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In our experience, the business of treating grass-fed beef so differently in the kitchen from grain-finished is a bit of a myth.

For the most part, the stories you may have heard about grass-fed beef being tough are a testament to variable grassland management. If an animal isn't eating well when it's harvested, it won't taste good. Grain finishing is a way of using dry corn (very starchy - like a diet of candy) to ensure consistency. It's hard on the animals, and it's hard on the nutritional composition of the meat. We don't use grain, and that means we watch the grass very carefully.

That said, grass-fed beef does tend to be leaner than grain-fed, because it hasn't developed the thick coat of subcutaneous fat that a starchy diet engenders. It also tends to be more variable, because grass conditions do vary. Here, good grass and sunshine do translate to good nutrition.

Cooking grass-fed beef well calls for three simple things:

• Marinades: Don't just throw it on high heat: make a spice rub, herb paste, or wine or vinegar marinade, and let it soak in some flavor ahead of time.
• Steaks: Consider the BBQ, grill, or even better, mesquite BBQ to seal in juices and add smoky magic. The BBQ goes beyond steaks and burgers to slow-cooked roasts with spice rubs over mesquite. Miraculous.
• Stews: The Crock Pot is your friend. Stew short ribs, stew meat, and roasts with onions, garlic, potatoes, veggies, and seaweed for a magically nourishing dinner in a bowl.

Have you ever thought of beef as a seasonal food? Chicken, eggs, and milk are also seasonal foods. Our culture has created systems to offer us the same foods all year round. That bounty comes at a cost, not just nutritionally, but also economically and ecologically.

Grass-fed beef has more flavor, more complexity, and more depth of texture than grain-fed. It holds marinades better, and adds more to stews and deglazed pan sauces. It tastes better cooked rare, and is safer to serve that way.

Yellow grass-fed beef fat may look funny if you're not used to it, but that yellow comes from beta carotene, the same beta carotene that brightens carrots and helps keep your blood flowing in good health.

Dry-aging may sound strange, but Sonoma County's excellent custom butchers handle it for you, and the results are both nutritious and delicious.

Vietnamese Beef Salad Light and crisp but profoundly nourishing.