Off The Hook - Butcher Shop

It's a good trick to know!!

With summer here, this is some pretty good info!!
😀

It's Monday, and we're back with yet another Meat Talk Monday! This week's cut is one of the 9 primal cuts and arguably one of the tastiest cuts, it's the Brisket!

The Brisket originated from Ashkenazi Jewish communities in Central and Eastern Europe during the 18th. It became a holiday favorite during holidays such as Hanukkah and Passover because of it being kosher, due to it being located on the breast of the animal.

Briskets are more the less just really deep pectoral muscles, since cows don't have any collar bones that leaves these muscles to support about 60% of the animal's weight. Because of this not properly tenderizing, and cooking this cut can lead to a very tough outcome.

Over the years it has become a barbequing and smoking favorite, which has caused it to go from being a very affordable cut to a rather pricey cut, the most common cuts you can find will be the Point, Flat, and Whole brisket.

Just a reminder we do not sell any retail!

To anyone wanting to purchase bulk beef but don't know where to start, look no further! We can help get you in touch with a producer the best fit your needs whether your looking for 1/4, 1/2 or full beef, or looking for pork we can help! Feel free to give us a call at 307-338-5067 and we would be more than happy to answer any questions you may have!

Its Meat Talk Monday!! This week's cut of choice is the Korean Style Ribs!

Originating from a restaurant named Hwachunok in South Korea in the 1940's, the Korean style Ribs were an instant hit and spread like wild fire. Also known as Galbi (meaning Ribs in Korean) the Korean style ribs are cut between 1/4"-1/2" wide and are about 8-10" long, with 4 small bones.

If you do happen to find some Korean style ribs at your local grocery store you may notice the price is a little steep, that's due to all the delicious marbling they offer.

Let's hear your favorite ways to prepare Korean style ribs!

Just a reminder, we do not sell any retail at this time!

Dale was able to hop in the pin and wrangle up our biggest animal yet! Weighed in at over 1400lbs on the rail!

There are a few spots open at the end of June and some availability in July, but spots are filling fast with fair season coming! Spots are open for beef, hogs, lamb, and goat, so be sure to reach out and get your spot booked!

Stay cool out there!

One of our producers Buzz Oliver has a half beef up for grabs that will be coming into the shop on 6/10/24. For any information on the livestock please contact Buzz at 307-532-6308.

Meat Talk Monday this week is all about a cut deemed as the most "Prized or Luxurious" steak, the Fillet Mignon!

The Fillet Mignon is cut from the tenderloin, which is located on the inside of the spine of the cow. This is a muscle that more the less does nothing, except create an extremely tender, lean cut.

Oddly enough the Fillet Mignon got its name from Author O. Henry, whom first used it in a collection of short stories in 1906. The name derives from the French term meaning delicate or delicious. Since then it has obtained so much popularity that it even has its own holiday, deemed National Fillet Mignon Day on 8/13!

Fillet Mignon is normally cut at 2", occasionally wrapped in bacon and best cooked hot and fast for 3 1/2 min on each side!

Just as a reminder we do not sell any retail at this time.

It's Monday, that means it's time for your weekly dose of Meat Talk Monday! This week's cut of choice is the one and only Tomahawk Steak!

Coming from the Rib Lion section of the beef the Tomahawk is a 2" thick Ribeye with at least 5" of French Trimmed rib bone still attached. The large bone itself contains what is called Collagen and when it's cooked that Collagen melts into the meat creating a very juicy steak!

Even tho it is somewhat obvious the steak gets its name from looking like a Tomahawk Ax. Some people think the steak can be traced back to the Native Americans, and other sources claim it can be traced back to the "Cowboys of Texas", we personally think both ideas are pretty cool! Another thing we think is pretty cool is there are restaurants covering Wagyu Tomahawks in 24k Edible Gold, what's not cool is the price tag!

When cooking a Tomahawk Steak, you can grill it for anywhere between 35 min and an hour depending on what temp you prefer.

Note: we realize the bones are a little short on these Tomahawks, the shorter bone helps with cooking and handling, with a bone shorter than 5" it's considered a cowboy steak!

Just a reminder we do not sell any retail at this time!

