Home Butchery

[david_carnell]

Does anyone do butchery at home? Would you be interested in a home butchery club?

Has anyone done a butchery course? Where? Did you like it?

Does anyone buy whole carcasses, do home curing or smoking?

Any advice or information gratefully received.....

[HonaloochieB]

Oooh Scriiibe....

[david_carnell]

Stop it....

[kpc]

Restrict 'buthcery' to the shed at the end of the garden away from prying eyes.

Work under the cover of darkness.

Do not use power tools - these will alert the neighbours.

Clean up thoroughly.

[mockney piers]

I've been thinking about getting into patio laying, would anyone be interested in joining me on a course?

[Jah Lush]

Does anyone do vivisection at home? Would you be interested in a home vivisectionists club?

Has anyone done a vivisection course? Where? Did you like it?

[Annette Curtain]

d_c

They might mock BUT I take you seriously.

( I've even p.m'd you.)

Now behave you lot.

http://www.flymo.co.uk/CacheLocal/ags/images/img_2_o110-0391_120x150.png"Oooo a flymo shredder, is there a course for that "

N:)

[Ladygooner]

I believe William Rose do a course as do The Ginger Pig

[Jeremy]

One of the guys at work did a class at the Ginger Pig. I find the whole concept rather bizarre, but he loved it - not least because you end up with a big box of meat.

Perhaps after you've honed your butchery skills, you could team up with "Scribe". He must need some help cutting up all those dead animals he smuggles back into the UK.

[david_carnell]

Don't worry Jezza - the steak in a little plastic tray, wrapped in plastic is still available at many local stores. It's just waiting for you.

I'm teasing, but why do you find it so strange?

[Tarot]

[Michael Palaeologus]

Leave it Carnelli, leave it. The CSI boys and girls will always suss you out, those flash light thingies make any blood and stuff go all shiny, even after you have bleached the bath.

[derbyean]

One can buy a whole carcass from Smithfield if you get up early in the morning 7am is too late.

You will need a large chest freezer, about a hundred polythene zip bags, a boning knife, a hacksaw, and a steel.

Smoking meat is all very well at the bottom of the garden but neighbours don't usually care for the odour of strange

smelling stuff for eight or twelve hours at a go.

It's relatively straight forward to build yourself a smoker with a few loose bricks and a couple of old oven shelves,

but if you are in close proximity of your down-wind neighbours, then it's a non-starter.

The morning you buy the carcass you will need the rest of the day off to butcher, bag, label, and date it.

If you buy beef buy one fore quarter and one hind quarter, but unless you have the largest of chest freezers

one quarter will fill it, or share 1/2 with friends.

It is handy to know someone with a few big hungry dogs to give the uncooked bones to chew.

You will also end up with twenty odd pounds of fat or suet that you will have to deal with, you can render it in the oven and fill a hundred coconuts for the tits.

Best of luck.

[MrBen]

I've also thought about this but whilst interesting I came to the conclusion that this is an art I'll happily pay my local butcher to do. It's like plastering and hanging wallpaper. But cooler.

I have a dream to one day buy a small farm in Scotland with my own small herd of Angus cows. In that scenario it would be really rewarding to raise and slice my own, turning up at a BBQ with my home grown rib eye steaks so I'd probably make the effort to learn.

I'd go to a demonstration - just to see where each cut comes from on the carcass. I have yet to work out where topside comes versus silverside or why the French don't know what a sirloin cut is. They seem to cut their meat completely differently.

I should also confess that I once had pork cheeks at Gordon Ramsey and didn't realise they were actually, yes, pigs cheeks. Sheer ignorance.

[Patrick Smith]

I do more than invite you to read Fry fry the ORGANIC SAUSAGE from our local Butcher

I found myself gorging steadily through to the end, where there is a two-act drama

Latin' or Tobacco Tobacco and Boy's which suggest if the good lawyer never seing the

tit's from the good cows then I have to congratulate The Cow!

Poor lawyer never got his report done.

[Patrick Smith]

:)-D

[Jeremy]

david_carnell Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> why do you find it so strange?

Fair question. Mainly because you can just buy the bit of the animal you want from the butcher, and I don't understand the pleasure in cutting a carcass into portions. And a whole pig/lamb/cow is a LOT of meat... you'd have to either give most of it away, freeze it, or have some kind of mega-feast. And who has room in their kitchen for a whole slaughtered beast?

[????]

Nice glass of Chianti around at DC's anyone?

[Ms_Lilith]

Only if some nice Fava beans are on offer too ;-)

???? Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Nice glass of Chianti around at DC's anyone?

[david_carnell]

Jeremy Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> david_carnell Wrote:

> --------------------------------------------------

> -----

> > why do you find it so strange?

>

> Fair question. Mainly because you can just buy the

> bit of the animal you want from the butcher, and I

> don't understand the pleasure in cutting a carcass

> into portions. And a whole pig/lamb/cow is a LOT

> of meat... you'd have to either give most of it

> away, freeze it, or have some kind of mega-feast.

> And who has room in their kitchen for a whole

> slaughtered beast?

Fair enough. I don't think it's for everyone. I guess I view it as a positive to have a better understanding and appreciation of where my meat comes from, how it gets to my plate and think this can only be beneficial for promoting animal welfare.

Also, I hope it will lead to fuller use of the animal. I'm an advocate of nose-to-tail eating and home butchery often allows for use of under-rated and under-used cuts that otherwise go to waste.

Finally, and related to the above, it's a value for money experiment. I'm intrigued as to the sort of mark-up a butcher makes through their ability to butcher, store, and age meat. Can I do the same? Will I make enough profit from one pig to cover overheads such as a second-hand chest freezer and some butchery equipment.

Whilst I don't mind the teasing on this thread, I don't think it's weird and believe that more people would benefit from a greater understanding of animal rearing, salughtering, butchering and eating.

[womanofdulwich]

i think this should be a teenage boy initiation type thing. sons goes to shed at bottom of garden with father/ uncles etc and start the butchering.

[Annette Curtain]

womanofdulwich Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> i think this should be a teenage boy initiation

> type thing. sons goes to shed at bottom of garden

> with father/ uncles etc and start the butchering.

My 6 year old knows how & where the pigs go already, he's keen a visit to the abattoir when I next go. I think I was about the same age when I first saw it all.

What do you think ?

Nette(?)

[HonaloochieB]

I think that's fine AC, just monitor his TV viewing carefully and be ready to distract him when Pinky & Perky or Jakers comes on.

Don't want him turning veggie.

[Peckhamgatecrasher]

If the world goes tits up, D_C will be my second best friend after Scribe.*

*Anyone homebrewing goes straight to the top of my list.