If you really want to make an impression at the grill, tell your family and friends that you are serving American Style Kobe burgers from Free Graze. Our frozen premium burgers are antibiotic and hormone free, and do not contain artificial preservatives. But where the real magic begins, is the use of 100% natural American Style Kobe in each delicious patty.
Kobe is a name synonymous with the best quality beef that money can buy. A Kobe burger in Japan can cost upwards of $50 or more, while American Style Kobe burgers typically start at about $17 in fine dining establishments that serve them.
What makes American Style Kobe beef so exception? In this article, we’ll share the rich cultural history of the original Japanese Kobe, and how it took hundreds of years before specialized American ranchers could access the rare cattle, to create our own unique Kobe and Wagyu beef in the United States.
The History of Japanese Kobe
It was illegal in Japan to eat any meat that was derived from four legged animals, before 1868. The Buddhist religion prohibited the killing and consumption of ideally any animal, but specifically mammals with four feet, and in the Edo Period (1603 to 1867) Japan experienced severe periods of national famine. During that time, draft animals (cattle used to plow and replenish the soil) were protected, and the diet within Japan was heavily influenced by fishing, and fruit and vegetable consumption.
When Prince Mutsuhito (the 122nd Emperor of Japan) came into power and began the Meiji Restoration that started in 1868, the new leader was devoted to accelerating the country away from protectionist cultural and government restrictions. Emperor Mutsuhito encouraged the country to remove social barriers and strongly encouraged the nation to adopt both capitalist and cultural habits common in Western countries.
The motivation was in part, to weaken the religious power held by the Buddhists within the country, who were puritans and held significant political and social control. Lifting the ban on the consumption o of meat was an important step to distancing the state from the Buddhist religious control. And Emperor Mutsuhito began his national revolution, by eating beef in front of the Japanese nobility, and hosting feasts to help change the social conventions that had been in place for hundreds of years.
In spite of the fact that Emperor Mutsuhito made the consumption of meat legal, the demand for it remained very low for the first 100 years. When citizens were referring to meat in the early days (or niku in Japanese), they were referring to pork in most cases, which was readily accessible and affordable for families. However, in cities like Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe (the Kinki Region) the cultivation of beef began to catch on quickly, and today those regions are known for having the strongest demand for beef.
By 1980, the average Japanese consumer accounted for only 11 pounds of beef consumption annually. By comparison in countries like the United States, the consumption of beef was over ten times that amount, exceeding 115 pounds per person, per year. The Japanese culture was also slow to adopt the use of fork and knife utensils, and so the style of the beef purchased by consumers was heavily influenced by the need to eat with hashi, or what we refer to in the west as chopsticks. To eat beef in Japan without a fork and knife, meant that the meat had to be prepared in thin strips and tenderized, so that it could be eaten in the traditional method.
In 1955, rice cultivation within Japan made an important industrial leap with mechanical tractors and other agricultural equipment that would replace the need for cattle propelled farming equipment. The post Korean war economical boom elevated the income levels for residents in Japan, and agricultural producers began to raise beef as demand increased.
It is believed that even during times of beef prohibition, there was an exclusive black market for Matsuzaka or Omi beef. Affluent families and royalty, daimyo and shogun warriors were rumoured to have access to a specialty beef from a region called Hihone (Shiga Prefecture) which is the historical home and originating region for Omi (Kobe) beef.
Almost 90% of Kobe beef is produced from the Japanese Black cow. The cattle were crossed with North American breeds including the Brown Swiss Shorthorn, Devon Brown Swiss Shorthorn, Simmental Ayrshire Devon and Holstein breeds.
Biologically the Japanese Black cattle have very thing and narrow pin bones and have little to no value for milking. It became necessary to closely breed the cattle domestically, as the thin bones created calving problems when Japanese herds were bred with larger boned American cattle. The beef produced from Japanese Black cattle however (with the Tajima breed being the most highly coveted), are internationally recognized for producing a high degree of fat marbling in the meat. This provided the exceptional tenderness that was required (again due to cultural necessity) for consumers who wished to enjoy the beef without the use of a fork or knife.
For two hundred years, it was illegal to export any living Kobe or Japanese Wagyu cattle. However, four Wagyu cattle were exported to the United States in 1976, including two Tottori Black Wagyu cows and two Kumamoto Red Wagyu bulls.
Modern day cattle production in Japan (given limited grazing space and the high value) is done in Australia and California, where beef is fattened according to strict regulations and then shipped back to the Japanese market. The live cattle are returned for a specialized process of butchering, in the city of Kobe Japan.
Source Web 2018: Beef in Japan by Prof. John W. Longworth, University of Queensland Press, 1983
American Style Kobe Beef in The United States
The U.S. Department of Agriculture does not permit the use of the term “Kobe” as an isolated label (i.e., Kobe Beef) in recognition of the trade protections required from Japan, for the exclusive breed heredity and lineage. Producers are permitted to use “American Style Kobe” or “American Brand Kobe Beef” when selling cattle or meat products, to indicate that the beef is derived from selective breeding with may include Black Angus and Hereford cattle.
The marbled fat content of the American Style Kobe beef produces a delicious and robust beef flavor, that is tender and juicy. But isn’t more fat in beef an undesirable attribute, since certain types of fat are actually bad for cardiovascular health? What makes American Style Kobe beef rare and exceptional is that the thin veins of fat are actually high in HDL cholesterol (good fats).
Why is HDL cholesterol good for our health?
· It helps to scavenge and remove LDL (bad cholesterol) from the blood stream.
· It strengthens the inner walls of blood vessels (endothelium) reducing atherosclerosis, the leading cause of heart attack and strokes.
It takes about three years to raise American Style Kobe cattle from calf to market, and the type of feed they are given is strictly regulated. American Style Kobe beef are not fed corn meal (which can turn the marbled fat a yellow color). And a national registry with the full history and lineage is maintained, to preserve generational breeding practices of this internationally coveted beef.
Per serving, the average nutritional benefits of American Style Kobe include:
· 18 grams of protein
· 10% of the RDA for dietary Iron
· 11 grams of saturated fat
· 75 grams of sodium (essential electrolytes)
Given the premium quality of American Style Kobe and Wagyu, fine dining establishments have hastened to add it to their menus in the United States, with strong growth and demand within the past ten years. However, the price for the premium meat means that many consumers are not able to access American Wagyu or Kobe at their local grocery store.
Working with select ranches, Free Graze secured a partnership to source what we believe to be the highest-grade American Style Kobe, for our premium burger. The flavor is unforgettable and knowing the rich history and the quality of the beef in our burgers, we invite you to try our Free Graze American Style Kobe burger at home.
