Interview With A Butcher
By Sunshine625
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Haven't we all wondered how that piece of chicken or steak got on our plate. What was it's journey before we devoured it? I am known as the "Queen Of Questions" so I decided to put my curiosity to work for your entertainment and mine. Since my mind is always in overdrive due to curiosity why not share what I've learned.
My first stop on this new mission is to interview a butcher and pick his brain (not literally, I'm not that curious, YET) to find some answers to my meat questions. You might decide to go the vegetarian route after reading this. If you are squeamish you might want to stop reading now.
To animal activists...don't shot the messenger! Some of us enjoy our poultry and beef and we appreciate where it came from and wonder how it got to our plates.
Why did you become a butcher? At the age of 14 I was looking for a part-time job. Because I was considered a big boy at 5'11 and 180 lbs the manager of the meat department decided to put me to work for him. He thought being a bag boy would be a waste of my brawny muscles. The rest is history.
How long have you been a meat cutter? This year will mark my 47th year as a butcher. The wages I earned from my trade got me through high school and college at Florida State University. After I graduated from FSU I applied for jobs in my field of Pre-Law. The opportunities weren't available and meat-cutting paid better.
What's the difference between meat markets, then and now? Back in the day they used to actually break the cattle down. It was delivered in four pieces and we had to break the quarters down to smaller cuts. The cattle was then hung on railings. We would lift the cattle off the railings and remove the fat and trimmings. Slaughterhouses and beef packaging plants changed the methods we use today. Slaughterhouses make more profit by breaking down the animals themselves. At the present time meat departments receive one cow in twelve pieces, de-boned and cryo-packed. The meat is ready to cut.
How is ham considered pork? Ham is made from the hind leg of the pig. It's cured and sold as ham.
Did you ever kill your own holiday meal? Yes. Many turkeys and also a hog. I shot the hog, skinned it and cleaned it. I then proceeded to hang it in a meat cooler until it firmed up into a gel-like consistency. When that process was over I butchered it and relished it.
What is the most common question you receive from customers? They approach me holding a piece of meat, any cut of meat and ask me "how do I cook this?" I receive this question from all ages, 20 years old to 90 years old. I always oblige with an answer. Some answers take longer then others, I'm a man of patience though. To a point.
What's the best type of cut of meat for a Pot Roast? Boneless or bone-in chuck roast. This cut has enough fat to slow cook and still maintain it's tenderness.
What's the best type of cut for steaks? Filet Mignon. This cut comes from the lean, tender muscle in the cow. It's a lazy muscle that doesn't do much work so this makes the filet very mouth-watering. I also suggest the porterhouse or t-bone. This cut come from the short loin of the cow.
Can you suggest some grilling tips? First and foremost try your best to not overcook the meat. My secret to good grilling is to lightly sear both sides of the meat. This helps seal in the juices.
Can you explain marbling in meat and the benefits of it? Marbling is the fat (white) running through the grain of beef. This fat helps tenderize the beef when cooked. The more marbling the more delicious the meat. It adds flavor.
What exactly is in GROUND Beef? It's excess beef trim that can't be sold as a specific cut of beef. Back in the day chicken gizzards were added to give the grinds the reddish appearance. That practice is no longer allowed, that I know of. There are no fillers in ground beef. Again, that I know of.
Do you consider your craft a form of art? Absolutely. Meat cuts have to be eye appealing to the consumer. It's like taking a blank canvas and painting the Mona Lisa. (Sunshine...That was deep for a meat man)!
Would you recommend this trade to someone who might be considering it? Yes, I would. Not everyone has the capability of being a meat cutter even though there are many people who call themselves meat cutters. Just like with any other profession you have to want to be the best. Butchers work in a cold environment so if you don't like the cold, this wouldn't be the trade for you. You have to be a people pleaser, make your customers happy so they keep coming back for more.
Do you have requests for Beef Tongue? Yes. Tongue is popular among the British and I'm sure other cultures. (Sunshine...ewwww)
Can you tell us something about meat that we might not already know? All the fears from catching diseases from fresh meat would be eliminated if all meat is cooked greater then 140* as it's internal temperature. At this temperature all bacteria are killed.
Is there a question I didn't ask, that you feel is relevant to this interview? No. Sunshine, you covered this interview well. I am available for follow-up questions if needed. (Sunshine...awwww thank you Mr. Butcher aka hubby!)
The Butcher is available for questions upon request:
I feel so much smarter now, Sunshine625. Thank you for asking the butcher these important questions and sharing his answers with us. : ) I'm not much of a meat eater, but it was interesting just the same and useful. Voted up and in these categories.
Hi Susan, that practice is possible but highly illegal. Thanks for sharing that info!!
Thank you September Girl, it's always nice to hear I taught someone something new :))
OK this is waht I have been wait'n for and pretty much answered all myquestions. Unique subject and great for carreers class. You have this laid out beautifully and it is easy to understand. Keep up the great HUBS. I must give this an “Up ONE and awesome.” I'm always your fan! RJ
Based upon your HUB, you might enjoy this HUB…
Sunshine,
Great Hub. Just one thing, the tongue is served around here in Traditional Mexican restaurants. It is called lingua. A lot of people (non Hispanics) don't realize what they are ordering. I must admit that when I have the opportunity, I never say what it is until they have almost finished the meal.
