To Rinse or Not to Rinse: The Ground Beef Dilemma in Texas Kitchens

Some Texas people rinse their ground beef after cooking it every day. Others say doing this ruins the taste.

I've personally never rinsed my ground beef after cooking it. However, I've had dinner at homes in the Tyler and Dallas, Texas areas where it seems to be part of their normal routine.

Why do some people even do this in the first place?

For some Texans, they do it because they saw THEIR parents or grandparents do it. Some people say they want to wash away some of the fat--but does this process even help with such a thing?

Other Texans say it is completely unnecessary, not to mention, possibly unwise to rinse ground beef after (or before) cooking it.

Author Jason Wilson of Taste of Home said in a recent article that the first time he came across this 'hack' was a couple of years ago on TikTok where the account holder said we should be rinsing our ground beef after cooking it to get rid of as much grease as possible. He also said that to this day when he sees someone rinse cooked ground beef he 'gags' a little.

I don't particularly find it gross, necessarily. But it does seem to me it would remove the fat that gives ground beef its flavor. Wilson agrees with this notion in his article.

But why else might it be a bad idea to rinse your ground beef? 

In addition to rinsing off some of the flavor, washing that liquid fat down your drain can wreak havoc on your pipes. That's because the liquid fat consolidates when it cools and 'gum up and potentially block your pipes,' says Wilson of Taste of Home.

It's understandable to want to decrease the amount of grease you and your family will be eating. If you want to dispose of grease the proper way, make sure you go ahead and wait for it to cool. Here are some ideas on how to do this properly.

Also, one can choose leaner beef or consider ground turkey, instead.