This week on Meat Talk Monday we are going to talk about a lesser known steak, the Flank Steak.

There's only two flank steaks on each beef, which makes them a little harder to come by if you're looking for them at the grocery store. And because of that there are some places that will charge upwards of $25/lb!

Located in front of the rear quarter the Flank steak is a part of the abdominal muscle, Aka the "abs" of the cow. Colombians even refer to it as "sobrebarriga" which translates to "over the belly". Being a muscle that is almost always moving, it creates very deep grains in the meat, which can create a very tough cut if it's not prepared and cooked correctly. In some cases even cooking it for 1 extra min could make the difference between a tough and a tender cut.

This cut Is often used in London broils, stir-fry, or as an alternative to the Skirt steak for Fajitas. Be sure and let us know what your favorite Flank Steak dish is!!

Good Afternoon! This week on Meat Talk Monday we are gunna talk about something a little different, Dry Aging of Beef.

Dry Aging is a process that started in the 1950's, in which meat is stored without any sort of protection, for anywhere between 1-5 weeks depending on what your product goal is. By letting beef hang it allows the natural enzymatic and biochemical process to happen. This breaks down the tissue creating a more tender product that's best described as " buttery & rich" or "mellow & intense".

The main things that factor into Dry Aging is the number of hanging days, cooler temp, humidity, and airflow. With these factors we create a somewhat controlled environment that helps keep bacteria from growing. Although there are no minimal days of Dry Aging most butcher shops hang for at least 14 days.

If there are any cuts that any of you are patiently waiting for us to do a MTM on, feel free to let us know!

It's time for Meat Talk Monday!! Today we're talking about the most consumed beef product in the United States, Hamburger AKA Ground Beef!

With over 14 billion Hamburgers, and countless dishes being consumed by the United States annually it's safe to say we like our ground beef! Even though hamburger was said to be invented in the beginning of the 15th century, the name hamburger itself comes from Hamburg Steaks that were introduced to Americans in the late 19th century by German immigrants.

According to the Library of Congress, In the year 1900 the first sale of a Hamburger was made by a Danish immigrant by the name of Louis Lassen. Louis ran a small lunch wagon out of New Haven, Connecticut where he sold Hamburgers and Steak Sandwiches. During the time of WWI hamburgers were referred to as "Liberty Sandwiches" to avoid using any German terminology.

In order for ground beef to be considered "ground beef" or "hamburger" it must contain no less than 70% muscle. When you see the package ground beef at the store and it says 90/10, 80/10, or 70/10 that is the muscle/fat ratio of that package. It is always a good idea to fully cook ground beef to the temperature of 160° to avoid any food born pathogens such as salmonella and E. Coli.

What's your favorite dish that includes Ground beef?? Hamburger?? Tator-tot casserole?? Let us know!!

Good Morning Meat Eaters! Hope everyone is safe and sound after that crazy weather this past weekend! We're back this week with Meat Talk Monday, this week's cut, the T-bone Steak!

Coming from the spine, the T-bone combines two delicious steaks, the New York Strip (short loin) and Fillet Mignon (tenderloin). This is generally one of the highest qualities of cuts you can get, which is why it is usually pretty high priced. Due to Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (a.k.a. mad cow disease) T-bone steaks are only aloud to come from a cow that is less than 30 months of age.

The more famous legend regarding the the first T-bone steak dates back to the 15th century, where the Medici Family in Florence had the feast of San Lorezo on the 10th of August. The day was celebrated by roasting beef and handing slices out to the entire population! With Florence being a very important crossroad at the time, two English travelers found themselves amongst the celebration with a very particular cut of meat in front of them, which they named the T-bone steak.

A few names the T-bone has gone by would be the Florentine Steak which is cut no less then 2-3" or the Porterhouse Steak which is a T-bone with the largest Tenderloin portion usually can only get about 3 of these off each half of beef.

Well that's about it for this week folks be sure and let us know your favorite way to cook up a T-bone!

Every once in a while we get some BIG carcasses! Any guesses on the rail weight of this Hog on the left?? For reference the hog on the right weighed in at just under 180lbs on the rail.

