SALE = 4 lbs of ground beef = now what?

For some of us, every penny matters.  So when I see a sale on a good family food like ground meat, I buy it in bulk (and you should too).  This meat can be ground turkey, chicken, pork or beef.  If it is on sale, then buy it up. 

Once through the checkout, I head home, set it on the counter and begin to ponder about what to do with all this ground meat.  Then I look at the expiration/best by date, it says today.  Oh great…now I really have to do something with it and fast.  No wonder it was “on-sale”! 

I’ve come up with some tips on what to do with all that meat and here’s my answer:

First and foremost, divide the meat into 4 equal parts.  This gives you a pound per division.

1. Put first pound into a quart size freezer bag and freeze.  This will come in handy for a future unknown dinner (TBD).  Note: Mark everything you freeze with date, so you know when you put it into the freezer.  Try to use frozen meat within a month or so of freezing.  If you wait too long, the meat will get freezer burn and not taste very good.
2. Divide the meat into (4) four 4oz balls.  Flatten them out into patties.  Place them on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper.  Put the sheet into the freezer until the patties are frozen.  Once frozen, remove patties from sheet and put all of them into a freezer bag together.  Freezing them this way first, ensures they won’t be stuck together when you go to use them later.  The great thing about these patties: they can go straight from the freezer to the grill.  No defrosting required. 
3. Cook 1 pound of ground meat in pan.  Once cooked, remove from pan and drain on paper towels.  Let cool.  Once cooled, place into quart size freezer bag, date it and freeze it.  This pre-cooked meat can be used in many ways.  It is a great addition to a jar of pasta sauce or use as a pizza topping.  I like to make quick cook tacos with it.  Place some of the meat into a pan with a bit of taco seasoning and water.  Simmer for 5 minutes and it’s done.
4. With the final pound of meat, make dinner for that evening.  Options could include but definitely aren’t limited to the following: meatloaf, chili, sloppy joes, shepherds pie or meatballs.   I made the best Salisbury steak the other night with ground turkey.  I will share the recipe with you tomorrow.  Sorry for the wait!  It will be worth it.  In the mean time, doesn’t it look good?  It really is!!!