About

About Girl Carnivore

Nobody is born knowing how to cook a shank. Since 2013 we have cooked every cut we could get our hands on, written down what went wrong, and fixed it.

Girl Carnivore is the meat resource for home cooks, founded by live-fire chef Kita Roberts and built in our own test kitchen, the GC Meat Labs. More than 1,000 recipes and the guides that go with them: what to buy, how to cook it, and exactly when it’s done. Beef, pork, lamb, poultry and seafood, from the value cuts in the grocery case to the butcher’s specials you have to ask for by name.

2013Founded

1,000+Recipes published

2018Cooking live-fire events since

20+Grills in rotation

Why cooks trust Girl Carnivore

Cooked by real people

Every recipe is developed and cooked by the person whose name is on it, and nothing publishes without Kita’s approval.

Cooked to a number

Doneness is an internal temperature, checked with a Thermapen. We point you to the USDA safe minimums so you can make the call.

Backed by sources

Food safety, labeling and buying claims link to the agency, university or producer group behind them.

Nose to tail

We cook the whole animal, from ribeye to shank, and we’ve visited ranchers and farmers coast to coast to learn where it comes from.

Read the full process in our editorial guidelines.

NEW TO THE GIRL CARNIVORE MEAT LABS? START WITH OUR FAVORITES

Meet the founder

Kita Roberts launched Girl Carnivore in 2013 with a cast iron skillet, a sharp knife, zero interest in baking and a tagline that said it all: “Because boys aren’t the only ones who like to play with their meat.”

ABOUT KITA AKA GIRLCARNIVORE

“A down-to-earth traveler and self-described “meat maven,” Kita married her love of savory, meaty cuisine and content creation to show her followers that grilling and searing aren’t just for men. She focuses on meat recipes and cooking techniques and loves to share how anyone can master high-end proteins if they’re willing to roll up their sleeves. “

SIAL America

She’s a live-fire chef who has been cooking events since 2018, from the Jack Daniel’s World Championship Invitational Barbecue, where she took the cocktail world championship in 2022 as lead mixologist on team GirlsCanGrill, to Formula 1 at Circuit of the Americas, flipping tomahawks at Turn 1 in the owners’ private tent. She has cooked salmon on the shores of Alaska’s Copper River Delta, served private celebrity dinners and bourbon pairings, and cooked for the public at the World Food Championships, Smokeslam and the Open Fire Meat Up in Memphis.

Two people at an outdoor event hold large skewers with several pieces of raw meat, standing behind a table under a tent.

Her meat education goes past the kitchen. Kita is Top of the Class certified with the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, trained through its Beef Quality Assurance program, and has done producer and processing education with Certified Angus Beef, Meat by Linz, the American Lamb Board and the National Pork Board, plus hands-on butchery training.

My job is to literally play with fire, so it no longer bothers me. Building confidence over live fire is something you can only do with real, hands-on experience. Whether it’s cooking salmon on the shores of the Copper River Delta in Alaska or flipping tomahawks at Turn 1 at COTA, there are hours of real experience that I put into every recipe on here.

Kita Roberts

Read Kita’s full bio, including where she’s cooked and the rules she cooks by.

Meat the Team

This isn’t a one-woman show. Every recipe on Girl Carnivore is developed by a member of this team and approved by Kita before it goes live.

Woman with curly hair and glasses wearing a light pink blouse, smiling and looking slightly to the side; white shutters and a plant in the background.

Dee Broughton: Recipe Developer, Food Stylist & Photographer

Dee Broughton came up through restaurants as a server and bartender, asking chefs questions until she understood how they built flavor. Her recipes and food writing have appeared in Chickpea Magazine and Cuisine Noir.

At Girl Carnivore she builds our freezer meal Cook Sets and turns restaurant favorites into recipes you can cook at home. She also writes the blog Gimme From Scratch.

See Dee’s Recipes
A woman with long brown hair and green eyes smiles while standing outdoors near a stone wall and trees.

Brittany Lauren: Recipe Developer & Photographer

If it’s a steak night or a burger night, there’s a good chance Brittany cooked it. She built our carne asada set and is behind our Oklahoma onion burgers.

She develops, styles and photographs her own dishes.

See Brittany’s Recipes
A woman in a purple sweater and jeans leans against a wooden railing with autumn trees and a river in the background.

Abi Gunasekaran: Recipe Developer & Photographer

Abi has seven years of experience developing recipes, photography and video for brands like Eggland’s Best, Meijer and Dole, and she’s a big reason our lamb section reads like a world map.

