c/butchers

Had a band saw blade snap mid-cut on a frozen pork shoulder

I was breaking down a 40-pound case at the shop in Spokane last Tuesday. The blade just popped and the whole piece shifted, nearly taking my thumb with it. I shut the machine off, put on my cut gloves, and finished the job with a hand saw. Has anyone found a good way to tell when a blade is about to go, besides just checking for nicks?

Spent three hours yesterday trying to get a clean cut on a brisket point for burnt ends

Just broke down my 1000th whole hog this morning

It was a Berkshire from a farm upstate, and hitting that number made me think about how much faster and cleaner my cuts are now compared to my first one. Anyone else have a personal count they keep track of?

Pro tip: A broken freezer in July taught me to always keep a backup plan

Our main walk-in freezer at the shop in Bellingham died on a Friday afternoon last summer, right before the Fourth of July weekend. We had to move about 800 pounds of primals and ground beef into our two backup freezers and a neighbor's unit. Has anyone else had to scramble like that, and what's your go-to emergency plan?

Had a customer in Omaha ask for a 'boneless' whole chicken last week. The look on his face when I explained it was priceless.

Spent $300 on a new band saw blade and it saved my whole week

Our old one snapped right as we got a huge custom order for 200 pounds of bone-in pork chops... I was looking at hours of hand sawing. The new blade cut through everything like butter and we finished in half the time. It's one of those heavy-duty ones with a special tooth pattern for mixed cuts. Honestly thought it was a waste of money until that moment. Anyone have a brand they swear by for beef ribs?

TIL a trick for keeping your boning knife from getting slippery

I was breaking down a whole hog yesterday and my hands were a mess, right? The knife handle kept getting slick with fat and I was worried about safety. I remembered something my old boss in Kansas City used to do. He'd keep a small container of coarse salt on the block. When your grip starts to go, just dip your fingertips in the dry salt. It acts like instant grip tape and dries your skin right up. I tried it and it worked like a charm, no more white-knuckle grip on a greasy handle. It's way faster than stopping to wash and dry your hands every five minutes. Plus, it's just plain salt, so it's food safe and cheap. Anyone have other simple hacks for keeping a solid grip during a big breakdown?

Hit 300 pounds of trim in a week and it changed my view on waste.

That's the scrap from just our beef section. We started grinding it all for burger instead of tossing it. Anyone else track their trim numbers? What do you do with yours?

Heard a crazy stat about local beef supply at a county meeting

I was at the agricultural extension office meeting in my town yesterday, and they said over 60% of the beef processed in our state goes through just three big plants. That really hit me, because we're a small shop and I always figured there were more options. It makes me worry about what happens if one of those places has a problem. Has anyone else looked into building a stronger local supply chain for their beef?

A customer in my shop said my pork chops were the best he's had since his grandma passed

It was this older guy named Frank who comes in every other week. He told me the way I cut them, leaving just the right amount of fat, reminded him of how she used to do it back in his hometown of Scranton. That kind of comment, about keeping a family memory alive through good meat, really hit home. What's the best thing a customer has ever told you about your work?

Unpopular opinion: I think we overrate the need for super sharp knives for every single cut

I was reading a USDA guide on meat safety from 2019, and it mentioned that a moderately sharp blade can actually cause less tissue damage on certain primal cuts, leading to better aging. I mean, I always thought you needed a razor edge for everything, but this was about beef shoulders specifically. It said a slightly duller edge can tear less of the muscle fibers you want to keep intact for dry aging. Maybe it's just me, but has anyone else found this to be true in their own work?

A customer called my pork chops 'sad' and it stung

He said they were cut too thin and dried out fast on the grill. Now I always ask about cooking plans before cutting, and I leave a solid inch on my center-cut chops. Anyone else adjust their cuts based on how folks cook at home?

Finally nailed the dry age on a ribeye primal after three tries

I hung a 14 pound rib section in my cooler for 45 days. The humidity was off for the first two weeks, I think. The crust looked wrong, thick and fuzzy. I almost tossed it. Trimmed it down today and the color inside was perfect, deep red. The flavor is crazy rich, like nothing from my case. What's your best trick for keeping the air right in a small shop cooler?

Just learned from a USDA fact sheet that a single beef carcass can yield over 800 different meat and by-product items, not just steaks and roasts.

