Meat Cutting: Weeks 3&4 (snow, falling steel and tri-tips)

Besides the days off on Monday and Tuesday of Week 3, everything went fairly well. It seems like my hands are getting used to the work. They are very sore during the first 30 minutes of cutting, but after that, I really do not feel the pain until I get off of work and try to hold my hands on the steering wheel of my truck. My fingers go numb, and I have to keep switching hands from the steering wheel to my knees (back and forth). I am still a very safe driver, even in the inclement conditions that arrived this past Sunday night.

I woke up Monday morning to about 2 inches of snow on the ground and a bone-chilling wind. It was a wake up call to remind us that it is late November and winter weather is not going to forget about us. Although I have heard that it is still over 60 degrees in Indianapolis.

I had to channel my previous experiences delivering newspapers to the remote, unmaintained roads of rural Clare, Isabella and Mecosta Counties in Central Michigan during harsh winter weather in the late 90's. The road that leads about 20 miles to our butcher shop is not maintained well during snow or ice. I averaged about 35 mph during my trek there Monday morning (55 mph speed limit). It continued to snow all day, and the ride home was just as slow. We had about 3 inches by the end of the day, and the winds created some decent-sized drifts. Fortunately, we did not get the severe weather that was experienced in the mountains of Eastern Oregon and Eastern Washington the same day. It continues to be very cold. Lows of 9 and -4 the last two days.

I only had to work Monday and Tuesday this week, as Thanksgiving break arrives a day early. Tuesday was pretty eventful. I was learning how to remove a hind quarter of beef from a different hook than we normally use. It involves lifting the quarter to loosen the tension on the hook, then using another tool to pry the hook from the beef, thus allowing the beef to be lowered to the table manually. As I was attempting my first removal, I got the hind quarter loose, and then saw a very frightened expression on my co-workers' faces. I heard a large "BAAMM" and felt a crazy pain in my head along with hearing a buzzing in my ears. I really did not know what happened, but I knew something fell onto my head. I thought for sure I would have blood running down my face, and I would need to go to the hospital. It was such an impact that I immediately started tearing up and water flowed from my eyes. I got my bearings back quickly, and realized that there was no blood. Just a large imprint of the 5 lb. steel wheel that allows us to manuever the beef on hooks throughout the shop.I could not stop laughing, although I was in pain. I was laughing at the terror that I saw in my co-workers' faces when it fell. They were so scared for me. It took about 3-5 minutes for me to get senses back enough to resume work. In the end, all I have is a small bruise on the top of my head. I will keep an eye on it.

Here are some pictures of me cutting out the tri-tip from a hind quarter. It is a cut of meat that became especially popular on the West Coast during the last 10-15 years. Word of it's flavor and lean make-up have spread to other parts of the country recently. It can be cooked as a roast, or it can be grilled with indirect heat. Because it is lean and could be a bit tough, it needs to be cooked slow to showcase it's great flavor and tenderness. It is generally a cheap cut, also. Below is a picture of the tri-tip along with a simple recipe:

Whiskey Tri Tip:

Use a rub of sea salt and black pepper to cover the tri tip.

Marinate the tri tip in a mixture of 1/2 cup apple cider and 1 cup whiskey for about 3-5 hours in the refrigerator.

After removing the tri tip from the marinade, roast in the oven for about 30 minutes or until medium rare (130-135 degrees, as the temp will rise to medium rare after it is taken out of the oven). Again, this is a lean cut of meat, and over-cooking will lead to dry, flavorless meat.

Let the meat rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing against the grain and serving with your choice of vegetable, etc.

The Dexterous Butcher

My Brother, Andrew, was a Philosophy major at Indiana University and could not help but think of a popular passage included in the text of Chuang Tzu (Zuangzi) when I told him I was training to be a butcher. Chuang Tzu's text was one of two texts that inspired what is now known as Taoism, a religion/philosophy practiced in Eastern Asia for over 2000 years. The passage is from a chapter called "The Secret of Caring for Life". Enjoy:

http://www.bopsecrets.org/gateway/passages/chuang-tzu.htm

Burgers as painkillers

I did not work Monday due to needing another day of rest for my hands. I figure they won't heal if I keep beating them up. My boss was cool with it and thought it might help. Here I am Tuesday, not working again, due to a wind-induced power outage in parts of La Grande and Elgin, where I work. I got a call this morning at 6:00 a.m. from my boss explaining that we could not work without power at the shop. Luckily, I did not lose my electricity. At 11:00 a.m., I got another call from him telling me the band saw had taken a shit. We really couldn't do much without that either. We called it a day, and should be up and running tomorrow. My hands feel a bit better, but I have given up on them. I just need to push forward and work as hard as I can despite the pain.

