Longtime readers of this column will know that, when it comes to most food trends or "more healthful" versions of my favorites, I am profoundly skeptical. So, when the folks at American Grass Fed Beef came to me inquiring whether I'd be interested in testing out their wares, I affixed my most jaundiced eye and fired up the grill.

For those of you unfamiliar with grass-fed beef, it differs from most of what you get at the supermarket or butcher shop in that the cows are fed on natural grass, not grain or special feeds or (as seems to show up on the news when they need a "cute" story) leftover bakery products. The cattle are given no hormones or antibiotics. In other words, these are very much akin to the cows your great-great-grandfather may have eaten.

This method brings forth a meat that is far more lean than today's beef, and thus the AGFB folks have a list of tips on how to handle it and preserve the tenderness. They also recommend using a Jaccard meat tenderizer, which is a nifty little multibladed contraption that's been a favorite secret weapon of chefs for years. However, since not everyone has one, I decided to test the beef both with and without using the Jaccard.

The main rule for dealing with grass-fed beef seems to be to NOT overcook it. It's designed to be cooked to at most medium-rare. Since this is how I prefer my good cuts of beef, and how I recommend you cook yours, this would not be a problem. If you're going to go and burn your meat, so be it.

My testing panel gathered and with the charcoal good and hot, we began the test. Onto the grill went one Jaccarded and one normal filet and an identical pair of New York strip steaks.

Inside, a pair of ribeyes, one Jaccarded and one not, were pan-seared in a cast iron skillet. A storebought grain-fed ribeye was done the same way for comparison.

After the steaks rested, we sliced them and arranged tasting plates. Then, all semblance of civility disappeared as we dissolved into a carnivorous frenzy.

The plates all but cleaned and all diners having tasted all cuts, I polled the group.

The verdict was unanimous: the grass-fed beef was delicious, with a mouth feel that was firm, but not tough. The Jaccarded pieces were more tender, but the untreated ones were at least as tender as storebought meat.

Those of you who crave the ring of crispy fat present around ribeyes won't find them here, but the dense, flavor-rich meat you get instead more than makes up for its absence. It goes without saying that your waistline would be happier with the swap.

In all, the quality of the grass-fed steaks, specifically the ones not treated with the Jaccard tenderizer, were equivalent to the highest-grade beef any of the tasters had consumed in steakhouses in terms of flavor and tenderness. The untreated New York strip steak, which came off the grill medium-well rather than medium-rare, was not tough at all, despite the warnings I'd been given about not overcooking.

The Slow-Cook Test

Also among the selection of test meats was a chuck roast, which any crock pot cooker will tell you is the best for making all-American pot roast.

Since I normally lightly tenderize my roasts before they go in the pot, I went ahead and used the Jaccard. Into the slow-cooker went the usual crew of potatoes, garlic cloves and onion, along with a can of beefy mushroom soup and an envelope of garlic-herb soup mix that had been hanging around the pantry looking for a home. I seasoned the roast with a healthy dose of freshly ground black pepper and set the time for nine hours.

Friends and readers, what emerged from that pot at dinnertime was a chunk of meat that will change everything you've ever thought about pot roast. Gone was the stringy, soggy, textureless mass I'd grown up with. Instead, the meat retained its shape, but was as tender as the finest cut of filet. It picked up the flavors of the garlic, onion and soups, without totally surrendering to them.

I ate far more of it than I should have, lost in the amazing new flavor. I DID manage to save enough leftovers for a roast beef sandwich the next day, which was so tasty my collection of mustards were fighting one another for the privilege of adorning the bread.

So, where does all this testing leave us?

I'm not going to tell you that grass-fed beef is cheaper than your supermarket stuff. It's not. It IS, however, well-comparable to other "premium" mail-order beef. If you, like many folks today, are on diets or under doctor's orders to limit your red meat intake, why not make sure that meat packs the most punch per ounce? And you don't have to confine yourself to the higher end of the beef spectrum. The chuck, round and flank steaks, especially if you use the Jaccard or other tenderizing method, are just as tasty and fulfilling as the high-end cuts.

Got a comment? Question? Recipe to share? Drop me a line anytime!