Could you prep meat from scratch?
Poll: Could you prep meat from scratch?
Total Members Polled: 101
Discussion
Seems to be more & more a lost skill in UK, but a generation or so a go we had folk who went fishing & shooting etc & gifted folk some of their catch/bag.
I find great satisfaction in preparing something from field to fork in same way as following a recipe to create something.
It is surprisingly straight forward & can take as little as a minute or two to whip the breasts out of a bird & have something familiar to work with as shown here - there s no blood & guts but a dead bird in link in case anyone needs a warning. https://youtu.be/-C5fgzpcmNY
Scott Rea in the video is honestly one one the best educators I ve seen in meat prep & I love watching & sharing his stuff. This cutting up a supermarket chicken is something I do from time to time also (no blood guts or feathers). https://youtu.be/OEu_ZmLJTm8
I find great satisfaction in preparing something from field to fork in same way as following a recipe to create something.
It is surprisingly straight forward & can take as little as a minute or two to whip the breasts out of a bird & have something familiar to work with as shown here - there s no blood & guts but a dead bird in link in case anyone needs a warning. https://youtu.be/-C5fgzpcmNY
Scott Rea in the video is honestly one one the best educators I ve seen in meat prep & I love watching & sharing his stuff. This cutting up a supermarket chicken is something I do from time to time also (no blood guts or feathers). https://youtu.be/OEu_ZmLJTm8
Edited by AndyAudi on Friday 3rd October 09:07
I will always break a full chicken down at the start of the week and use it throughout, save the wings in the freezer and if I can be bothered use the bones for stock.
You get bigger breasts than if buying individually (usually a 'two pack' is one breast cut in half) and once you've done it once of twice it becomes second nature.
You get bigger breasts than if buying individually (usually a 'two pack' is one breast cut in half) and once you've done it once of twice it becomes second nature.
Depends what it is. Pheasants are surprisingly easy. I've been up in the Scottish Highlands when they've winched a stag up to butcher it and it looks fairly straightforward.
I think I'd struggle with pigs - too much like dogs - but otherwise would not be averse to doing it if my food intake depended on it.
I think I'd struggle with pigs - too much like dogs - but otherwise would not be averse to doing it if my food intake depended on it.
I've removed my own toenail that was half hanging off (climber's toe got bad) - it was messy (I did it in the bath tub and it looked like a crime scene by the time I'd finished) but I decided to do it myself rather than sit in A&E and have a nurse do it 38 hours later. I'm guessing that preparing a fish would be less messy and my big toe wouldn't hurt in the process... so I'd give it a crack if necessary.
Hoofy said:
I've removed my own toenail that was half hanging off (climber's toe got bad) - it was messy (I did it in the bath tub and it looked like a crime scene by the time I'd finished) but I decided to do it myself rather than sit in A&E and have a nurse do it 38 hours later. I'm guessing that preparing a fish would be less messy and my big toe wouldn't hurt in the process... so I'd give it a crack if necessary.
Did you eat it?Long time ago I did start a thread on butchery demonstrating the basics of breaking down a chicken. Cant find it now.
I also posted a library of butchery guides to pretty much all UK meat cuts, again somewhere on here.
It's one of the basic kitchen skills I made sure my daughter had before going off to Uni. Years later its not something she does regularly other than to annoy her near-veggie boyfriend.
Its not something needed regularly in commercial kitchens any more. Companies are hesitant to allow chefs with uncertain skills free reign with expensive produce and raw meat handling is often minimised of food safety grounds.
I also posted a library of butchery guides to pretty much all UK meat cuts, again somewhere on here.
It's one of the basic kitchen skills I made sure my daughter had before going off to Uni. Years later its not something she does regularly other than to annoy her near-veggie boyfriend.
Its not something needed regularly in commercial kitchens any more. Companies are hesitant to allow chefs with uncertain skills free reign with expensive produce and raw meat handling is often minimised of food safety grounds.
It wouldn't occur to me to break a chicken down, but with 3 teenagers in the house it's unusual to have anything left from a whole one anyway. 
I regularly deal with fish and boning legs of lamb. I could do game but prepared pheasant is often* so cheap here (rural Dorset) it's not worth doing yourself.
*Sometimes not for no apparent reason.
I regularly deal with fish and boning legs of lamb. I could do game but prepared pheasant is often* so cheap here (rural Dorset) it's not worth doing yourself.
*Sometimes not for no apparent reason.
AndyAudi said:
Hoofy said:
I've removed my own toenail that was half hanging off (climber's toe got bad) - it was messy (I did it in the bath tub and it looked like a crime scene by the time I'd finished) but I decided to do it myself rather than sit in A&E and have a nurse do it 38 hours later. I'm guessing that preparing a fish would be less messy and my big toe wouldn't hurt in the process... so I'd give it a crack if necessary.
Did you eat it?21TonyK said:
Long time ago I did start a thread on butchery demonstrating the basics of breaking down a chicken. Cant find it now.
I also posted a library of butchery guides to pretty much all UK meat cuts, again somewhere on here.
It's one of the basic kitchen skills I made sure my daughter had before going off to Uni. Years later its not something she does regularly other than to annoy her near-veggie boyfriend.
Its not something needed regularly in commercial kitchens any more. Companies are hesitant to allow chefs with uncertain skills free reign with expensive produce and raw meat handling is often minimised of food safety grounds.
This thread, Tony? > https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...I also posted a library of butchery guides to pretty much all UK meat cuts, again somewhere on here.
It's one of the basic kitchen skills I made sure my daughter had before going off to Uni. Years later its not something she does regularly other than to annoy her near-veggie boyfriend.
Its not something needed regularly in commercial kitchens any more. Companies are hesitant to allow chefs with uncertain skills free reign with expensive produce and raw meat handling is often minimised of food safety grounds.
t and blood. However ask me to wipe folks arses in an old folks home and I could not do that. Hats off to the people that do that job (often on min wage) they deserve way more.Having grown up on the family farm and attached butchers shop (including abattoir), I'm well aware of what it takes to turn an animal into cuts of meat or mince.
As I've said to people in the past, if they had to watch, or even help in, the process of turning an animal from the field into meat there would be a lot more vegitarians....
As I've said to people in the past, if they had to watch, or even help in, the process of turning an animal from the field into meat there would be a lot more vegitarians....
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