I found that stat while looking up rendering info online, and it really makes you appreciate the whole animal process more, doesn't it?

Warning: my whole Tuesday got wrecked by a single dull boning knife.

I was breaking down a side of beef for a big restaurant order and the blade just wouldn't hold an edge, which made every cut a fight and added almost 2 hours to the job, so what's your go-to brand for knives that can handle a full day of heavy use?

Vent: Had a customer ask me to 'save the blood' from a whole hog order

This was at my shop in Spokane about two months ago. A guy came in to order a whole hog for a big family thing. When I was going over the cut sheet, he looked me right in the eye and said, 'Make sure you save all the blood for me, I want to make blood sausage.' I just stared for a second. We're a retail shop, not a full-on processing plant. I told him we don't have the setup to collect blood like that, it's a whole different ball game with special gear. He got real upset, said his grandpa's butcher always did it. I had to explain it's a health code thing and we just can't. He left in a huff. Has anyone else had a request like this? How do you handle it when someone wants something you legally can't do?

My old band saw finally gave out on a 40 pound pork shoulder last Tuesday...

I had to finish the whole cut by hand with my breaking knife, which took an extra 45 minutes and made me realize I should've replaced the blade two months ago when I first noticed the wobble. Anyone have a good brand for heavy-duty replacement blades that won't dull after a month?

Question about those cheap plastic cutting boards from the big box store

I grabbed a pack of three thin plastic boards for about $15 last month thinking they'd be fine for quick jobs. They warped after the first wash in hot water, and one split right down the middle when I was breaking down a rib section. Wasted the money and had to stop mid-job to grab a proper board. What do you all use for a good, affordable cutting surface that can take a beating?

My uncle told me to always keep my boning knife sharp for pork shoulders

He said a dull blade makes you work too hard and you can mess up the muscle. I finally listened last week when I was breaking down 40 shoulders for a big order. It was way faster and the cuts were cleaner. What's the one piece of old advice you got that you wish you'd tried sooner?

My band saw blade snapped mid-cut on a custom order last Friday

It made a sound like a gunshot and sent a pork shoulder flying across the room. I had to finish the cut with a hand saw while the customer watched from the window. Ever have a tool fail at the worst possible moment?

Hot take: My uncle was wrong about aging pork loins

He insisted a 21-day dry age on a whole pork loin was a waste, but after trying it on a Berkshire cut last month, the flavor and texture were incredible. I now have customers specifically asking for it, which proves the extra time and care pays off. Has anyone else had success with longer pork aging cycles, or am I just getting lucky?

Finally got that stubborn beef cheek to break down right after three tries

Had a whole case of beef cheeks come in yesterday for a special order, and the first one was a nightmare. The silver skin and fat were just fused in there, and my usual method wasn't cutting it. I spent almost 45 minutes on the first one, which felt crazy. Ended up watching an old video from a guy in Texas who showed a different angle to get under the membrane. Took me two more cheeks to get it smooth, but now I can do one in about ten minutes. Anyone have a different trick for cleaning cheeks fast?

Finally got my primal breakdown time under 20 minutes

I mean, a year ago I was taking like 35 minutes on a beef hindquarter, just kind of feeling my way through. I watched this old guy at the state fair competition last fall, and he was just so smooth and didn't waste a move. I started practicing his flow in the cooler on slow days, focusing on keeping the knife on the bone. Now I'm consistently hitting 18-19 minutes, and my yield is way better. It's a small thing but it feels good. Anyone else have a little trick that just clicked for them and saved a bunch of time?

Walked into a new 'artisanal' grocery in Portland and saw them selling flank steak for $28 a pound, pre-cut into cubes for stew.

I mean, come on. The grain on that cut was all wrong for the cubes they made, and they trimmed off a solid inch of fat cap that would've kept it moist. The kid behind the counter said they do it because 'customers don't like the fat.' It's a waste of a good cut and a rip-off. Anyone know a decent shop in the area that actually knows how to break down a side?

Showerthought: I always thought pork shoulder was the best for pulled pork

I read a study from the University of Nebraska that showed beef chuck roast, cooked low and slow, can have a higher yield of usable meat by almost 15%. I tried it last week and the texture was great, plus it gave me more product to sell. Has anyone else tried using beef cuts for traditional pork dishes?