Problem grinding beef today

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cptnding

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May 13, 2021
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Hoping some of you guys with experience can help me understand what went wrong here.
I have a LEM #8 that I got back around Christmas. I've used it with many pork butts, brisket, and top round with no issues at all. Cube it, chill it in the freezer mixing around occasionally, feed it to the grinder. I never used the stomper a single time until today.
Recently I stumbled across a sale on whole beef rib roasts for $6/pound and bought 3. They were about 8-9 pounds each. I already have way too many steaks in the freezer so I decided to grind it for burger meat. I trimmed off a good portion of the heavy fat cap, cubed it, chilled in the freezer and started feeding it to the grinder. Everything went as expected for a while and then the grinder stopped pulling the cubes away by itself. I used the stomper a couple of times and decided to stop and see what was going on. I pulled the auger and the channels in the grinder head were packed full of fat. I thought I was going to have to wash everything down and my wife had the idea to see if a small spatula would push the fat out of the grooves. Much to my surprise it popped right out with little effort and was cold to the touch and still solid. I finished up the rest and broke the grinder down. Fat was packed into the channels of the grinder head but not as bad. Came out with little effort again.
So I'm wondering did I not have the meat cold enough? I've never had this problem with pork that has more fat. Maybe it was the difference between pork and beef fat? Beef fat seems more solid to me. I dunno lol.
On the upside... the delay didn't take long thanks to my wife and the grind looks and smells wonderful! The difference from store bought ground beef is remarkable.

IMG_4443.jpg
 
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Likely the fat was either too cold, or the fat chunks were too large for the auger space of your grinder....or both....

Try dicing the fat no larger than the width of the space between the auger spiral so the fat chunks will easily fit in that space and be pushed toward the grinder plate and knife. Also, try to keep the fat above 30*F and below 32*F.

Pork fat is generally more forgiving than beef fat....being beef fat tends to be harder....

That ought to help you.
 
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like inda said beef fat is tougher and less forgiving…. I’ve had it too frozen and completely locked up my #32 LEM by feeding it too many frozen fat pieces
 
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When I grind ribeye, it's always from fridge to grinder at fridge temp (about 36-37)

The only beef I ever find I need to freeze a tad is brisket - and that's because of the cap on flat - it's a softer fat.

Hard fats (like the eye and tail in a ribeye, and its fat cap) grind fine for me in my #12 at fridge temp.

Spread the word on home vs store grind!
 
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indaswamp indaswamp nailed it. I dont think needing to clear out the plate or auger is a bad thing. maybe cut back on the fat content. folks make a big deal about it...i trim the roasts pretty lean and never feel like there is too little fat.
 
Likely the fat was either too cold, or the fat chunks were too large for the auger space of your grinder....or both....

Try dicing the fat no larger than the width of the space between the auger spiral so the fat chunks will easily fit in that space and be pushed toward the grinder plate and knife. Also, try to keep the fat above 30*F and below 32*F.

Pork fat is generally more forgiving than beef fat....being beef fat tends to be harder....

That ought to help you.
Thanks indaswamp indaswamp I think you have confirmed my suspicion that the cubes of beef were too big. I've ground 2 briskets in the past but mostly pork butts. With the pork my cubes have gotten larger because the grinder just sucks them through. Thanks for the advice.
 
I don't have any thoughts on it for you, but that really is great looking ground beef! It ought to put store bought to total shame.
Yes it did! It's almost like a different thing than store bought. We had a couple of burgers cooked medium tonight. The taste and texture make it well worth the effort.
 
Spread the word on home vs store grind!
Yeah the difference was surprising to me. The first time I ground some beef it was brisket. The first thing I noticed was the difference in the smell and then the color. After making the first couple of burgers we knew that it was worth the trouble.
 
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whole beef rib roasts
Good points above . I break down a lot of beef primals and whole roasts . Just did 2 whole stirp loins for grind .

Another thing you should watch for on the whole rib roast is a small section of grisel between the ribeye cap and the eye itself . It's hard to see , but it doesn't cook down and is rock hard . Gets caught in the grinder plate and can cause a stoppage .
Hard to see raw . The steak on the right has it between the cap and the eye .
3 little dots .
20220222_102632.jpg
Shows up after roasting . Between the cap and the eye .
If I grind whole rib roast I cut that out . Higher graded beef probably won't be as bad .
20220223_183449.jpg
Another thing to think about is cutting prep when grinding .
Like David sandyut sandyut I clean beef up pretty good . This is one of the strip loins I did recently .
Started with a thick fat cap . There is also a line of silver skin between
the fat and the meat .
20240928_094325.jpg
I start trimming and see what I'm dealing with , and how much I want to keep
or get rid of .
20240928_094831.jpg
Ended up with good clean beef . Store grind would most likely leave a lot of that
20240928_094945.jpg
Nice and clean . I try to cut strips as much as possible .
Leave a taper on one end and feed that first .
20240928_095249.jpg
Plenty of fat for me , but I will keep some clean fat in reserve if needed .
Once I grind to this point , I'll grab some and see if it packs . If it doesn't
I'll grind some of the clean fat and mix it in . I've never had to do that .
20240928_114302.jpg
This strip loin is the best yet . I was doing briskets , but this is way better .
True steak burger .
cptnding cptnding I know you're not new to this , just throwing some methods at you .
 
Good points above . I break down a lot of beef primals and whole roasts . Just did 2 whole stirp loins for grind .

Another thing you should watch for on the whole rib roast is a small section of grisel between the ribeye cap and the eye itself . It's hard to see , but it doesn't cook down and is rock hard . Gets caught in the grinder plate and can cause a stoppage .
Hard to see raw . The steak on the right has it between the cap and the eye .
3 little dots .
View attachment 705465
Shows up after roasting . Between the cap and the eye .
If I grind whole rib roast I cut that out . Higher graded beef probably won't be as bad .
View attachment 705466
Another thing to think about is cutting prep when grinding .
Like David sandyut sandyut I clean beef up pretty good . This is one of the strip loins I did recently .
Started with a thick fat cap . There is also a line of silver skin between
the fat and the meat .
View attachment 705468
I start trimming and see what I'm dealing with , and how much I want to keep
or get rid of .
View attachment 705469
Ended up with good clean beef . Store grind would most likely leave a lot of that
View attachment 705470
Nice and clean . I try to cut strips as much as possible .
Leave a taper on one end and feed that first .
View attachment 705471
Plenty of fat for me , but I will keep some clean fat in reserve if needed .
Once I grind to this point , I'll grab some and see if it packs . If it doesn't
I'll grind some of the clean fat and mix it in . I've never had to do that .
View attachment 705472
This strip loin is the best yet . I was doing briskets , but this is way better .
True steak burger .
cptnding cptnding I know you're not new to this , just throwing some methods at you .
chopsaw chopsaw Thanks for the info and all the pictures! It is appreciated.
I'm happy with my success so far. Just wish I had more free time to practice lol
 
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