4 local meat options for 2023 election night parties

If you're stocking up for a big election night party, you'll need meat that pleases the electorate at large while accounting for different constituencies.

• Plus, you'll want to show off some deep Chicago cred.

What's happening: We've gathered four new local meat options that taste good while doing good.

• They also make great conversation starters around the buffet.

Lexington Betty Wagyu Beef Franks: Food Network star and South Side pitmaster Dominique Leach uses Midwest Vander Farms beef to make these smoky links, which made their Mariano's debut this month.

• What she's saying: "I want to reclaim a space in the BBQ cooking world and make it more inclusive for women," Leach tells Axios. "This line is exposing my craft in a whole new way, plus I get to honor my hometown of Chicago — the true home of the dog."

Do Good Chicken: Former Obama White House chef and Chicago native Sam Kass helps lead this company, which raises chickens on food discarded from grocery stores in an attempt to end retail food waste. Each chicken saves 4 pounds of discarded food.

• The latest: Do Good Chickens arrived at Jewel last month, and their varied diet makes the meat even tastier.

Tindle plant-based chicken: You can find these patties in local restaurants including Native Foods, 2d Restaurant, Parson's Chicken & Fish and Deuce's Major League Bar.

• Not only does Tindle make tasty faux chicken, but it also chose Chicago as its U.S. headquarters last fall.

Niman Ranch Pork: This pork, raised by Midwest farmers, arrived in the butcher section of local Mariano's this month, allowing shoppers to custom-select their cuts and even get them grilled at some stores.

• Niman Ranch pigs live on pastures, or in hay-filled pens in winter; they are never locked in gestation crates and are raised without antibiotics.
• Why it matters: The routine overuse of antibiotics in animal production has weakened the drugs for human care.