Lingua tastes great and is very tender; but, most of my friends cannot get over the fact that it is a tongue.
Thanks for stopping by and sharing the wonderful Michael Landon hub Reynold!!! :)
Leroy!! Thank you for sharing your tongue story! Awesome!! Lol I'm learning even more!! Ugh I can't imagine tongue as a meal no matter what it was called!! Voted Up to you :)
Great hub! I wish my profession was still around so I could be interviewed by Sunshine. Vote up!
Great hub with some great insight into the grocery business and meat business. 47 years is an impressive amount of time being a butcher(I kinda figured it was Dave you were interviewing)....I am impressed. You also showed some great interviewing skills....I like this concept..but I do have one question for the butcher....how long before all beef will be cut and at a warehouse....gassed and then shipped to the store....10 years? twenty years?.....keep up the good work.
Very interesting!!! I could never be a butcher, but I'm sure glad that they exist! and I'm sure glad that we have one in the family! :)
The Milk Man...I'll still interview you even if your profession doesn't exist anymore! :)
Cogerson...The Butcher says "never" with the customer orientated grocery chains. Thanks!
Mich....I AGREE :))
A good friend of the family was a butcher and he was sure hard to please when eating out. But he knew everything there was about a good piece of meat and had some good recipes.
Thanks Sunshine for all the informative and helpful hub.
Hi marellen...I'm more picky then my butcher! :)
Fascinating although I must admit I was just a bit disappointed, Sunshine. Here I thought you were following my lead and interviewing Jack. See "Interview with Jack Ripper."
Enjoyed it nevertheless.
Great interview and Go Noles! I am also a FSU alumni.
Sunshine.. this was such a good idea. wish I had thought of it first... :) Frank
Wow that was pretty interesting sunshine, i have to say my fav part of that cow is the brisket yummy!!, and it's true we mexicans love that tongue (except for me, ew), I remember my dad loved it, my mom would slice it up and make tacos with it but I never would try it cuz I was grossed out, who knows it's probably delicious. Anyway great hub as usual:) ge
Hi Sunshine,
As you know, I am a big fan of MEAT so enjoyed your hub very much! Now that I know your husband is a butcher I may fire some meat-related questions your way LOL :-)
Voting up.... and.... VERY INTERESTING!
Cloverleaf.
Beef Tongue Is Also A Cajun Delicacy...Thanks For Sharing Linda.;)
Hi Sunshine, I think this was a brilliant idea for a hub, I have thorougly enjoyed reading it, I didn't know that ham was the hind leg of a pig!
And I didn't know your hubby is a butcher! I hope you are going to follow on from this hub and hopefully you have a greengrocer, fishmonger etc in the family!
Voting up
I have more interviews coming up soon, I hope you enjoy them also. No greengrocer or fishmonger...sorry MM! Thank you for the comments :))
Quite an education I got today! (I wish I knew a 'lady of the night' !!!) I'm amazed at the ham part....although I know a 'ham' that IS the FULL hind end of a PIG!!
I've been making the right steak choices!!!!!! it's a miracle!! I, given MY choice, will only eat filet or porterhouse. Bad part of porterhouse, ya can't always find 'em. Most people don't 'understand' that cut, so it's not often bought, which means...less available :(
TONGUE!!!! eeewwwwwww! When I was young, my mother cooked and then SERVED looking like a TONGUE. Pale looking, bumpy and laid out! yuck-0.
My Godson is Mexican, they eat lingua a lot. I don't even wanna hear that word ~ in ANY language. My husband? He FINDS it, every Tacquèria we go to!! YUCK-0!!!
Voted up, and everything but beautiful - cuz tongue is UGLY!
Thanks for giving me part of today's education. Tell your butcher buddy I said "Thank you!!"
The butcher says you are very welcome Barbara :))
Thank you for informing us about our meat that we eat, it sure can't be beat! Isn't that neat??? No, really, I don't wanna be a meat cutter! It takes too much patience. Plus, I'd probably cut my finger off...I know I would. (or maybe someone elses!) Have a great Sunshineee day!
Lol Susie! Cute rhyme :))
Terrific hub Sunshine! I grew up butchering and processing our own meat (deer, elk, and such). I didn't know what beef was till I was about five years old. Maybe that was why I could come up with some interesting ideas for Fletcher's challenge...Uses for liver and other organ meats. (Most were coming up with recipes, I came up with games...LOL!) Ok, so I have a bit of redneck in me. I found your hub an enjoyable read that brought back memories. Tell your hubby congrats on 47 years. Thanks!
Great idea for a hub! Thanks for the information.
