Mince snob?

azzabazza

I normally buy Lean Scotch minced beef and find there is very little fat when browned off.

DH came back from Lidl yesterday with several packs of their half price Minced Beef (£1 per 500 grms).

I was thinking of using the cheaper mince for spag bol, lasagne and chilli - all of which have herbs and spices etc added when cooking.

Do you folk out there have any views on cheaper mince vs the more expensive? Taste, fat etc?

geri1965_2

I quite like the cheaper mince (normal, not cheapest) as I find steak mince can be a bit dry.

Steve059

I agree that the really cheap stuff can contain lots of fat. By trading up slightly to the cheap own brand stuff, which contains less fat and doesn't reduce down as much, I got an extra portion of Bolognese sauce and Chilli Con Carne.

Also, pork and turkey mince is low in fat and can be cheaper than beef. In the above dishes, even I couldn't taste the difference.

Of course, if there's any of the really good stuff on offer, then there's always the freezer.

PS. If the pack size is a bit less than the required (ie. 450g instead of 500g) I pad it out with some chopped mushroom. As a rule of thumb, a decent sized mushroom is approx. 50g. Again, I can't taste the difference.

azzabazza

I normally get 5 portions from the lean mince (500 gm pack). Was thinking I might only get 4 portions because this mince will probably have more fat to drain off. Will be cooking a lasagne today so I will find out later I expect!

Ladyluck1

Just fry it and drain off the fat, cook as normal in sauce and then I blitz it with a stick blender to make it finer.
I find it great for £1 a pack
I wouldn't pay the £2 though Otherwise Id just buy lean steak mince YS in coop as better quality.

karren

I dry fry and throw the fat

harrys_nan

I also brown the mince off then tip it all into a strainer or sieve put over a bowl and let all the fat drip away, then use the mince to make what ever i was going to.
I think by the time you add other things eg onion, garlic, tomatoes etc, that you wont taste the difference, you can bulk out the mince with lentils, baked beans or other beans, also grated carrot.

Scrapaholic

I use Quorn mince !

maman

I'm sure someone's done the maths but effectively when you buy cheaper packs of mince you're paying for fat that you pour away so it's not as cheap as you think.


I'm very conscious of trying to limit the amount of fat I eat so I try to buy the leaner versions (5% fat).

peachyprice

I never buy the lean mince, the mid-range has so much more flavour because of the fat in it. Same as roast beef, a joint with fat marbling is much more tasty than very lean one.

I get 5 portions of spag bol/lasagne out of 250g non-lean mince, 500g would be far to meaty for us.

sunnysurrey_2

After trying numerous different packets of mince from various places, I actually find the lidl mince you got on offer (usually £2) the best all rounder. I found the cheap sainsburys & tesco ones to be the worst for fat. I use for chillis, bolognaise, meatballs etc