Grass finishing is dependent on rainfall and forage growing seasons. We
supplement with alfalfa hay during dormant seasons to assure our cattle receive
adequate nutrition. This enables us to offer a year-round supply of beef. If
you would like to be added to our email mailing list to be notified when we
are sending product for processing, please send an email to .
Bandera Grassland grassfed longhorn beef is available for purchase in whole
carcasses, sides, quarters and eighth carcasses. Whole carcass and sides
are priced is $5.75 per pound. The average weight per side is 200 lbs.
so the average price is $1150 per side. Quarter and eighth carcasses
consisting of equal cuts from the fore and hindquarters are priced at $6.50
per pound. Quarters
average 100 pounds each, so the average quarter price is $650, and eighths
$325. Organ
meats (liver, heart, kidney and tongue) are sold separately at $3 per pound. To
place an order, please send an email to or
call (830) 562-3650. Demand for healthy grassfed beef has increased to
the point that we rarely have unsold portions in stock. Customers that
place orders in advance of an animal being processed are given priority on
availability. Customers placing orders in advance also have the
oportunity to specify how their order is cut and packaged. Please anticipate
about one month wait for your order to be available due to time required for
processing and dry aging. We send out email announcements when we have
unsold beef available and it usually is all spoken for within 24 hours. We
make deliveries to the Austin and San Antonio areas and points in-between and
are able to economically ship small orders via UPS to cites in Texas that are
within the overnight delivery area for UPS Ground shipping service.
The quarters and eighths we sell contain mixed cuts from both the forequarter
and hindquarter. The break down of a carcass is approximately 50% trim
that is ground for hamburger or cubed for stew meat, 20% premium steaks and
30% other cuts. A quarter will contain approximately 40 lbs. of ground
beef, 10 lbs. of stew meat, five or six 2 lb. roasts, one half of a brisket,
approximately 2 lbs. of tenderloin, four or five sirloin steaks (one per package),
two packages of ribeye steaks (2 steaks per package), four packages of strip
steaks (2 steaks per package), a package of fajita meat (mechanically tenderized
flank, or skirt), two packages of ribs, and one package of shank (4 per package). Sides
contain approximately double the quantity of the same cuts except the brisket
is whole, and eighths contain approximately half the quantity of the same cuts. To
any order, customers may request the addition of organ meats at $3 per pound. The
liver is sliced ½” thick and packaged in 1 lb. packages. Kidneys
are sold one per package. Hearts are quartered and sold by the pound. Tongues
vary in weight from 2-4 lbs. We offer custom cutting on orders placed
in advance of slaughter. We require a deposit on custom cut beef. You
may specify the thickness of your steaks and how many per package. You
may also specify the weight of your roasts and if you want your tenderloin
left whole or cut into filets. You may also request your filets be bacon-wrapped. Custom
orders may include other cuts such as round steak, cutlets, and custom cut
roasts. Typically,
about half the entire carcass yields ground beef. Some purchasers may
request only premium steaks without middle-meats and have the majority of the
carcass ground. We are happy to accommodate special requests. We
do not recommend separating ground chuck from ground round and ground sirloin. Mixing
all the trim creates a flavorful blend with enough fat to hold together in
a patty, but not so much that excessive amounts of fat must be drained from
browned meat. Our
ground longhorn averages 12% fat and 88% lean.
Occasionally we received requests for only steaks. Since we sell whole
carcasses and only 20% of those are steaks, we usually cannot accommodate this
request. However, from a ground beef product we market, we reserve the
whole muscle from which ribeye steaks are cut. These rib rolls are vacuum
wrapped and 'wet aged' under refrigeration, but not frozen. We sell these
fresh rib rolls for $15 per pound (average weight 7-1/2 lbs.). Customers
may purchase these when planning a party and cut them into steaks for grilling. Individual
steaks may also be wrapped and frozen for later use.
Our pre-packaged quarters and eighths contain mixed portions of the following:
Forequarter: chuck roasts, shoulder roast, boneless ribeye
steaks, back ribs, short ribs, inside and outside skirt steaks, 1 brisket,
osso buco (shank), stew meat, ground beef, marrow bones.
Hindquarter: New York strip steaks, 1 whole tenderloin,
sirloin steaks, rump roasts, 1 whole flank steak, osso buco (shank), stew
meat, ground beef, 1 ox tail, marrow bones.
Our beef is processed at Mercantile Co. Meat in Utopia, TX, a State-inspected
facility.
