#meatjello

Full disclosure: the photo above is one step away from being full-on meat jello. I ate it all too quickly to take pics of the completed dish, and in the true spirit of this blog, I will not be repeating these shenanigans just to get the right photo. That’s what Imgur is for. 

Every now and then, I roll up my sleeves and actually cook something that requires more than my usual "press a button" or "just let it sit there." I don't know what comes over me but I liken it to having a temporary chemical imbalance. As much as I would like to say it's because I care so much about my family, let's be real. The actual reason is so I can talk about how much work it took. Later, when I text my husband who's sitting on the couch right next to me to bring me water/gummy bears/nail file/etc., I have the perfect excuse of "but I'm so tired from that one time three months ago when I made haladetz!" You could say he won the jackpot of wives but then you'd be completely lying or delusional.

So this is my grandma's/mom's haladetz (basically, aspic) recipe; yeah beef not chicken, yeah no pieces of boiled carrots or eggs, but this is how they made it. I always thought it was hella good so this is how I make it too.

Shredded beef (make about two hours before you're ready to turn off the broth):

Get grass fed stew meat

Sear the pieces in a little butter, coconut oil or whatever else you've conditioned yourself into believing is the answer to eternal health. My tip is to sear a few pieces at a time so you are sure to get a properly even sear on each piece. 

Put into lightly boiling water and then turn to simmer, close pot and just leave it there for awhile. Give it some time but check occasionally for softness. It usually takes a couple of hours but there's been times I've forgotten about it for like four hours and it was awesome

Once soft, remove from water, let cool and shred.

For the broth:

Get grass fed beef marrow bones or some other kind of soup bones containing gelatin

Roast them on a pan at 400ish for like an hour

Turn them over a few times. Marvel at the bubbling marrow and fat gushing forth like an oily geyser

Once it’s done roasting and you’ve removed the bones, discard all the fat from the pan into a plastic bag and throw out in the garbage. You can also use the fat to cook with later but homey, please. This is not one of those kinds of blogs

Put the roasted bones into a pot full of water, let boil, then turn onto simmer

Skim as needed. You can add a couple of bay leaves and a little salt/pepper. Or don't, whatever. I'm not the boss of you

Some people throw in a carrot, celery stalk, etc. I am not one of those people

I do throw in a bunch of garlic cloves and half an onion when it's already been simmering for awhile

Pro-tip: add some apple cider vinegar (Bragg’s is the hippie-approved one) and you’re pretty much guaranteed a higher IQ and a cellulite-free existence

Let simmer on the lowest setting for like, as long as possible. Like 1-2 days, for real (awww yeeeah, now we're talking! Time to get your sit-on-a-couch-and-stare-at-a-wall on!)  

Strain the broth. Add salt  and garlic powder to taste and a couple of shakes of grass-fed gelatin into warm/hot broth

Stir until it's all absorbed

Add portions of shredded meat into soup plates and then cover with broth until pretty full