If you do a Google search for “famous vegetarians” you get an endless list of high profile activists who have used their fame to promote their sans-meat way of life. From Pamela Anderson to John Salley to (this pains me to say it) Paul McCartney, there is a swell of people who not only choose to be meat free, but would like YOU to do so as well.
Fair play to them. Everyone has things they’re passionate about. Personally, I’d prefer reality television, any music played on popular radio, Ugg Boots and skinny jeans all be put in a giant food processor and taken out of existence, but that’s just me.
My point, in case it’s not clear, is this:
I like meat. A lot.
And while I know there are those who choose not to partake (even a Beatle), I want others to like meat, too. That’s because I honestly believe folks don’t truly understand how good a steak can be.
I grew up on a farm and freezer beef was always readily available. At any given time, a multitude of steaks were available at my fingertips. Freezer beef usually comes from one’s own farm. It is processed and consumed by the family who raised it, or it may be processed at a butcher shop and sold to others as long as it remains in the original packaging and is kept frozen.
Freezer beef is ungraded, though. Some of the beef was tender; some not so much. Combine that with the fact that before I turned 30, my idea of grilling a steak was charring the holy hand grenade out of it. Then I’d slice it open on the grill and peek inside to make sure all the pink was plum cooked out.
I’ve a pretty good idea that when I die and am standing outside the pearly gates, God will say, “Bryan, you did some questionable things, but abusing steak … what in My name were you thinking?”
OK, maybe it won’t be quite like that, but you get the picture. And when you’ve got beef that you KNOW is the real deal — always flavorful, tender and juicy like the ultra-consistent Certified Angus Beef ® brand, be good to it.
My friend Keoni Chang, chef for Hawaiian-based Foodland grocery stores, once told me “Beef is just so good. As a chef, there’s not a lot you have to do with it.”
He’s right. Sure, you can smatter it with barbecue sauce, marinate it in a mixture of exotic salts and juices, or coat it with grandma’s special rub. All beef really needs is salt and pepper. Just throw it on the grill for a few minutes per side depending on your desired degree of doneness, pull it off and let it sit for 3-5 minutes to let juices redistribute.
Then you can start getting fitted for that white chef coat you’ve always wanted. You’ll be finished cutting into that delectable T-bone while Paul McCartney (or some other no-beef-eater!) is still mixing up his green pepper and mushroom-crusted tofu burger.
And hey, if you do decide to search for famous vegetarians, also type in “famous carnivores.” Wanna know who’s No. 1?
photo borrowed from Household Name ®
Leo, the MGM lion.
That’s a list I don’t mind being a part of.
