I used to just wet age everything in the bag because it's easier, but last month I tried dry aging a chuck roll for 21 days in my little setup in the basement. The flavor difference was huge - the dry aged one had this deep nutty taste that the wet aged one just didn't have at all. It took more work and I lost some weight to trimming, but my customers at the shop in Columbus kept asking for more of the dry aged stuff. Has anyone else tried both on a cheaper cut and seen a big jump in quality?
I tried dry-aging a ribeye in my fridge for 6 weeks and compared it to a wet-aged cut from the same steer. The dry-aged one lost so much weight I ended up with less than half the meat, but that concentrated flavor was totally worth it for special occasions. Has anyone else tried both methods and landed on one they prefer?
I've been butchering for about 6 years now and I always just trimmed the fat cap flat on my pork shoulders before sending them out. Last Saturday I was prepping a batch of 8 shoulders for a local BBQ joint here in Grand Rapids and decided to try something different. I scored the fat cap about a quarter inch deep in a crosshatch pattern, rows about an inch apart. What I noticed was the fat rendered way more evenly during the smoke and the bark set up deeper into the meat. Nobody told me to try this, I just saw a picture from an old timer on a forum and figured why not. The BBQ guy called me back and said the shoulders pulled apart cleaner than usual and he wants all of them done that way from now on. Has anyone else messed around with scoring patterns on different cuts?
Was looking at some USDA breakdowns from 2023 and saw that a whole lamb only gives you about 45% of its weight as saleable meat. That really surprised me because beef typically gives around 62% depending on the cut. Got me thinking about how I price my lamb shoulders and racks. Has anyone else here done the math on their own trim loss percentages?
I was at a BBQ last Saturday and my buddy swore up and down you can just dry-age a prime rib on a wire rack in your home fridge for two weeks. Told me he saw it on Instagram and it was safe because the fridge is cold. I had to gently explain that home fridges don't have the humidity control or airflow a real aging setup does, and you're just asking for spoilage or mold you can't see. Has anyone else dealt with customers coming in asking for cheap cuts to try this at home?
He swore the old compressor keeps a more stable temp than anything modern he's tried, and after tasting his dry-aged ribeye I'm seriously thinking of hunting down a beat up Frigidaire myself - has anyone else found that old appliances actually work better for aging?
I had to choose between buying a whole hog from a local farm for $4.50 a pound or getting boxed primals from Sysco for $3.80 a pound. Picked the boxed stuff to save money on a big order for a catering event last Saturday. BIG mistake - the primal cuts were inconsistent, had way more silver skin than usual, and I lost about 15% yield just trimming it up. Has anyone else had this problem with boxed primals on a tight deadline?
I always went bone-in for flavor but switched to boneless to save time for a big order. Ended up selling out an hour quicker, but a customer said the meat was a little drier. Has anyone else dealt with that tradeoff?
I picked up a used Hobart grinder back in 2009 for $200 from a retiring butcher in Mobile. Guy said it had been sitting in his barn for a few years, but I cleaned it up and replaced the blades and plates for another $80. That thing has gone through hundreds of pounds of pork shoulder and beef chuck without a single hiccup. Meanwhile, I saw a coworker drop $600 on a brand new electric grinder from a big box store, and it burned out after 18 months. Makes me wonder how many of those shiny new machines are really built to last like the old stuff. Anyone else sticking with older equipment and getting better results?
I been using the same old Victorinox for years and finally caved and bought this hyped up $60 boning knife online. It felt nice in the hand but the blade chipped on the third deer I broke down. Swapped back to my $25 Victorinox and it handled fine. Anyone else waste money on a knife that just couldn't hold up to real work?
I was breaking down a whole ribeye for a wedding order in Austin last month and kept fighting with the cap. Old timer named Hank walked by, grabbed my knife, and showed me I was cutting against the grain on the cap tie. Had been doing it backwards since I started in 2004 and nobody ever caught it. Has anyone else had a basic move they butchered forever without realizing?