Our friends over at Roosevelt Ranch have some pasture raised hog shares available! The hogs are scheduled to come into the butcher shop on 4/2/24 and will be ready for pick up 2-3 weeks after that. Feel free to contact them at 804-547-4764 for any questions on the hogs. For any questions regarding processing give us a call at 307-338-5067. Hog prices posted below!

It's Monday, which means it's time for your weekly dose of Meat Talk Monday! This week we will be talking about what is arguably the most desired cut, you can eat it for any meal, even on some desserts, it's BACON!!

Bacon comes from the belly/side of a hog, after removing the spareribs the belly/side goes through a curing process where it is rubbed with a mixture of salt, sugar, and spices, left to rest for a few days then smoked, sliced, and packaged.

With Bacon being one of the oldest processed meats, there is a lot of facts we learned in our research, for instance bacon dates clear back to 1500 BC when China first started to cure bellies. In the 12th century England the term "Bringing home the Bacon" was established, where any man who came and swore before God that he and his wife had not argued in a year and a day that he would be awarded a side of Bacon, then known as a "Flitch". So when men would "Bring home the Bacon" they were considered good husbands and citizens.

England later went on to open the first Bacon factory, it was established by a man by the name of John Harris. There they developed the Wiltshire Bacon Cure which is still used today. Jump ahead almost 200 years and they are managing to use bacon grease for explosives in WWII!

Needless to say people love their Bacon, so much so there's about 1,300 members who attend the Church of Bacon in Las Vegas. Someone even created a Kevin Bacon sculpture made out of bacon!

It's been proven that Bacon can be as addictive as some hard drugs to we just ask that you eat Bacon responsibily! Please let us know in the comments what your favorite thing to make with Bacon is!

Unfortunately we do not sell any retail at this time!

We're back with another Meat Talk Monday!! For this week's choice of cuts we are talking about the tender, hefty cut known as none other than the Tri Tip Roast!

On a good beef this roast can come in weighing in-between 3-5 lbs, all though it has great marbling throughout, it is a rather lean cut but is full of flavor! It is good for oven roasting, and great for throwing on the BBQ, with it's tapered ends it's able to give a slight variance of doneness from the ends to the middle.

Unlike most BBQ cuts becoming famous from the south, the Tri Tip found its start in the West. Up until the 1950s the Tri Tip was usually just thrown in with the grind and turned to hamburger, till one day a Safeway store manager in Santa Maria by the name of Bob Schultz came up with the idea to create the cut due to him having an excess of hamburger in the store. Because of this it can sometimes be known as the California Cut, or when cut into steaks it's known as Newport Steaks or Santa Maria Steaks!

Be sure and let us know your favorite way to prepare and cook the Tri Tip Roast! We love to hear all the different ideas and ways of cooking!

Just a reminder we do not yet sell any retail, sorry guys!

It's that time of week again, it's Meat Talk Monday! Upon request this week we will be talking about the Beef Tongue!

Unless you have a cook book from the 1950s or earlier it's a little difficult to find a whole lot of information on the tongue but I'm here to share what we have learned! Did you know cows actually use their tongues to grind their food instead of their teeth?? In fact they don't even have top teeth in the fronts of their mouths, they just use their tongue ( which is extremely rough, similar to a cats tongue or sand paper) to grind their food into a ball and swallow it.

Although we mostly associate the tongue with barbacoa and Hispanic dishes, Japan is the leading consumer of beef tongue. It is a main ingredient in a very common dish throughout Japan called Gyutan.

The beef tongue/ ox tongue has a mild fatty flavor similar to roast beef, it can be boiled, roasted, braised in sauce or even pickled! Don't forget to peel the top layer off, some like to boil and peel the top layer then season and cook, others have been known to freeze the tongue and shave the tongue skin with a heavy duty potato peeler.

What methods do you have for removing tongue skin? Got a favorite beef tongue recipe?? Feel free to share!

We had the pleasure of cutting these tomahawk steaks out of a beef from Dave and Machelle Sterkel!

Good morning Meat Eaters! We apologize for missing Meat Talk Monday the past few weeks, it's been a busy few weeks at the shop! But we're back this week with a well known cut, the Boston Butt!!

