Meat

I can now say that I've helped butcher a cow. That's something I never thought I could claim. I'm not good at it, but I did help.

TW: If you don't like pictures of cow carcass, don't read. If you don't like the idea of cutting up a cow to use as meat, don't read. If you don't like pictures of pieces of raw meat, don't read. You have been warned. I did not watch the kill--the animal was killed and skinned before I got there. My brother raises cows as a hobby and provides them with a healthy cow life in a pasture several acres in size. 

My brother believes in the farm-to-table mindset, although I doubt he'd call it that. He likes raising his own food as much as possible. He offered us a cow, but we'd have to help process it. We've been in on his pig raising for a couple of years but the pigs are professionally butchered. He has done cows before so he knew what he was doing. And our son in law, Christian, researched how to butcher a cow, where to find various cuts of  meat on the cow, and how to cut them for best usage.

Jim and I were mainly there as helping hands. 

First the drive out provided some scenic views. It's a few hours to Mike's.

It was a cold drive out. We were treated to several hours of sun dog views.

And then we got a nice sunset.

Jim holds the carcass while Mike cuts 

The set-up. Jim is in front of the meat grinder.

Once the beef is ground up, it's put in the meat press and packaged.

Christian learns butchery. 

Three coolers full, and another bag full. 40 lbs of ground beef, and many packages of roasts, steaks, ribs.

Mostly I vacuum sealed the packages and helped Jim package ground beef. I did some cutting of meat off bones and some slicing of fajita-style steak, and some cubing of stew meat, but I'd rather leave knife-wielding to others who are more adept.

We paid for upkeep and maintenance for the cow, and bought replacement bags and vacuum sealer rolls all for way less than buying from a grocery store, where there is no guarantee that the animal was treated with respect and care. I know how my brother treats his animals and I trust him. 

Also, we watched one of his cows be milked. The milk cow is just a bit sassy; she pranced as she was led into the barn and tried having her own way about getting into the milking stall. And she demands grain feed instead of grass. But she tolerates Mike's insistence that she do what he tells her to. 

We made soft cheese with Jeannie's milk

The cheese is easy to make, but time consuming. We ate some on crackers. I don't know if I'd be able to tell it from store-bought, but the idea that it was fresh--not processed, not sent through suppliers to middlemen to grocery stores--made it a joy to eat! 

I brought some cheese home and added some garlic seasoning and rolled some of it up in chicken breast. Yummy!

The weekend was productive, educational, and convivial. And every time I eat some of it, I will pat myself on the back for being a part of the process of feeding myself.