I was out in the shed behind my house in Missoula last Tuesday, breaking down a 280 pound Berkshire, and it just clicked that I was wasting way too much meat by trying to keep things too square. Anyone else have a moment where your hands just figured out what your brain couldn't?
I was in Philadelphia visiting family and stopped by this place called Esposito's on Passyunk. They had their hindquarters hanging from the aitch bone instead of the hook through the Achilles tendon like I always learned. I mean maybe it's just me but that seemed like it would put stress in a weird spot. Has anyone else seen this method or is it some old school east coast thing?
I had a whole ribeye primal from a local farm and split it in half. One half I did the old school dry age in my walk-in, the other half I used a dry aging bag for 21 days. The bagged side came out way more tender with a deeper beefy taste, and I only lost 8% trim waste compared to 15% on the naked one. My walk-in humidity is a pain to control, and I think that hurt the naked side. Has anyone else had better luck with bags over traditional aging, or am I just bad at dialing in my cooler settings?
I dropped $150 on a set of those fancy Japanese boning knives I kept seeing advertised on my feed. They looked amazing in the videos, all sharp and sleek. First week using them on pork shoulders, the tip chipped off on the third shoulder. By the end of the month, two of them had bent blades from normal bone work. I called the company and they said it wasn't covered under warranty because of 'improper use.' What a joke. I went back to my old $40 Victorinox knife and it's been going strong for three years now. Has anyone else gotten burned by buying flashy gear from online ads instead of sticking with what works?
I was at a demo in Denver last month, watching this old timer break down a whole ribeye. He made this one cut against the grain where I always go with it, and it clicked. I mean, I knew the theory but seeing it in person with the muscle fibers right there changed how I trim everything now. Anyone else have a moment where watching someone else work just flipped a switch for you?
I used to just break down my bellies same-day and never really noticed how tough they were until a buddy convinced me to try wet-aging them for a week and a half. The first slab I pulled out after day 10 was noticeably more tender when I ran my knife through it, and the fat rendered way better on the grill. I'm kicking myself for not doing this sooner honestly... anyone else notice a big texture shift with longer aging on certain cuts?
Last week I was cutting through some pork shoulders and kept getting this weird bone dust buildup on the blade. I thought it was the blade being dull so I swapped it out twice, wasted about an hour. Then I cleaned the whole saw and still had the problem. Turns out the tension was just a hair too tight and it was throwing the dust off differently. Has anyone else run into a simple adjustment that took way too long to catch?
I was watching a youtube video from some old school butcher in Chicago and he claimed salting the board instead of the steak gives you better crust control, has anyone actually tried that or is he just messing with people?
Guy wanted a 14-day aged rib roast for Easter dinner. I pushed him toward wet aging because dry aging costs more and shrinks the meat by 20%. He went with dry anyway. Called me two days after Easter saying it was the best beef he ever had. Has anyone else had customers ignore your advice and still end up happy?
The guy was new, fresh out of training. He tore apart my labeling system because the cryovac date was printed a half inch off from where he wanted it. Threatened to pull our whole load. I argued for 20 minutes then realized he wasn't budging. Now I triple check every label placement before boxing. Has anyone else had an inspector make up rules on the spot like that?
I was getting tired of replacing my bandsaw blade every 3 months because it kept getting gummy from fat buildup. I mostly break down pork shoulders and beef clods, so the resin just cakes on. A old timer at the local shop in Omaha told me to mix baking soda with a little water into a paste and rub it on the blade while it's running slow. I tried it last month and I swear the cuts are cleaner and the blade doesn't heat up as fast. I still wiped the blade down after each use but this paste thing cut down on the sticky mess. Has anyone else had luck using something like this on a meat saw or am I just lucky so far?
I spent years sharpening my breaking knives wrong. A master butcher in Chicago watched me for about 5 minutes last Tuesday and pointed out I was using too much angle on the edge. He said I was making it thin like a filet knife but a breaking knife needs a steeper angle around 20 degrees to hold up against bone. I tried his method on a pork shoulder and the edge lasted twice as long before I had to touch it up. Has anyone else been shown a basic trick like this after years of doing it the hard way?