Food - Drink
Does Grass-Fed Prime Rib Actually Taste Different Than Grain-Fed?
By MEGGAN ROBINSON
When you're selecting a prime rib for a special dinner, you'll be confronted with a number of choices, such as different grades of beef. It's also common to find prime rib that's labeled as grass-fed, as opposed to the more common corn- or grain-fed beef, and understanding this term can help you pick the right prime rib for you.
"Grass-fed" refers to cattle that live their whole life eating only grass, while grain-fed cattle do start out eating grass, but then transition to grain. Serious Eats explains that 100% grass-fed beef is leaner and "tends to be a little more grassy and funky in its flavor than grass-fed, grain-finished beef, which tends to be richer."
Lean and Tender Beef adds that grass-fed beef tastes "meatier and even more similar to game meat," while Steak School says grain-fed has "A more buttery flavor and brighter meat". Whichever prime rib you buy comes down to whether you want a rich and fatty cut of meat, or a leaner one with more pronounced animal flavors.