5 Ways to Cook Ancestral Blend Ground Beef

5 Ways to Cook Ancestral Blend Ground Beef

Quick answer: Cook Ancestral Blend the way you'd cook any good ground beef. Our five go-tos are tallow smash burgers, a beef-and-egg breakfast skillet, sheet-pan meatballs, make-ahead bowls, and a no-bean chili. Each one works for carnivore, keto, paleo, or Whole30 with one small swap. No special technique and no recipe changes.

Ancestral Blend is 90% pasture-raised Indiana beef, 5% beef heart, and 5% beef liver, ground together in one pass. The organs are ground fine and kept to 10% of the blend. In the pan it browns, sears, and holds together like regular ground beef. If you already cook ground beef three nights a week, you already know how to cook this.

That's why the first recipe below uses salt and nothing else. Seasoning is there for the dish, not to cover anything.

1. Tallow smash burgers

Diets: carnivore, keto, paleo, Whole30

The best test of any ground beef is a burger with just salt.

• Divide 1 lb of Ancestral Blend Ground Beef into four 4-oz balls. Keep it cold until it hits the pan.
• Heat a cast iron skillet until it's very hot. Add 1 tablespoon of beef tallow.
• Set a ball in the pan and smash it flat with a stiff spatula. Salt the top.
• Sear 2 to 3 minutes until the edges are deep brown and lacy. Flip, cook 1 more minute, and check for 160°F.

Carnivore: stack two patties with a fried egg. Keto: add cheddar and wrap in butter lettuce. Paleo/Whole30: serve over greens with sliced avocado.

This blend is leaner than grain-finished beef, so it browns fast. Stay at the stove.

2. Beef and eggs breakfast skillet

Diets: carnivore, keto, paleo, Whole30

This is the ten-minute breakfast most carnivore eaters live on.

• Brown ½ lb of Ancestral Blend in 1 tablespoon of tallow or butter, breaking it up as it cooks. Salt it.
• Once it's browned, push the beef to one side, crack 3 or 4 eggs into the open space, and scramble them soft before folding everything together.

Keto/paleo: wilt a handful of spinach in at the end. Whole30: use tallow or ghee instead of butter. Double the beef on Sunday and you're set for the week. Reheated, it's ready in two minutes.

3. Sheet-pan meatballs

Diets: carnivore, keto, paleo, Whole30

These skip the breadcrumbs and bake on one pan.

• Mix 1 lb of Ancestral Blend, 1 egg, 1 teaspoon of salt, and a binder: ¼ cup crushed pork rinds for carnivore or keto, or 2 tablespoons of almond flour for paleo or Whole30.
• Roll into 1½-inch balls. You'll get about 16.
• Bake at 425°F for 15 to 18 minutes until browned and 160°F inside.

Eat them plain or spooned with browned butter for carnivore. For paleo or Whole30, simmer them in a no-sugar-added marinara. They also freeze well after baking.

4. Make-ahead bowls

Diets: carnivore, keto, paleo, Whole30

Brown 2 lb at once and portion it into containers. That covers lunch for four days.

Keto/paleo taco bowl: season the browned beef with 2 teaspoons of chili powder, 1 teaspoon of cumin, ½ teaspoon of garlic powder, and salt. Serve over shredded romaine with avocado, salsa, and lime.

Carnivore bowl: season the beef with salt only. Top it with two soft egg yolks, crumbled bacon, and a pat of butter or a spoonful of tallow.

Cooked ground beef keeps 3 to 4 days in the fridge, so portion out what you'll eat by Thursday.

5. No-bean chili

Diets: keto, paleo, Whole30 (carnivore swap below)

This is the cold-weather recipe, and it scales easily.

• Brown 2 lb of Ancestral Blend in a Dutch oven. Add 1 diced onion and 3 cloves of garlic and cook until soft.
• Stir in 2 tablespoons of chili powder, 1 tablespoon of cumin, 1 teaspoon of smoked paprika, and 2 teaspoons of salt. Toast for 1 minute.
• Add one 28-oz can of crushed tomatoes and 1 cup of beef broth. Simmer, uncovered, for 45 minutes.

Carnivore swap: skip the vegetables and spices. Brown the beef in tallow, add 2 cups of beef bone broth and salt, and simmer until the broth reduces into a rich sauce. Finish with butter.

Check spice blends and broth labels for added sugar if you're doing Whole30.

Which recipe fits your diet

Where to start

• New to Ancestral Blend: start with the smash burgers. You get salt, beef, and a hard sear, so you taste the beef itself.
• Carnivore or lion: burgers and the beef-and-eggs skillet cover most of your week. For lion, use salt and tallow only, and skip the butter and cheese.
• Meal prep: make the bowls and the meatballs on Sunday, using 2 lb for each.
• Cooking for a family: the meatballs and chili go over well with people who don't eat the way you do.

FAQ

Will I taste the heart or liver?
No. The blend is 90% beef and only 10% organ, ground fine and mixed in a single pass. It cooks and eats like regular ground beef, even in a burger seasoned with nothing but salt.

Do I need to cook it differently from regular ground beef?
Not really. Pasture-raised beef runs a little leaner, so it browns faster. Use medium-high heat, stay close, and cook to 160°F.

Should I thaw it first?
Yes. Thaw it in the fridge for about 24 hours before cooking, then use it within 5 days.

Which diets does Ancestral Blend fit?
It's beef, heart, and liver with nothing added, so it fits carnivore, lion, keto, paleo, primal, and Whole30. Whether the finished dish fits depends on what you cook it with.

How much should I plan per person?
Most people eat 4 to 8 oz per meal, so 1 lb covers two to four servings. Strict carnivore eaters often go through a pound a day.

Get the beef

Every recipe here starts with Ancestral Blend Ground Beef, in 1 lb packs from one small family farm and one small USDA-inspected processor. If you cook it most days, the Ancestral Blend Power Pack gives you 20 lb at once.