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| Chuck The chuck includes ribs 1-5 and the shoulder blade. Roasts from the chuck contain a lot of connective tissue and generally require moist heat cooking to become tender. They also contain a higher percentage of fat than other roasts. Flat iron steaks also come from this section.
Rib The rib section contains ribs 6-12. A full boneless rib roast, weighs 8-9 lbs. These premium cuts have a moderate fat covering, are tender and generally are grilled or roasted in dry heat. Back ribs are also located here.
Short Loin This part of the cow is usually cut into premium steaks including New York Strips and Tenderloin, or T-bone and Porterhouse. These steaks are lean and grilled or roasted over dry heat.
Sirloin The sirloin is a little less tender than cuts from the short loin and have a little more fat content. Their flavor and lower price make them popular with families that enjoy grilling. These cuts also lend themselves well to recipes with sauces and breading.
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Round Cuts from the round include lean roasts for braising, economy steaks that require tenderizing, and trim for lean ground beef.
Flank These thin, lean cuts are used for grilling.
Plate This section contains ribs 6-12 where skirt steaks are trimmed very lean for marinating and grilling. This is also the area from which short ribs are cut.
Brisket from longhorn cattle is quite lean and lends its self well to braising or smoking with a source of moist heat.
Shank Meat from the upper fore and rear legs contains a lot of connective tissue and requires
braising for long periods of time. Thick broths from marrow give soups and osso buco their rich flavor.
Organ Meats, Tongue and Ox Tail also make flavorful and nutritious dishes. These need to be requested prior to slaughter.
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Orders for Sides of Beef include cuts from all sections listed above.
Organs: Obviously, there is only one ox tail, one
heart, and one tongue per animal. The heart can be cut in half or quartered
and the liver (weighing 7-9 lbs.) can be cut into many portions. There are
two kidneys. The thymus gland is only present in young, growing calves and
atrophies when it becomes inactive in adult cattle. Therefore, sweetbreads
are not available from our cattle.
| Forequarter: |
| Chuck: | The chuck can be divided into several cuts. These are several suggestions:
Chuck Eye Roast: One per side, about 2 lbs.
Shoulder Tender: One mock tender or Petite Roast per side, leave whole for roast or cut 2 to 2 1/2 thick medallions for grilling
Flat Iron Steak from Top Blade: Two thin, tender steaks per side, trimmed. Lends itself well to casual entertaining and quick meals. Can be grilled, skillet cooked, broiled, cut and stir-fried or cut and marinated for kabobs.
Purchaser may instead prefer Bone-in Arm Roasts and a Top Blade Roast. The flat iron is part of the top blade and the chuck eye is part of the shoulder/arm roast, so the purchaser must chose one or the other.
Arm Roast: If flat iron steaks are requested, there will remain a smaller portion of arm roast that may be requested.
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| Ribeye Steaks or Rib Roast: | There is one ribeye roll per side. We recommend cutting boneless steaks 1-1/4 to 1 1/2 thick. Steaks without bones vacuum wrap better than bone-in steaks. Longhorn ribeye varies in size from 3 to 4 high by 5 to 6 wide, so it lends itself well to being cut into thick steaks weighing approximately 3/4 lbs. each. Purchaser may instead request a bone-in cowboy cut steak. Purchaser may also instead request a prime rib roast. |
| Back Ribs: | There is one full rack of back ribs per side. We recommend they be ordered in a whole rack. Purchaser may request 6 to 8 length and specify portion width. We recommend braising for 2-1/2 to 3 hours. |
| Short Ribs: | These are good cut into 4 sections of not more than 5 ribs from the 6th through 10th rib. Purchaser may instead prefer short plate ribs cut from the 6th through 8th ribs. Purchaser may request they be trimmed or the 1/4 exterior fat left on. We recommend braising for 6 hours. |
| Skirt Steak: | Inside and Outside Skirt (one each) are trimmed and left whole. These are typically prepared as fajitas. |
| Brisket: | There is one brisket per side. We recommend they be trimmed and left whole. |
| Foreshank: | We recommend cutting into 2 to 2-1/2 bone-in medallions for osso buco. |
| Marrow Bones: | Trimmed bones may be requested cut to purchasers desired length. Instead, purchaser may request untrimmed, meaty soup bones (resulting in less ground beef). We recommend asking the processor to leave an inch or two of the femur bone on the knuckle, enough to have a little marrow at the end. If the shank is not used for osso buco, those bones make great soup bones when cut 4 to 7 lengths. Cattle over 30 months of age must have the spinal column removed prior to portion cutting. Meaty neck bones are only available from cattle under 30 months of age. |
