How can I spice up ground beef without using pepper?
I cooked up some good-quality minced beef yesterday with salt, onion, and breadcrumbs. (I wrapped it around hardboiled eggs and baked it.) I didn't use any pepper because I have allergies, and I didn't like the way it came out - it was bland and had a faint meaty "off" taste even though I knew it was fresh enough.
I don't insist on it being hot and spicy, but what could I use to give it flavour? What is a good replacement that will flavor meat the way pepper would? Or at the very least, what spice or combination of spices would cover up the faint off taste? I know that medieval cooks used to use spices to cover "off" flavours in meat, but I think they were ones we use in sweet dishes now.
Tomato is not an option for me sadly but onion and garlic are fine.
I hope you can help, I'm finding this really intriguing. I'm learning a lot about what pepper does just by going without.
Best Answer
Ground allspice berries and rosemary can add that piquant taste that you may otherwise be missing from the pepper.
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What can I add to ground beef for flavor?
What can I add to ground beef for flavor? Onions, garlic, salt, and pepper add flavor to your ground beef. Adding the green onions as garnish also gives it more flavor.How do you make plain ground beef taste better?
For filler and flavor, add chopped herbs and soaked breadcrumbs. Minced garlic, fresh herbs, and dried spices flavor ground meat so effectively because they get mixed right into the center of the meat, unlike with a steak or roast, where the seasoning just sits on the surface.What spices go well with ground beef?
The following spices taste great with beef:- Cumin.
- Cinnamon.
- Dark chilis.
- Red pepper flakes.
- Cayenne pepper.
- Curry powder.
- Mustard powder.
What should I add to ground beef when cooking?
How to cook and brown ground beef from scratch. Add the ground beef to the hot pan and break up with a spatula. Leave undisturbed for about 3 to 5 minutes so it becomes a bit crispy, then add onion powder, oregano, parsley, garlic paste, salt and pepper and stir together to combine.How To Cook Ground Beef
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Answer 2
Just to be clear, you're talking about black peppercorns (Piper nigrum) not chili peppers, correct?
If so, are you also allergic to pink "pepper" (Schinus molle or Schinus terebinthifolius)? If not, those would probably be your closest substitutes.
Depending again on what exactly you're allergic to, piperine (the primary "hot" alkaloid in black pepper) may be an option, though that won't have any of the flavor complexity of black pepper—mainly just the heat. Of course, if you want heat, chili peppers will work for that too (and add flavor besides heat).
You can also buy pepper extract or pepper essential oil; assuming you can find food-grade, you might want to inquire with your doctor if those are safe (I don't know).
Answer 3
Since you mentioned it tasted 'bland', I think you just didn't add enough salt. To give it a bit extra flavour, you could mix in some nutmeg.
As for herbs, you could use finely chopped parsley or cilantro.
Answer 4
Thesse are some options you use:
1- As for me I prefer to add Garlic and Lemon juice (the quantity should be proportional to the beef quantity), and let them be cooked with the beef, they add a special taste.
2- try to add fresh peppers (green, yellow, and red pepper slices) they add a strong flavour.
3- try to make mushroom sauce, or onion sauce to be delivered next to the beef upon serving, this helps too.
Answer 5
Cumin, Paprika, Chili Powder are all seasonings that work well with ground beef.
You may also enjoy a bit of red wine, soy sauce or even working in some barbecue sauce before, during and/or after cooking. You may also try sweating (or caramelizing) some yellow onion (with or without garlic) and then cooking the beef with the onions and serving them together.
Rather than a hard boiled egg, mix an uncooked egg into the ground beef before cooking.
There are a variety of ways to incorporate bacon that would add great flavor to the beef as well. (If bacon is not in your diet, I apologize)
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