Nothing could strike fear into the heart of a kid on the farm more than The Bull. The Bull was irritable, angered by even the sight of a kid on the pasture. Being chased down by The Bull would mean certain death, so you always had to be on your guard. My brother told me that if I got chased, that I should take my shirt off and throw it behind me because The Bull would stop to sniff it, giving me a chance to escape over the gate into the safety of the yard.
I don’t know if all that was true, but from my perspective as an eight year old it was and that was all that mattered. A few times I thought I felt The Bull looking at me, sending me on a wild sprint over the fence. Fear of the bull didn’t stop us from trekking accross the pasture to play in the creek, though. Neither did the threat of leeches or creepy crawdaddies (we called them crayfish in Iowa), but I digress.
Recently I procured some bull burger from Anthony Stokes from Stokes Family Farm. When a bull is “retired” (read: your calf makin’ days are over, buddy), you end up with bull burger, some of the tastiest, leanest hamburger I’ve ever had. It’s rare to come by the stuff, so I seized the opportunity to have some good eats and some pay back.
When I took the burger out of the package, the bright red color really struck me. This had to be good stuff. It smelled fresh and clean. I decided to make some chili before the weather warmed up too much and chili season was over.
The beef was very flavorful just on its own. Stirred in with some bean-y goodness and served with corn bread made from cornmeal I got in my CSA box, it was the bomb. I used this recipe for the chili and it turned out really well. Of course, with top-notch ingredients like this, it’s hard to go wrong.
The lesson learned: don’t chase me across the pasture, or I’ll EAT you.
