As stated there are a lot of variables. Last one I sold it ended up being in the $4.25/lb neighbor hood for the customer after buying the steer from me and after their butcher fees. Pricey for burger and dirt cheap for steaks!
I haven’t bought meat in a store for 15 years or better. These clowns can make whatever “rules” they want. I’m not playing. Beef, deer, and pork all in my freezer and all done myself. Beef gets packaged by a butcher, everything else I do at home.
Get good knives and buy the "primals" (primal cuts). Very good knives for not a lot of money is the Victorinox Fibrox line. I am also very partial to the "Wenger Swibo" knifes. You will need a "Curved Rigid Blade" and a "Boning Knife", for starters.
Learn to sharpen your own knives. A "Work Sharp" is a good start.
Get a freezer. Get butcher paper and/or a vacuum sealer.
Learn Charcuterie/Salumi practices to make your meat go even further.
Shoot for grass fed grass finished as the ideal, for beef. For pork, shoot for "heritage" breeds that were not fed soy and were allowed to walk around in the dirt. For poultry, look for "pastured". You want chickens that scratched the dirt and ate bugs.
And learn to shoot a rifle and a shotgun, and get a hunting license and go get the meat yourself.
The reward of these activities are:
You will have done something good for you and your family.
You will not be a slave waiting to be thrown this week's slop.
You will have learned a real skill. A skill that is a step towards being a more independent person.
You will actually have helped the Earth. You and the Farmer work together for mutual benefit. And all of the "Middle Men" are starved. HOORAY.
Excellent!
Good knives are essential. I struggle with keeping a fine edge, but it takes a lot of practice.
I’m fortunate that I know a person who grew up butchering with his father. Last year we had a Memorial Day hog butcher party and he brought all the big boy equipment. Several families filled their freezers that day. God bless rural America.
Your point about heritage hogs is spot on. Dirt raised heritage hogs are 100x better eating than concrete raised.
I raise grass beef finished with corn for marbling, free range flock of chickens, hunt deer, vegetable garden and can it, and buddy down the road grows dirt raised hogs. I’m a very fortunate person in these aspects.
Glom on to people who know butchery and knife care like white on rice.
Sharpening begins with learning the Work Sharp, for most people. And the next step for most people (in my experience) is learning the value of and proper use of a REAL leather strop. Beyond that you get into weird Zen practices with stones that have been blessed by putting them on the thighs of Thai virgins and all of the rest of that hoo-hah. And to be clear: I do like my hoo-hah. ;)
The corn for marbling is a temptation. It adds so much flavor. But if it comes with the need for an antibiotic shot, then no thank you. And I am herein not being a phaggot hypocrite: I eat it and I love it. I just try to "be best" (heh) and go for grass fed grass finished where I can.
Rural America needs to buck up. Rural America is the only America worth saving. They need to carry themselves with that level of pride. And I say that as a New York City Boy... who learned.
Congrats on being NYC and aware of all of this! As far as corn finished, it doesn’t come with any extra shots. When calves are born (mine anyway) they get a “7-way” vaccination to protect against lethal illnesses such as blackleg. (That’s a whole different conversation). I don’t do implants or hormones etc. And I sure enough love the end product!
I’m good at sharpening, my issue is the touch ups on the steel while working and using a strop. I lack there a little.
Wranglerstar seems to attract a lot of critics. I think all of those critics need to demonstrate to me/us that their opinion is worth a damn. I like this guy, and whenever people throw rocks at him I am reminded of verses in the Bible about He Who Is Without Sin. As a Garden Variety Sinner, I am able to say that those detractors should kindly fuck off. More Godly people don't get to be as much of an asshole as I can be, here. So I'll do it for them.
He says this one is good. So I trust him. And so I bought it. Have not set it up yet. Am pushing it to you for your consideration, given your comment about the struggle to keep knives sharp.
Also though, "You can Give Peace a Chance, I'll cover you in case it doesn't work out." So that means that, yes, I bought this. But I also have stones and make sure I know how to use them.
I should also add that if you do not speak Italian...
You should fix that!
Heh. OK, I'll stop being a jackwagon... these videos are all available in English too. Just look at his channel and you'll see the English versions.
The salumi/charcuterie that this dude is doing here on this channel is LEGIT. There are many books on Amazon that will teach you a lot of this stuff too.
And I personally also-and-always love the hand motion at the end, when he tastes it and says "spettacolo." Sooooo Italian. Lol. Love it.
