Market Meals is a collaboration between Boulder Reporting Lab and the Boulder County Farmers Markets, featuring weekly seasonal recipes built around ingredients from local growers, ranchers and food producers. Find it in Nibbles every Tuesday and on Boulder Reporting Lab. Sign up to get Nibbles in your inbox.
Our weekly Market Meals recipes have naturally focused on seasonal produce, but many Boulder Farmers Market vendors also raise animals for meat, eggs and dairy. Because their products are packed inside coolers rather than displayed in colorful piles, these booths can be easy to overlook.
This week, we offer a guided tour of the farmers and ranchers selling these products at the Boulder Farmers Market. We start on 13th Street near Canyon Boulevard and head south toward Arapahoe Avenue.
Next to the city building along Canyon, you will find Miraflora Wagyu. Its cattle are raised on a family farm in Boulder and the well-marbled Wagyu beef acclaimed for its tenderness and flavor.
Continue down 13th Street to Grama Grass & Livestock at the center of the market. Highly regarded for its ranching practices, Grama Grass rotates its cattle across Boulder County, , helping regenerate native grasses, return carbon to the soil and produce environmentally conscious beef.
Next, you’ll pass by Lazy Acres Ranch, which raises pork, chicken and rabbit in Longmont. Not sure how to cook rabbit? Ask owners Becca and Kris, who may suggest braising it slowly or frying it as you would chicken. Becca also provided this week’s recipe for pan-seared pork steaks.
Near the end of 13th Street, stop by Memphis Ranch Meat Company for a sample of bison. Owners Greg and Tammy can tell you about the lean, protein-rich meat and how to prepare it.
Other protein stops at the Boulder Farmers Market include Wisdom’s Natural Poultry, Croft Family Farm and Buck and Bloom Cheese Company, which makes cow’s- and goat’s-milk cheeses in Buena Vista.
Pan-Seared Pork Steak
- 2 pork steaks
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons dried thyme
- 2 tablespoons fennel seeds
- 1 tablespoon dried sage
- 1 tablespoon dried marjoram
- 3 tablespoons fresh chives, finely diced
- 1 large shallot, peeled and finely diced
- 1 star anise
- About 3 tablespoons fresh lemon or orange juice
- About 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
Pat the pork steaks dry with a paper towel and season both sides with salt. In a shallow bowl, combine the herbs, shallot, star anise and citrus juice. If you plan to cook vegetables in the pan, reserve a few tablespoons of the mixture before adding the pork. Coat each pork steak in the remaining marinade.
Heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the pork and season with pepper. Sear until browned and the internal temperature reaches 145 degrees, about four minutes per side, depending on thickness. Let the steaks rest for at least three minutes before serving.
Optional: While the steaks rest, add the reserved marinade to the pan and sauté sliced onions, summer squash and sweet peppers for a simple side dish.
What’s fresh this week? Farmers are bringing green beans, green onions, summer squash, melons, peaches, carrots, radishes, sugar snap peas, fennel, broccoli and more to the Boulder and Longmont farmers markets this week.
Visiting the Markets
- 13th Street between Arapahoe Ave. and Canyon Blvd.
- 8 a.m.-2 p.m., Saturdays, April 4-Nov. 21; 3:30-7:30 p.m., Wednesdays, May 6-Oct. 7
- More information
- Boulder County Fairgrounds
- 8 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturdays, April 4-Nov. 21
- More information
Have a tip or suggestion? Send your comments, questions and ideas to nibbles@boulderreportinglab.org.
