Cooking With My Dogs' Food - Grilled Beef Heart with Beer Mustard Marinade

A couple of months ago I decided it was time that the dogs started sharing their food with me. About 75% of what I purchase for them is human grade and intended for human consumption. It's usually incredibly healthy, so why not?

I first made a meal of turkey hearts, as there are many benefits to eating organ meat. Hearts are considered meaty meat for dogs, but are technically classified as an organ meat. Heart (and other organ meats) are typically less expensive, and usually contain higher amounts of protein, vitamins, and macronutrients.



I purchase my dogs' beef hearts from a local butcher, and they are trimmed and sold for human consumption. How much do the beef hearts cost me? I get them for $1.99/lb.

Beef heart trimmed for human consumption (by the butcher). The fat cap has

been removed, has have the valves and vessels. For perspective, the blade on

this knife is 8".

Ingredients

• 1 beef heart, sliced. I cut off slices, each approximately 1.5-2" thick. I then fed the rest of the heart to my dogs.
• 1/2 bottle of beer.
• 1/2 cup whole grain, stoneground, or Dijon mustard. I use stoneground, because I like the pungency of it.
• Diced/minced/grated garlic, to taste. I grated three cloves.

Process

Slice your beef heart.

Prepare the marinade by mixing the beer, mustard, and garlic together. Drop beef heart into marinade, and let sit for 4-24 hours. I prefer to marinate in a large Ziploc bag placed in a bowl, so I can easily toss the meat in the marinade.

After your selected amount of time, remove the beef heart from the marinade, discarding the marinade. Heat your grill to medium-high heat, and place the strips on the grill.

DO NOT OVERCOOK IT! Beef heart is very lean, and will become very tough if over cooked. Medium is the most you want to cook it.

Sear, with grill lid closed for 3-6 minutes per side, then remove from heat and allow to rest, without cutting, for 5-10 minutes before serving.

This was delicious. I enjoyed it with a grilled onion and a salad of mixed greens with red onion, pickled grapes, watermelon, and goat cheese.

Beef heart, if prepared correctly, is as tasty and as tender as cuts of beef 5x the price. I'm looking forward to trying this again, with various marinades and preparation methods.