Not too far from our home, we have a great local meat market with fresh cuts of beef, pork and chicken. Their meat tastes better than the selection at the grocery store, and it’s also often cheaper. They also have great deals on their bags of bulk ground beef.
Ground beef is economical and versatile, and that is the main reason it’s the main ingredient in a lot of the meals that I make. By buying ten pound bags, I can usually save at least $0.50/lb. There is one problem with buying it this way – I then have to take it home and divide the meat into smaller packages. Ugh.
After a recent trip to the meat market, I found myself staring at the big pile of ground beef of my counter. At the time, I was wrapping each meal-sized portion in plastic wrap and then freezer paper. After paying for the packaging supplies, was I actually saving any money? Not only that, but it also took A LOT of time to divide the meat. First, I would use a scale to make my one pound packages, then I would carefully wrap it in plastic wrap, followed by freezer wrap, finishing with a few strategically placed pieces of tape. I just knew there had to be a better way – and guess what, after doing a little brainstorming, I found one!
Bulk Ground Beef: The Solution
The way I divide and freeze ground beef now is so much easier. It does require a small one time investment in containers, but then you can wash and reuse the containers forever. So, here’s how I conquered my bulk ground beef problem:
I bought pint-sized freezer containers. Two cups = one pint = 16 ounces = one pound! Okay, I admit two cups of marbles will weigh far more than one pound, but two cups of ground beef does weigh approximately one pound. I know this for a fact because I actually weighed it!
I found pint-sized plastic freezer containers in packs of five for $2.29/pack in the freezing/canning section of my grocery store. For a modest investment of less than $5, I picked up enough containers to divide one 10-lb bag of bulk ground beef into ten meal-sized portions. And then, I can use the containers again, and again, and again…
And let me tell you, it is so much faster to load up the containers this way. No weighing, no wrapping, no taping. What used to take me at least half an hour can now be done in less than ten minutes. Because the containers also stack nice and tidy in the freezer, they take up less room. I also have not had any problems with freezer burn on my meat, although I do make sure to rotate the meat when I bring a fresh batch home, pulling the older packages to the front (simple common sense, eh?).
That’s really all there is to it! However, I don’t want to leave you hanging with any questions, so if you have any, leave them below or on my Facebook page, and I will get back to you as soon as I can! Also, if you have any of your own tips for buying, dividing or freezing ground beef, I would love to hear them.
p.s. If you’re from the Fort Wayne area, check out my favorite butcher shop – great prices, great service, delicious food!
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