Last night, I decided to treat myself to the things I bought at Bella over the weekend. It will probably be the last time I am able to do this considering the wages of butcher's apprentices these days. I am sure everyone has their version of a great burger, but I wanted to share how I make a decent one in my apartment without a grill or any really good equipment.

All the ingredients here can be replaced with commom alternatives, but I would recommend keeping the gorganzola blue cheese. Here is what I used for my Oregonzola bacon wagyu burger:

1 lb. Sutton Creek ground wagyu beef

4 thick slices Hill Meat Company Ranch Style Smoked Bacon

4 regular grocery store hamburger buns (freshest possible)

1/2 oz. Rogue Creamery Oregonzola Blue Cheese

1. Form package of beef into (4) 1/4lb. patties. Add salt and pepper after they have reached room temperature. Don't handle the patties too much. Just make them into thick, small, rounded patties.

1. Cook bacon is extremely hot skillet to crisp. Place to the side on paper towels.

2. Grill buns in skillet with bacon drippings from step 1. Place to the side with bacon.

3. Place beef patties into skillet with remaining bacon fat. Press them down gently to make sure they form a nice crust on the side that is in contact with the skillet. There should be a lot of great- smelling smoke and lots of hisses and pops. Also, gently press your thumb down into the middle of the patties so when they plump up, they are uniform in shape. This way, they do not look pregnant when they are cooked.

4. Let patties cook for about 3-4 minutes on each side or until they have a nice crust on each side.

5. Transfer the crusty and bleeding patties into the oven at 350 degrees.

6. Heat in the oven until they are about 120-125 in the center or a nice ruby red. I really wouldn't condone cooking or eating them at any temperature higher than this. If you want any flavor, they need to be no warmer than medium rare.

7. While you are heating the burgers in the oven, you can add the buns and bacon just to warm before assembly.

8. Take burgers from the oven and place oven on broil setting. Assemble burgers without buns (place bacon in X shape over patty and then top with crumbled blue cheese).

9. Place burgers under broiler in oven until cheese and bacon are bubbling and sizzling.

10. Now place burger onto warm, bacon infused buns.

11. Enjoy.

Meat Cutting Week 2

Last week was pretty eventless. I went in late Tuesday morning due to lack of sleep. Lack of sleep caused by pain in hands radiating through arms. I quickly found that resting my right wrist on a bag of ice eliminated said pain, and allowed me to sleep the rest of the week. Getting sleep is more important in the scheme of things compared to the pain in the hands. I am getting better at cutting and cleaning the hanging hind quarter, but unfortunately, the pain in my hands is sort of keeping me from moving faster. Spent the weekend getting rest and watching College Football.

Kudos to Dan Enos, the head coach of my beloved Chippewas. With seconds left in Central Michigan's game against Navy Saturday, he decided to attempt a 2-point conversion that would have given the program an historic W. Unfortunately, they fell short, and Navy escaped with a 38-37 win in Annapolis, MD.

While walking around town Saturday, I also found a great store called Bella http://bellamainstreetmarket.blogspot.com/ just blocks from my apartment. It is a gourmet ingredient and kitchen equipment store that also sells wine and specialty craft beers. I bought a few items, and will showcase them in the next blog.

I-D-A-H-O, I-da-ho, I-da-ho, Go-Go-Go

I took the scenic route from La Grande to Moscow, ID Saturday to see a football game played in quite possibly the most unique, and for sure the smallest Division 1A College Football stadium in the country. The Kibbie Dome is sort of the laughing stock of the NCAA Football community. Seating 18,000, it definitely does not seem to condone the normal Saturday football atmosphere on most campuses. Despite it's reputation, it has become a curiosity of my CFB-loving friends and I for a couple of years now, and I could not pass up a visit now that I was only 3 hours away. Besides, it is very difficult to come across Oregon or Boise St. tickets.

I was there to see the 25th-ranked Nevada Wolfpack and their pistol formation offensive machine led by QB Colin Kaepernick. Don't get me wrong, it was hard not to fall in love with the upstart Vandals of 2009 led by Nate Enderle at QB, but this year's version was not living up to the expectations set by their 43-42 OT win over Bowling Green in the Humanitarian Bowl. The game was a massacre from kick-off to finish. Nevada had three rushers with over 100 yds. and Kaepernick threw for over 300 yds. and 5 TDs. The final score was 63-17. I am not sure which was more impressive, Nevada's scoring attack or Idaho's dreadfully awful defense. If you look closely, you can see Idaho's Vandal doing battle with "Alphie", Nevada's mascot:

I took the same route home to La Grande. The drive consists of 3 ascents and descents between Oregon, Washington and Idaho that left my ears feeling like I was on an airplane. My ears have always been notorious for building pressure in airplanes and not wanting to release. The pain is awful, but I found alternative ways to release the pressure over the years. There were several stretches of road that warned of 25 m.p.h. for up to 9 miles. These roads have extreme inclines and declines along with constent hairpin turns. Sort of fun to drive, but wandering elks, mule deer, etc. were always on my mind. I saw several mule deer along the way, but they never posed a threat. Go to Google Earth or Mapquest and zoom in on WA-129 just North of the Oregon-Washington border. It is sort of funny to see from above.

