Late this Spring we finally ran out of grass feed beef for the first time in 6 months. The original “family sampler” we bought from Lasater Beef of 36lbs lasted about 6 months for 2 people. We decided to try another place as Lasater raised their prices significantly and we wanted to try another Colorado rancher to compare quality, price, and packaging. While I was scouting around the internet we stumbled on Sun Prairie Natural Beef as they were doing a closeout on their spring inventory. We got a great deal on some lower quality cuts like ground beef, roasts, spare ribs rather than the mix we previously had, which included high-end steaks. We jumped at the deal and ordered a 25lb box with pick-up in Denver at an average price of $4 per lb. Since then we’ve eaten our way partially through the box and are very pleased with their meat.

Unlike Lasater which wraps their meat in butcher paper and then freezes it, Sun Prairie’s processor vacuum packs the meat before freezing, which makes it much easier to thaw in the sink without a mess when you realize last minute that you don’t have the meat thawed that you planned for dinner. The processor also does a great job tenderizing cuts of meat such as cube steak and flank steak so that it’s more tender and easier to cook. The beef also tastes better with a less gamey flavor than Lasater. I don’t know if it’s a difference in the breed or the pasture, but it results in a better steak, this is especially noticeable on the lower quality steaks such as round steak. And to top it off they are cheaper than many of the other grass fed packages we’ve found around here and on the web.

Sun Prairie is now doing a summer harvest for the first time this year, normally they only do a spring and fall harvest, with pick up on August 22nd around the front range. If you live around the front range you should definitely give them a try as they have pick-up locations all around the front range including several in Denver, Boulder, Longmont & Fort Collins . They also deliver via UPS if you don’t live in the front range or can’t make the pickup times. They have 3 types of boxes available in either 25lb or 50lb sizes. They also allow you to make substitutions, which is great if you are like us don’t need 10lbs of ground beef and would rather use sausage and other cuts. If you place an order use the code “sunprairiebeef” and save an additional 5%. We just ordered another 25lb “Economy box” with several substitutions to get the cuts we need right now to fill out our fridge. In the fall we’ll order a box that includes more steaks and enough beef to get us through the winter. I can’t wait!

This entry was posted on Tuesday, August 11th, 2009 at 9:00 am and is filed under Eating Local. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.