) and then I chop it in my food processor. You need 8 cups of slaw. I know it sounds like a lot, but have faith. You put that in a large bowl, and then in a DIFFERENT bowl make the sauce. (I usually do it in my food processor as well.) Don’t try to save time and mix it in the same bowl. You will be sad and disappointed if you do, and no one likes a sad sack eating sucky slaw!
½ C Mayo
1/3 C sugar
¼ C Milk
¼ C Buttermilk (This is another one of those things you need to trust me about, don’t skip the buttermilk. I mean, if you never use buttermilk and the entire carton will go to waste then don’t buy buttermilk, just use regular, but seriously, why wouldn’t you use buttermilk? If you don’t have any recipes that call for it ask me, I use it all the time… sorry, tangent – in order for this to be all that it can be use the buttermilk. If you don’t really care, use regular milk, it’s up to you.)
2 ½ T lemon juice (fresh squeezed if you have it – lemons are like buttermilk, if you want full flavored dishes, you NEED them in your kitchen!)
1 ½ T White Vinegar
½ t Salt
1/8 t Pepper
Whisk together the ingredients, and pour it over the slaw. Toss lightly, then let rest in the fridge for at least two hours. This is the final secret of the recipe. You will be tempted to dig in right away, but if you wait, oh dear reader, you will experience coleslaw heaven. Give it another good toss before eating, and enjoy.
