Friday, July 20, 2012

Lone Mountain Ranch- Wagyu Tri-Tip - I have known the ranchers at Lone Mountain for almost ten year, long before they started selling beef.  The first time I went to the ranch they were just starting their 100% Wagyu herd- and I got an inside tour of how the process works.  So often chefs associate quality beef with marbling, but that is really only part of the equation.  The other factor which may be even more important is the tenderness of the beef.  Much of this has to do with the cut and aging- but recently ranchers have realized it is also largely genetic.  Lone Mountain was one of the first ranches to track the genetic background of each animal in order to isolate those that performed the best in both marbling and tenderness.  Some of their cows and bulls have been sold at auction to other ranches for more than fifty thousand dollars.   The time and effort they have spent developing the highest graded Wagyu herd in the country can be clearly tasted in the final product.   
Tonight we are serving the roasted tri-tip with charred jalapeno- olive oil and heirloom shelling beans slow braised with epazote.

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