Breaking up with Lunch Meat

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Our family food journey continues to surprise me. I never anticipated separating myself from conventionally prepared food and the convenience of running down to the grocery store to purchase whatever my heart desired, but here I am today sitting down to share how we ‘re saying goodbye to store bought lunch meat. (If you are just starting your whole food journey you are absolutely right that I am off my rocker, however if you’ve been slowly working your way down this path with me welcome to the other side)

It certainly would be easier to continue telling myself that lunch meat labeled organic is enough, but the more I learn about marketing, lax labeling standards, and what it really takes to raise truly pastured meat, the more I realize just how important it is to know exactly where my food comes from. Which means sourcing my meat directly from my farmer, who I know personally. And so I’m finally taking the plunge.

Lunch meat is so incredibly convenient when you’re a mom. There is almost no thought involved in getting your kids fed. You simply reach into the fridge, rip open the plastic packaging, hand them a piece of turkey or ham, and viola they’re sitting quietly with a full mouth. Peace! Even if only for a few moments.

This miracle is not something I was looking forward to giving up. But then I remembered that removing an industrially processed food from our diet did not have to mean letting go of convenience, after all, I had already done so with breakfast sausages, bread, yogurt, ketchup, mayo, slaw, and spaghetti sauce). It simply meant I had to add a little more thought and time into meal planning and prep. The bulk of which was spent researching, creating, and testing alternatives to store bought deli meat. Time well spent and a burden, which I can gladly remove from your shoulders.

If you currently use a meal planner than simply plug in the following recipes, make note of any tips you find helpful, and you’re good to go. If you do not currently utilize a meal planner and tend to be more on the spontaneous side of things (like me) then I highly recommend you start using a meal planning/prepping system to help keep things organized so you do not find yourself with two hangry children demanding lunch with no solution because you stopped buying lunch meat, but never prepped your alternatives (also like me). If you don’t currently use a planner and want to skip the step of creating your own you can check out my meal planning/prepping system here.

Alternatives to store purchased lunch meat:

Shredded Meat

(This is the fastest and simplest switch)

Two options to prepare:

  1. Ensure leftovers
    1. Roast two chickens instead of one
    2. Utilize a larger pot roast or shoulder roast, or if your family is very large cook two roasts in a Dutch oven at the same time.
  2. Cook a cut of meat while making stock or bone broth
    1. If making stock
      1. Add an additional chicken, turkey thigh or breast, pork shoulder, lamb shoulder, beef arm, etc.
      2. When the stock is finished shred the meat and store in a glass container
    2. If making bone broth
      1. Add in an additional chicken, turkey thigh or breast, pork shoulder, lamb shoulder, beef arm, etc.
      2. Let simmer for about 3 hours
      3. Remove meat, shred, and store
      4. Continue simmering bone broth until finished

Quick Tip: Before cutting store bought lunch meats entirely add shredded meat into your lunch rotation. This will ease the transition on both you and your kiddos. They’ll be less resistant as the change will be gradual and you’ll have a back up for the weeks where you’re too busy, forgetful, or an experiment fails. It’s also far less stressful on you to slowly change cooking and eating habits.

 

Lunch meat loaves

(I’ve always been a huge fan of cold meatloaf sandwiches and batch cooking, however having meatloaf for dinner every week was not appealing, which inspired the lunch loafs explained in option two. This is also a great way to add more organ meats into your lunch routine)

Two options:

  1. Make a double meatloaf recipe, use the second loaf for lunch throughout the week
  2. Use ground meat to create your own lunch loaf. (Process for creating a loaf here)
    1. Chill and slice thinly
    2. Serve cold or melt butter, ghee, lard, or tallow over medium heat, fry slices on both sides until brown and edges are crisp

Turkey breast Deli Meat at Home

  1. Dry brine a boneless turkey breast with salt, dried herbs, and spices to taste 24-48 hours.
  2. Roast on a rack.
  3. Chill in fridge overnight. Slice thinly and serve.

 

From scratch Roast Beef

  1. Dry brine a beef roast overnight
  2. Roast on a rack
  3. Chill overnight. Slice thinly and serve.

And there you have it. With a little bit of planning and preparation you can have delicious, easy to grab lunches made with meat from a source you fully trust. What’s on your menu this week? Let me know in the comments.

Missing cured lunch meats? Have no fear; I’m currently researching how to easily cure meat at home traditionally, without modern fillers, additives, or fancy equipment. Stay tuned for a follow up post!

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