Another interesting hub Sunshine. I bet there is one thing that your butcher has not had to cut or prepare in his life, that we (or I) quite often have. Yeah...the humble Kanga! (Kangaroo for those not into Aussie lingo) Their meat is one of the lowest in fat. Being one of a large family, Roo was part of our families diet. In plague proportions they are harvested and farmed. Yes...I have eaten the Australian national icon. But you can keep your tongue (Ewwwwwww) to yourselves thanks!! Voted up!!! xox
Wow! Deer, Elk, Kangaroo! We just keep on learning with this hub!! Bring it on meat lovers!! Very interesting!!
Great idea for a hub very informative and useful
I remember my Grandmother used to eat tongue.
Is the Porterhouse steak the same as sirloin steaks?
What a great way to write an informative and useful hub on this subject! I must admit that I am not so good at this although I love meat. My husband is on the other side very good at it, so it goes well anyway:) But if I have to shop some meat I know better now:) Thanks!
Tina
Great Hub with your Hub Sunshine!
I learned a lot and now am craving a slow cooked roast. So, question, what is head cheese? That creeps me out more than tongue :)
Sharyn
Good info about butchers. Voted up.
Hi Sunshine625,
Really informative hub. You should teach 4-H.
Vote Up.
JT
@rosemay ... the sirloin steak is not as tender as the porterhouse.
@sharyn ... head cheese is bits & pieces of hogs cooked into a gel (ewww sounds worse then tongue)!
@JT ... I never considered the 4-H :)
Thank you all for stopping by and your comments :))
SunBeauty....This sure is a Tender subject. I may have to chew it for a while!! Great hub. But that's nothing new. All your hubs are awesome.
As a boy we had a meat shop at the corner of our street. What a fascinating place to go to. My mother use to take me there, she would choose her cut and have it wrapped in a waxy brown paper. I use to listen to the butchers bantering back and forth, saw dust on the floors, a cool place for sure.
My mum use to get her pigs feet there, bring it home and boil them up, add onions and carrots and voila we had pig feet for dinner. I use to love digging at the meet between the toes:0)) I often wondered about being a butcher myself when I was a boy but never followed up on becoming one. They sure have their job CUT out for them:0)) great hub, rated UP and awesome.
What a great story saddle! Thank you for sharing! :)
I remember a neighborhood butcher shop as well, from my childhood years. However, from about age 8, when I made the connection between the leg of lamb on the dinner table to the cute little lambs we saw in fields as we drove by, I became a vegetarian at heart.
At that age, however, that option was not open to me, nor did I even know there was such a thing, and had never even heard the word. I did, however, refuse to ever eat lamb again.
As an adult, having learned the entire story behind meat, I became a full-fledged label-reading vegetarian in the mid 1980's.
These days, I have backslid a little, mainly because I don't care much for cooking, and I'd rather not have to fix 2 separate meals for myself and spouse. (I will eat SOME chicken, and more rarely a bit of pork, but I can't stand beef and lamb is still on the big no-no list). I regret the cave-in, however; I never felt stronger or healthier than when I totally eschewed meat. I'm working toward getting back there.
Hello DzyMsLizzy! I tried the vegetarian route at one time, I caved in but cut back on meat consumption a lot! Wishing you luck on staying on track :)
I had no idea marbling was a good thing! lol I would always look for meat with less:( Well now I know! Very interesting - I could never be a vegetarian...I love steak! Filet Mignon! Yum!
Hi Real...Marbling is fat so too much isn't good. Filets are my 2nd fav. Prime rib is loaded with marbling, not a fan of that cut! London Broils are my fav! Yummy!!!
Thank you sunshine for letting us sit in your interview with the butcher. Back in the day I used to go to a neighborhood butcher and get meat custom cut and ground and this hub made me miss that personal contact. And hey-- I love ox tongue and oxtail too yummmy and I'm American not British--- oh well-- I'm also a bit eccentric. Thanks for a great hub-- voting up and interesting
Butcher- a person with the most strongest heart. Really how one can sleep in peace after doing so much things during day... Looking from the other side it his job or it is his bread, so nothing wrong in that and your hub is so interesting that I like it. Rated up and interesting.
I love the butcher tips. One of the best things you can do is to get to know your butcher.
Robie, Dinkin, Paul ... Thank you for stopping by and visiting with the butcher. It's beneficial to have a butcher in the family.
This is an excellent hub! To be shared and pinned. Thanks for adding the picture with descriptions as well.
I love beef, especially for stews and roasts. But not so keen on T-bone and steaks, except for fillet-steaks and maybe rump...
Thanks!
A question for the butcher: Do you know the ratio of men to women among those who are professional butchers? ~Sherri
Sherri, The butcher is in. His response is to the best of his knowledge the answer would be 1 in 10.
Thank you for visiting and please come back again:)
I'm surprised that the ratio is that favorable to women. TY, Mr. Sunshine!
You are welcome Sherri, the butcher is glad he could help with your answer!:)
Just Ask Susan 8 months ago
I once knew a man that was a butcher and he told me that in order to make more money on a roast of beef he would inject it with water to make it heavier. Not really sure if he was just pulling my leg or not but at the time I believed him. Interesting hub and I enjoyed it.