From rogan josh and biryani to kofta and moussaka, she develops and photographs the dishes herself.

See Abi’s Recipes

Our favorite helpful tips and guides

Review

Best Places to Buy Meat Online: 2024

Discover the top online stores for buying high-quality beef, pork, chicken, and more meat delivered right to your door in 2024. We review the freshest options with the best prices and service.

Sauces, Mops, & Condiments

How to use Compound Butters + 5 Recipes

Level up any grilled steak or meat with a delicious compound butter recipe! Butter that’s flavored with herbs and spices; why and how to use.

GC Original

What Is Umami? (and how to use it)

Curious how to use umami powder in your foods and recipes? Here’s our ultimate guide featuring our own Ooomami Blend with how-to’s & recipes.

Girl Carnivore FAQs

Is this a carnivore diet site?

No. Damned if we’d known that diet was going to trend. Girl Carnivore started in 2013 to understand and respect the animal from nose to tail. We eat low-carb, protein-heavy meals at home, and we still won’t pass up a killer mac and cheese.

What’s your favorite way to cook?

Over live fire, in cast iron. We have more than 20 grills in rotation and we test plenty of gear, but a fire and a well-seasoned pan still win. We cover everything from a hard pan sear to a holiday roast.

Who writes the recipes?

Our recipe developers create and photograph them, and Kita Roberts reviews and approves every one before it goes live. Each recipe carries its author’s byline so you know whose kitchen it came from.

How does Girl Carnivore make money?

Display ads, affiliate links and labeled brand partnerships. When you buy through an affiliate link we earn a small commission.

How can I support Girl Carnivore?

Rate and comment on the recipes you cook. It helps the next reader more than anything. Save favorites with the heart on any recipe card, share a recipe with a friend, and subscribe to the newsletter.

How do I report an error?

Email info@girlcarnivore.com. We review every report and fix confirmed errors.

Connect

Connect with us by leaving your feedback on recipes and guides in the comments section and rating the recipe. You can even curate your own recipe box to come back to later with all your favorite recipes. Click the heart button on any recipe card, and it will prompt you to save it. When you return, you can easily access your saved recipes.

We welcome you to join our growing group of 60K+ members of our Facebook Page, where every Saturday, we have Roll Call, where we invite you to show off what you’ve been cooking.

For product reviews or media inquiries, please visit our contact page.

And if you’re interested in how we develop recipes or test products, check out our editorial guidelines.

In the press and on air

Kita has appeared on national TV and live event stages as a brand ambassador, special guest and event educator. On TV: Travel Channel, Live in the D (WDIV Detroit), Daytime Columbus (NBC4), Fox 19 Cincinnati and KOTA. Her advice and recipes have run in Forbes, Southern Living, Simply Recipes, Homes & Gardens, Delish, CNN Underscored, Mashed and BuzzFeed.

Kita was lead mixologist for team GirlsCanGrill, which took first place in the Jack Daniel’s World Championship Invitational Barbecue’s first-ever Shaken and Stirred cocktail contest in October 2022.

Girl Carnivore on Live in the D
Live in the D with Girl Carnivore

When she’s not in the kitchen, Kita is on the road, traveling from one adventure to the next, exploring global cuisine in over 15 countries, teaching photography workshops, gleaning education from agricultural boards & national farming organizations, and partnering with tourism boards to highlight various destinations and worldwide events.

Kita is also a member of the North American Travel Journalist Association, the Society of American Travel Writers, and the International Food Wine Travel Writers Association and has been featured on sites like Matador, Food Wine Travel Magazine, and the Travel Channel. 

She is also an avid mountain biker and national parks enthusiast and was the co-host of the weekly travel radio show, Travel Itch Radio.

A cartoon of a woman with a knife and meat.
GirlCarnivore on Daytime Columbus
Daytime Columbus with Girl Carnivore

A trained photographer, Kita shoots her own work and has taught photography workshops on the road.

Girl Carnivore on Fox 19
Fox 19 Ohio with Girl Carnivore

Girl Carnivore in the news

Podcasts:

Books:

Television:

Print and trade press:

Girl Carnivore Art

With a sassy attitude, no social filter and a serious craving for beef, Kita knew her place wasn’t in the world of baked goods. She launched Girl Carnivore to challenge the man’s world of meat, and she’s still at it.

Girl Carnivore KOTA news

Kita is available for media appearances and event coverage worldwide. Reach us through our contact page.

Kita Roberts Girl Carnivore

Kick ass Girl Carnivore artwork collection from a variety of comic book artists such as Penelopy Gaylord and Kei Phillips