The Paper Towel Hack You Need For A Squeaky Clean Meat Grinder

Grinding your own meat has plenty of benefits, but it can't be done without a good-quality meat grinder (or, having one will make the process much easier, at least). Grinding meat at home means you're in full control of its flavor and quality, but once you're done with the process, you need to clean it well — meat can harbor plenty of bacteria. One trick you might not have heard of is to run some paper towels through the meat grinder. While they won't grind up, they will help to remove any meat remnants that are left in the grinder's tube, which ultimately makes for an easier cleanup.

When you're grinding the meat, it goes through a short tube and comes out through the perforated other side. The process itself is easy enough, but it can leave plenty of small pieces of meat inside that tube as the meat passes through.

Don't expect the paper towels to become ground the same way meat does. That won't happen, so you'll have to remove the paper towels once you grind them through. But all you have to do is grab a couple of paper towels, crunch them into a ball, and send them through the grinder. In addition to cleaning out the tube, the paper towel will also bring any leftover meat forward and through the grinder, ensuring you make use of every last bit of it.

Once you've used the paper towel method, you should wash the rest of the grinder by hand. Make sure to clean it with soapy water to ensure no bacteria from the red meat has a chance to grow. Then, let the grinder dry completely before putting it away. Be careful about putting any metal or aluminum grinder parts in the dishwasher, as they could be damaged if they're made from a material that isn't dishwasher-safe.

Flavor, texture, and quality are the biggest benefits to grinding your own meat. From a flavor standpoint, you have the opportunity to combine multiple types of meat, such as beef and pork, into one burger patty for added flavor; you can blend fatty meat with lean, too. When you purchase ground beef from the grocery store, you're limited to what the store has to offer. The texture of freshly ground meat tends to feel better than what you'd purchase at the supermarket as well, making for a more palatable experience.

Perhaps the most important aspect of grinding your own meat is the ability to ensure its quality. If you purchase sustainably-made meat from a local butcher and grind it yourself, you're potentially limiting the risk of foodborne illness. Because ground beef from the store can be made with up to 1,000 animals, there's a greater chance it could be infected with something like E. coli.