black angus beef in Costa Rica

[barbara ann]

I am told you can buy black angus beef in Costa Rica somewhere in the Guanacasta area..does anyone know where that is?

[costaricafinca]

Bagaces, I think.

[maravilla]

are you looking for a steak or a side of beef? i’ve seen black angus grazing, so yes, it’s available but our beef here is not cornfed — they are grassfed, maybe the do a finish with corn, that i’m not sure of.

[Sailor]

I cannot comment on Black Angus beef. However, many of my expat friends in Guanacaste steered me to a butcher, in a strip mall, across the road from the Liberia Airport. The beef is from Nicaraqua, great quality, and can be cut with a fork.

[VictoriaLST]

Sailor, that is where we go for beef, and you are correct. It is soooo tender.

[costaricabill]

[quote=”Sailor”]I cannot comment on Black Angus beef. However, many of my expat friends in Guanacaste steered me to a butcher, in a strip mall, across the road from the Liberia Airport. The beef is from Nicaraqua, great quality, and can be cut with a fork.[/quote]

We generally stop there whenever near the airport. It has a very good selection of beef, pork, ribs, lamb, etc.
If you really want to experience enhanced flavor and even more tenderness, bring home the cryovack-wrapped (sorry for spelling) lomito tenderloin, and just put it (still sealed) in the bottom drawer of your fridge for 3 weeks or so. Then you can open the bag, cut off what you are ready to cook and freeze the remainder.

Unlike dry-aging, there is no loss of weight with this wet-aging process, and it really does make a difference!!

[Sailor]

costaricabill,

Thanks for the tip!! I will try that the next time I make our purchase.

[pebo1]

OK so my question is—can you purchase any local vacuum packed tenderloin in CR and age in your fridge for the same affect?

I often see packaged local tenderloins at Pricesmart that look
good but heard most local beef is not aged locally and pretty tough.

Thanks

[costaricabill]

[quote=”pebo1″]OK so my question is—can you purchase any local vacuum packed tenderloin in CR and age in your fridge for the same affect?

I often see packaged local tenderloins at Pricesmart that look
good but heard most local beef is not aged locally and pretty tough.

Thanks[/quote]

Yes, as long as it is vacuum sealed! I have bought tenderloins at P’ Mart (both local and imported USDA), brought them home and done the same thing and it really does help. Right now I have 10kg of brisket I bought at Liberia aging. That (like our local carnerceria tenderloins) was not vacuum sealed. I bring them home, cut to portions I want and then vacuum seal with our “seal-a-meal) put in the fridge and pull them out 3 weeks later. Then, if you want you can cut and freeze and then thaw when you are ready to eat and you will have a much more tender piece of red meat.

[DavidCMurray]

pebo1, PriceSmart sells USDA New York strip steaks and also tenderloins or rib eyes. They’re clearly marked, but they’re mixed in with the packaged local cuts, so you have to look carefully.

crbill, I understand the vacuum-packing part, but are you aging these cuts in the bottom of the [u]refrigerator[/u] (at around 37 degrees F) or in the bottom of the [u]freezer[/u] (at near zero)?

_______

I should add here that anyone who’s buying any amount of meat in bulk (we shop at our local [i]carniceria[/i] every three or four weeks) really should invest in a home vacuum packer. FoodSaver is a commonly sold brand in the U.S., on Amazon, etc. Sometimes Cemaco has them.

The bags are unique to vacuum sealers. You can’t use Glad bags or the like. And they’re not cheap, but if you cut them from the rolls they sell and cut them oversize, rather than buying the premade bags, you can turn them inside out, wash them and let them dry, and reuse them several times.

[costaricabill]

[quote=”DavidCMurray”]
crbill, I understand the vacuum-packing part, but are you aging these cuts in the bottom of the [u]refrigerator[/u] (at around 37 degrees F) or in the bottom of the [u]freezer[/u] (at near zero)?
[/quote]

David, freezing stops the aging process, so put them in the fridge – I didn’t believe it either when first told by my friend, a retired chef. We have an extra fridge in the bodega, so I just put the vacuum sealed meat in there and forget about it. I have actually left it as long as 5 weeks and was fine, As long as it stays cold. After the aging process, I cut it into the portions I want and either freeze it or cook & enjoy it.

The food sealers are indeed a great kitchen tool. We have looked all over for the bags or the rolls of material – does Cemanco have those as well?

[DavidCMurray]

bill, Cemaco has FoodSaver bags from time to time. They cost is about what they cost in the U.S., so there’s no advantage to importing them save for the matter of availability.

[Author]

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