The trip starts on OR-82 East to Enterprise, OR (home of Terminal Gravity Brewery). Then North on OR-3. OR-3 changes to WA-129 when crossing into Washington state. The end of WA-129 at the border of Washington and Idaho reveals a beautiful river scene between Clarkston, WA and Lewiston, ID. The Lewiston-Clarkston Bridge connects the two cities over the Lower Granite Lake portion of the Snake River. It is amazing. US-95 then leads into Moscow, ID, home of the Mighty Vandals. There are also ridiculous views of the Grande Ronde River throughout Oregon and Washington. If you look closely at the 2nd picture below, there are two people fly-fishing in the river:

Meat Cutting: Week 1

Today is Friday, and I was relieved to get off of work at 3:30. I worked about 50 hours this week and learned a lot about cows, cowboys and knives. I work in a cow town. Don't be fooled by the name Oregon. When most people hear the name of the state, they think Portland and the Pacific Northwest. If you drive to where I work, and block out the mountains around you, it would be easy to think you are in Texas or Wyoming. The Grande Ronde Valley is the heart of Oregon Cow country. It also houses lots of horses, cougars and bears. It is a frontier town.

Stafford's Custom Meats is a very small business that services the local cattle ranch community. The ranchers here reserve some of their cattle for their own consumption, and we do the cutting after they are slaughtered. We also butcher hogs, lambs and sometimes an elk or two. The ranchers offer this meat to their friends and families. Because the meat is not inspected, it is not for re-sale. They pay us to cut, package and freeze their meat, and then they either keep it for themselves or offer it to others they know. There is a mobile slaughter company that brings us fresh carcasses 2-3 times per week.

This week I learned several things:

1. Keep knives sharp always. Sharpen them daily and use the steel to keep the blade straight throughout the day.

2. How to break down a beef rear while it is hanging on a hook. First cut the fat from the back of the flank area. Next, cut off the flank and surrounding muscles. Then cut out the tri-tip (triangular cut popularized on the West Coast). After cutting out the tri-tip, the knuckle (joint including femur) needs removed. This creates the bottom round. Do a little cleaning of the fat around the top round and then remove the rear from the hook and put it on the table for more cutting. It is heavy, and there is a liquid that usually squirts onto my arm from the knuckle everytime I lift it. It is pretty gross...

3. How to clean the flank and the surrounding muscles to create either a flank steak, or London Broils.

4. How to de-bone all of the cuts that are discarded while cutting roasts and steaks. This is the hardest part so far. There are lots of different parts in all shapes and sizes. The goal is to remove all meat from bones and fat and place the meat into the meat grinder. This is where ground beef comes from.

5. How to hold my hands on my stomach while I sleep so they do not become completely numb. The knife work has destroyed the normal capability of my hands. They hurt. I hope a couple days off will let them heal a bit, so I can come back Monday with full range of motion.

Next week, I will continue to focus on above skills until I can work them a bit faster. I love the environment I work in. It is a truly a family business. The owner, Jeff, lives on site with his two daughters and his girlfriend. They all help out if needed. Our daily goal is 5 beefs. Sometimes we do more, sometimes we do less. Although the wages are paltry, when I leave for the day, I have learned something new, and I can put my phone away. It is nice.

Also, there is a Stampede just down the road from where I work in Elgin. It is a rodeo stadium. The lady that owns the land adjacent to our shop has several horses, and actually has an area set up to practice barrell racing. Seriously. Jeff's girlfriend has a few horses also. I get to say hello to them everytime I come and go.Hoping to visit the Kibbie Dome tomorrow. Here's some Bacon:

Apprentice Butcher (preface)

I have been on the job for 3 days now, and I have not had time or the energy to post anything about the work. I am having dinner at a great Chinese restaurant in La Grande where I almost got to see a late night baseball bat throwdown on Saturday night (they have wi-fi and a sushi bar). More on that later. Anyway, I am going to gather some notes and pictures about what I have been doing this week, and I will post them this weekend when I get time.