When is your beef available?
We grass feed and grass finish our beef, so we only process during our grass finishing months, August through November. It is our intent to have ground beef most of the year.
Where is your beef raised?
Right here on the ranch! Made in Sandpoint, Idaho, USA
Can I purchase Selkirk Ranch beef Fresh or Frozen?
We freeze all of our beef after dry aging except some cuts going to our meat store customers. We do this as most of our customers place it in their freezer, It is also the only way we trust to ship and assure the quality of the meat. Our commercial freezing process assures the beef is kept at its finest. We cannot and will not add the gases and other ingredients that supermarkets use to make their beef look, well, like supermarket beef.
How can I freeze your beef?
We strongly recommend that you follow these guidelines:
- Allow adequate space in your freezer (see the chart below).
- Always use a manual defrost freezer. The common “automatic defrost” units achieve their “frost free” name by periodically raising their temperature to melt the frost and will cause freezer burn.
- Do not put beef in a freezer with fruits and vegetables that “out gas.” Our local example is berries. Huckleberries, strawberries, raspberries, gooseberries, etc should not be stored with our beef.
- If you must violate any of these rules, then order our beef in Cryovac® packaging. These bags cost more but will really help protect the flavor of the beef.
- Use a freezer with a temperature alarm. Don’t let your beef spoil!
Does your beef taste like supermarket beef?
NO, Thank God! Our beef is, in our humble estimation, superior in taste to anything you can buy at a supermarket. Read our dedicated page on “Why organic and grass-fed/grass-finished?" Please don’t take our word for it, just try it.
What cuts do you sell and how should I order them?
We offer quarters, halves, and whole beef based on availability with local pick-up only through this website.
For local pick up and retail delivery for our Idaho, Montana, BC, Alberta, and Washington customers, we sell:
Lean Ground Beef: Just what it says and more than 90% lean! Our ground beef is packed in 1.5 lb. tubes and shipped in 21, 30 and 51 pound box quantities.
¼ Beef: Often called a “mixed quarter” or “split quarter,” we pack some of all of the cuts from a side (instead of giving you only the cuts from just a front or a rear quarter). 1” is our standard cut thickness. The hanging weight is usually around 135lbs. Liver, heart and tongue are not available.
½ Beef: A “side” or “half”, usually with a hanging weight around 275lbs. We will cut the steaks to your favorite thickness. Liver, short ribs, heart and tongue are available by request.
Whole Beef: Double of a ½ beef and and called a "Whole beef" with a hanging weight of around 550lbs. We offer custom cutting at your request. Liver, short ribs, heart and tongue are included.
CUTS/STEAKS/OPTIONS:
Our standard steak cuts include: Tenderloin, Porterhouse, Top sirloin, Rib steak, T-bone and Chuck steaks. Stew meat, soup bones, are also included.
Our roasts include: 3-4lb Chuck roasts, BRT (Boned, Rolled and Tied) Roasts.
We grind the lower cuts so that your order is around half ground beef.
Options on halves and whole orders include ($=at additional cost):
- Number of steaks per package ( from 2 to 4)
- Steak thickness (1" std, 0.75 to 3" possible)
- Cryovac (vacuum packed plastic wrap) ($)
- Short ribs, brisket, liver, heart, tongue, and dog bones
- Cubing is included at your request on round steaks or you may have it ground. You may also request cubing on other steaks($).
- Bone removal is available ($).
- If you elect to have us steak the whole Tenderloin, there will be New York Strips instead of Porterhouse and T-bone steaks.
Our family of four will use a ½ beef in a year (along with organic chicken, lamb and fish and all of the other stuff). Larger families often order a full beef. If you are really not sure, start with a ¼ beef and learn your family’s specific usage. For multi-year customers convenience we maintain a run card at Wood's meats with your preferences. You may modify this at any time.
What is "hanging weight?"
Hanging weight is the weight of the quarter, or the side, or the full (two sides) after it has been dry aged, but before it has been cut up and further processed. Hanging weight is the weight we use to calculate the pricing on your order. The actual weight of the product you take home will be less due to moisture loss, removal of bones, fat trim, etc. Hanging weights vary from animal to animal usually by +/-15%, so at your request, we will notify you of the expected hanging weight before you are invoiced.
Can I buy smaller quantities of beef?
Due to "more customers than cows," we no longer accept orders other than described above. Our smallest ground beef order is 21lbs.
How do you package your meat?
Our ground beef is packaged in 1.5lb. tubes. Our cuts are packaged in double wrapped paper. You may order all or some of your cuts in Cryovac at additional charge. If you are at all concerned about your storage conditions, choose Cryovac.
Is your beef processed boneless, or bone in?
We sell bone in. We accept special cut requests and bone in for ½ and whole beef orders.
What is your Guarantee of Quality?
The Selkirk Ranch is dedicated to the finest grass fed beef available. If you are dissatisfied, you may return the frozen unused portion within 30 days of purchase and you will be refunded for the unused portion. Beef that has been mistreated or abused due to bad freezing, etc. can not be accepted. We are a Christian family and will do our best to assure your satisfaction. We will treat you in the same manner as we ourselves would want to be treated.
How should I cook Selkirk Ranch beef?
Whether you grill, sauté, braise, roast, pressure cook or fry our beef, we recommend one thing, Selkirk Ranch beef is low in fat (just like fish), so please DO NOT overcook it! It usually cooks 30% to 40% faster than high-fat grain fed beef. For cuts we recommend pink in the center at the most. For ground beef we are federally and state mandated to say “well done.” We are big fans of grilling and you will really appreciate the flavor of our beef if you can resist the temptation to highly season it. Please try it with a little salt or a little garlic salt! For those of you who love marinades, (and we do too!) our “Selkirk Ranch” marinade is spicy and fabulous (ask us!).
Can I order patties?
The cost of making patties is expensive in small quantities. On Whole orders we will quote it if you so desire.
When can I pick up my order?
We will contact you via email when your order is ready. You make pick it up at Wood’s Meat Processing on Highway 95 north of Sandpoint.
Can I order organic beef tongue, liver, heart, and other organs?
Absolutely on halves and fulls, if requested. Please let us know when you place your beef order. We will include them at no additional charge based on availability.
Why does it take so long to raise your herd?
We have a closed herd; this means we do not introduce cows or calves purchased from elsewhere without a quarantine. This eliminates the potential of introducing diseases. We use our bulls (and possibly artificial insemination) to produce our desired characteristics. We have been raising cattle for 17 years and started with 6 pair of registered Red Angus cattle. We have a Red Angus bull for our breeder development. At some point we buy new bulls to augment our genetics. Our method is to buy these animals from local breeders we know and trust, and keep them under observation and isolation until the late fall when we use them.
In addition, grass-fed animals grow slower. It takes us longer than the commercial market to raise animals from calves to slaughter weight. Other producers have called grass fed, grass finished beef “slow food” and they are right!
Your site now says that you sell only to "local" customers. What is a local customer? We define a "local customer" as anyone who can drive to Sandpoint to pick up their order. We thought this would mean people from our local counties, but people come from quite a distance to pick up our beef.
You seem to be out of beef frequently. How can I get an order in if beef becomes available?
Please send us an email and let us know what you are interested in. We will put you on our list and when we send out our annual availability letter in May every year, you will have an excellent opportunity.
If you have a question that has not been answered here, please email us and we will do our best to answer it. Please remember we are a small family run operation and it may take us a while to respond, but we will! THANK YOU! |