Even though the name insists that it comes from the rear end of the hog it actually is pulled from the shoulder, near the spine. To answer your next question of why it's called a butt, well in Colonial New England they would pack the inexpensive parts of an animal (such as the pork shoulder) into barrels and call them "butts", with that the name "pork butt" was established.With their unique way of cutting, Boston had created and marketed a cut from the shoulder that made its way across the country known as the Boston Butt.

The Boston Butt is a very sought after cut, even known as the "Money Muscle" because of its ability to help win BBQ competitions. It is best cooked low and slow with whatever method you prefer whether that's a smoker or crockpot, let it cook till it falls off the bone, pull it apart and enjoy!

Would ya look at all that BACON!!! Even though we do not sell retail that doesn't mean you can't get your hands on some delicious hickory smoked bacon! When purchasing a hog you have the option of either getting a half or full, each half of a hog usually yields between 6-10 lbs of bacon depending on the size of the animal.

Unsure where to find an animal producer? Whether it's beef, pork, lamb, or goat we can help you find the right producer to suit your needs!

We have a few openings in the coming few weeks but March and April are filling up fast! Be sure to give us a call at 307-338-5067 or message us on FB and claim your spot!

Good morning Meat Eaters, this week's topic of Meat Talk Monday is the Eye of Round!

This extremely lean cut can be found hunkered in-between the top and bottom rounds located in the hind quarter known as the Round Primal Section. Being in the hind quarter makes this a very muscle-y/chewy steak.

This cut is good for braises, stews, Chili's, cooked with a sous-vide approach, or cooked in any sort of slow moist cooked dishes. A lot of the time this steak is tenderized and used for a breakfast sized chicken fried steak.

When looking around at the grocery store you can sometimes find these steaks labeled as Wafer Steaks or Minute Steaks, and if left as a roast it can be known as an Eye of Round roast or sometimes a Rump Roast just depending on where you are shopping.

Let us know any good cooking tips or ideas you guys may have!!

If you are ever wondering why there's such a difference between the rail weight and the take home weight maybe this will help, this is all the bones besides the front leg and shoulder of a 1/2 beef. Most of these bones are thrown away along with the nasty parts of the meat no one should eat and because of this the average yield is around 50% on beef.

It's that time again, it's Meat Talk Monday!!! We will be discussing a lesser known cut this week called the Skirt Steak. Well "cuts" because there is 2 different Skirt steaks in a beef!

The first one we're going to talk about is the more sought after Skirt known particularly as the Outside Skirt. This skirt is actually what connects the diaphragm to the inside of the cow! This cut tends to have a little more fat content and which helps make it just a little more tender then the Inside Skirt.

The second cut is, you guessed it, the Inside Skirt, it runs from around the waist area, all the way up to the lower chest area in the inside of the ribs and meats up with the outside skirt just. This skirt is about 50% bigger than the other skirt and can even get to be more than 4 feet long at times!!

This cut is best cooked after being marinated and then seared on a high heat and is best to slice it after it is cooked. It is good for fajitas and stir fry. And is a traditional Mexican cuisine known as Arrachera, and can sometimes be known as the Romanian Tenderloin.

Feel free to contribute any of your favorite recipes using the skirt steak! Till next week.

Good Afternoon Meat Eaters, Janelle Anderson from New Frontiers has 5 Fat Lambs available for breeding or butchering. If Interested you can reach her at 308-631-9818. Or contact us on Facebook or at 307-338-5067.
Edit: posted wrong number earlier, is now fixed!

After going outside this week we could have used our freezer to get warmer!

For anyone looking to purchase a beef the Lazy ♥️ H Ranch out of Upton has 3 feed lot beef up for grabs, they are scheduled for February 19th and will be ready for pickup approximately 14 days after. For any questions on the cattle feel free to call Dallas Grubbs at 307-660-9544. For any other questions feel free to contact us on Facebook or at 307-338-5067!

Stay warm!!

Good afternoon Meat Eaters, anyone get snowed in over the weekend?!? If so we hope you had them fire places going strong!

Just a reminder we do offer emergency appointments, we know things happen and livestock are unpredictable, if we are not at the shop we are always available on Facebook.

We do also have a few openings left for this month for either beef,hogs,lamb or goats. Stay warm out there folks!