| Stew/Kabob Meat: | Diced pieces may be prepared from any portion of the carcass and may be requested by the pound. Kabob typically is cut 1 to 1-1/2 cubes and stew meat is cut 1/4 to 3/4 cubes. |
| Ground Beef: | All trimmed meat not otherwise cut into portions, is ground into burger/chopped meat. Purchaser may request it be packaged in 1 or 2 lb. packages. |
| Hindquarter: |
| Short Loin: | We recommend cutting the strip loin into 1-1/4 to 1-1/2 thick boneless New York Strip Steaks. Longhorn strip loin is about 3 wide by 5 to 6 long. It lends itself well to being cut into thick steaks weighing approximately 3/4 lbs. each. Purchaser may also request a bone-in steak. |
| Tenderloin: | There is one tenderloin per side. The purchaser may request it be left whole or cut into medallion steaks to preferred thickness. For an additional charge, the purchaser may also request the steaks be bacon-wrapped. Longhorn tenderloin is about 3-1/2 wide x 3 high x 12 long and weighs less than 2 lbs. |
| T-Bone Porterhouse: | A T-bone steak is made up of the tenderloin on one side and the N.Y. strip on the other side. The porterhouse is the same thing; only they come from the first few cuts at the larger end of the primal and contain an extra portion of the N.Y. strip. The bone dividing these is part of the spine. Cattle over 30 months of age must have their spine removed from the carcass prior to cutting, so T-bones and Porterhouse steaks are not available. If the purchaser desires these cuts, he/she chooses them instead of N.Y. Strip and Tenderloin and must request a younger carcass when contacting Bandera Grassland about a purchase. Younger cattle are smaller, so the steak size and yield will be slightly less. |
| Hanging Tender: | The purchaser may request this cut from the short loin, also known as the Onglet Steak. It is tougher than our other steaks and we prefer to grind it or cube it for stew meat. |
| Sirloin: | We recommend requesting the Tri-tip Roast be left whole and the rest of the sirloin cut into 3/4 to 1 thick boneless Top Sirloin Steaks. The sirloin muscle is larger than the other steaks, about 5 to 6 high by 6 to 8 wide. A 1 thick steak weighs approximately 1 lb. and works well to grill then split between two persons. Purchaser may also request a bone-in steak. Purchaser has options that may be discussed with the processor including full loin, short cut short loin, top sirloin, top sirloin butt, center-cut sirloin, top sirloin cap, bottom sirloin butt, sirloin flat bone or sirloin round bone steaks. |
| Round: | Several lean roasts come from the round including rump, knuckle, top round, bottom round, outside round, and eye of round. Some cuts may be requested bone-in. Purchaser has options to discuss with processor including requesting the entire primal for a Steamship Round for gala events. We recommend the bottom round be used for rump roasts. These may be cut to 1-1/2 lb. weight or heavier, depending on the size of the purchasers family. We recommend dividing the eye of round in half. The sirloin tip makes a good roast or can be made into cutlets. The top round can be cut into roasts or Top Round Steaks; perhaps some of each as the top round is fairly large. The outside round can be used for cutlets or ground. |
| Cutlets: | These are mechanically tenderized 6 oz. portions that may be cut from the top round, sirloin tip, and other areas where the processor can get a lean seamless cutlet. These make good chicken-fried steak and also work well in various skillet cooked recipes that call for sauces or breading. |
| Flank: | This boneless cut is trimmed lean and may be requested left whole or divided into two portions. |
| Rear shank: | We recommend cutting into 2 to 2-1/2 bone-in medallions for osso buco. |
| Marrow Bones: | Trimmed bones may be requested cut to purchasers desired length. Instead, purchaser may request untrimmed, meaty soup bones (resulting in less ground beef). We recommend asking the processor to leave an inch or two of the femur bone on the knuckle, enough to have a little marrow at the end. If the shank is not used for osso buco, those bones make great soup bones when cut to 4 to 7 lengths. |
| Stew/Kabob Meat: | Diced pieces may be prepared from any portion of the carcass and may be requested by the pound. Kabob typically is cut 1 to 1-1/2 cubes and stew meat is cut 1/4 to 3/4 cubes. |
| Ground Beef: | All trimmed meat not otherwise cut into portions, is ground into burger/chopped meat. Purchaser may request it be packaged in 1 or 2 lb. packages. |
How much freezer space is needed? One cubic foot of freezer space will hold approximately 25 pounds of beef. One whole beef will fill a full-size upright or chest freezer.
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