Browning ground beef for casseroles. A friend of mine says she adds a little

E

elenor

Well-known member
bit of water to ground beef when browning it for casseroles - then pours the liquid and grease off. She says the meat is much more tender and easier to brake apart. Does anyone do it this way? Since DH's been ill, he finds ground beef in casseroles tough. Any suggestions?

 
My mom does it that way; it works well. I think not buying too lean a cut of ground beef helps, too.

 
Thanks. I'll have to try the milk. I use Cook's Illustrated rec. for meatloaf and it calls for

milk which I really like but never thought to use it for browning the ground meat.

 
I add water sometimes, it does seem to make it easier to keep it tender and not

overcook it, and easier to drain the fat before adding to other dishes.

If your DH is finding it too tough, I'd stick with a grind with more fat in it, as Erin mentioned.

I also find really breaking it up as it cooks with the spatula into smaller pieces makes it cook more quickly and end up more tender.

Good luck to you!

 
Exactly. If you have the ability to grind your own meat, do. These days tougher braising meats are

mixed into the hamburger. Those low and slow cuts in hamburger are probably what's contributing to the toughness. Grind your own meat...or have the butcher do it for you and you'll know exactly what's in it. And you can control the fat content too.

 
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