As stated there are a lot of variables. Last one I sold it ended up being in the $4.25/lb neighbor hood for the customer after buying the steer from me and after their butcher fees. Pricey for burger and dirt cheap for steaks!
I haven’t bought meat in a store for 15 years or better. These clowns can make whatever “rules” they want. I’m not playing. Beef, deer, and pork all in my freezer and all done myself. Beef gets packaged by a butcher, everything else I do at home.
THIS.
Get good knives and buy the "primals" (primal cuts). Very good knives for not a lot of money is the Victorinox Fibrox line. I am also very partial to the "Wenger Swibo" knifes. You will need a "Curved Rigid Blade" and a "Boning Knife", for starters.
Learn to sharpen your own knives. A "Work Sharp" is a good start.
Get a freezer. Get butcher paper and/or a vacuum sealer.
Learn Charcuterie/Salumi practices to make your meat go even further.
Shoot for grass fed grass finished as the ideal, for beef. For pork, shoot for "heritage" breeds that were not fed soy and were allowed to walk around in the dirt. For poultry, look for "pastured". You want chickens that scratched the dirt and ate bugs.
And learn to shoot a rifle and a shotgun, and get a hunting license and go get the meat yourself.
The reward of these activities are:
Excellent! Good knives are essential. I struggle with keeping a fine edge, but it takes a lot of practice. I’m fortunate that I know a person who grew up butchering with his father. Last year we had a Memorial Day hog butcher party and he brought all the big boy equipment. Several families filled their freezers that day. God bless rural America. Your point about heritage hogs is spot on. Dirt raised heritage hogs are 100x better eating than concrete raised. I raise grass beef finished with corn for marbling, free range flock of chickens, hunt deer, vegetable garden and can it, and buddy down the road grows dirt raised hogs. I’m a very fortunate person in these aspects.
Glom on to people who know butchery and knife care like white on rice.
Sharpening begins with learning the Work Sharp, for most people. And the next step for most people (in my experience) is learning the value of and proper use of a REAL leather strop. Beyond that you get into weird Zen practices with stones that have been blessed by putting them on the thighs of Thai virgins and all of the rest of that hoo-hah. And to be clear: I do like my hoo-hah. ;)
The corn for marbling is a temptation. It adds so much flavor. But if it comes with the need for an antibiotic shot, then no thank you. And I am herein not being a phaggot hypocrite: I eat it and I love it. I just try to "be best" (heh) and go for grass fed grass finished where I can.
Rural America needs to buck up. Rural America is the only America worth saving. They need to carry themselves with that level of pride. And I say that as a New York City Boy... who learned.
Congrats on being NYC and aware of all of this! As far as corn finished, it doesn’t come with any extra shots. When calves are born (mine anyway) they get a “7-way” vaccination to protect against lethal illnesses such as blackleg. (That’s a whole different conversation). I don’t do implants or hormones etc. And I sure enough love the end product!
I’m good at sharpening, my issue is the touch ups on the steel while working and using a strop. I lack there a little.
Also I will add a new thing (to me).
Wranglerstar seems to attract a lot of critics. I think all of those critics need to demonstrate to me/us that their opinion is worth a damn. I like this guy, and whenever people throw rocks at him I am reminded of verses in the Bible about He Who Is Without Sin. As a Garden Variety Sinner, I am able to say that those detractors should kindly fuck off. More Godly people don't get to be as much of an asshole as I can be, here. So I'll do it for them.
He says this one is good. So I trust him. And so I bought it. Have not set it up yet. Am pushing it to you for your consideration, given your comment about the struggle to keep knives sharp.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gK9B1_NXujs
Also though, "You can Give Peace a Chance, I'll cover you in case it doesn't work out." So that means that, yes, I bought this. But I also have stones and make sure I know how to use them.
Yes, chef!
I should also add that if you do not speak Italian...
The salumi/charcuterie that this dude is doing here on this channel is LEGIT. There are many books on Amazon that will teach you a lot of this stuff too.
And I personally also-and-always love the hand motion at the end, when he tastes it and says "spettacolo." Sooooo Italian. Lol. Love it.
Chef is going to give you an assignment, now.
Watch every goddamned one of these.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oOgTYo-_nXA
Spettacolo.
Heard! Lol Imma check out the English though. I'm flattered you tried Italian.
Exactly.
You are not far off with that.