| Archive for Downsizer For an ethical approach to consumption |
| colour it green |
cutting up pigsGot our pigs back from the abattoir today, and cut them into smaller lumps
I'm pleased since this is our first attempt.. its like real pork and everything! 
thanks to Bebo for her post on cutting.. was very helpful, and we used the videos from qms too -they are ace. and it was pretty easy, even thoughw e didn't really avhe the right tools.. well.. we bought a clean hacksaw, and sharpened the knives... now we know its not so bad, might invest in a few good items. |
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| Green Rosie |
Well done you - OH did our pig last year and we did get a few strange cuts and odd sized chops. But hey - it all tasted good! | ||||||
| Shan |
Well done.
We have some pigs to do shortly. I have done lambs but the carcass is of course smaller - so quite easy (we also used qms clips for the lambs - brilliant). What other bits and pieces would you get for cutting up your pigs? |
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| colour it green |
we already had a big butchers steak knife and we would be lost without that - next time I would prefer a decent saw.. prolly a proper butchers one. and this time we left the joints bone in, but a good lot of butchers string for next time maybe 
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| gardening-girl |
What are the qms clips you are talking about?
We have two pigs nearly ready to go, and all help would be useful! |
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| colour it green |
http://www.qmscotland.co.uk/cutting/ | ||||||
| gardening-girl |
Thank you for the link, the more info the better. | ||||||
| colour it green |
I've studied that many videos and books withpig diagrams.. and now finally spent a day cutting it up.. when I close my eyes, I can still see it! |
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| judith |
Well done, that looks great.
My first pair of pigs had probably twice as much fat as that. That joint looks pretty well spot on IMO. |
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| Jonnyboy |
Agree, I'm thinking glazed ham, creamy fat..... |
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| judith |
And thyme-flavoured meat juices and apple sauce.
And I really need to go to bed as well! |
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| bodger |
The bloody butcher. This post of mine from th February before last still makes me smile and I was in it.
Meet Arthur Pig
Anyone for hip replacement surgery ? 
I started off following the Pig in a Day DVD but quite quickly gave up on it and did it my own way. I was quite pleased with how it turned out, it took about half an hour from start to finish. 
and the jobs a 'goodun' 
My approach to home buthchery is a bit simplistic but as someone has already said, it tasted fine. 
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| colour it green |
aww thanks
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| Shan |
I have a decent butcher's saw and a good boning knife.... am lacking lots of butcher's string and a certain ability to tie knots.
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| Rob R |
I think a lot of people are put off cutting their own, thinking that the 'skill' of the butcher is in the cutting, when really it is in cutting neatly and quickly. The best piece of equipment I invested in was a butchers saw from Scobies though- it cut down the sawing time significantly that it probably paid for itself at the first use (wouldn't like to tackle splitting a carcass without one). | ||||||
| colour it green |
we were put off by the price.. and not knowing if we would butcher the pigs ourselves again, we went ahead with the tools we had + clean new hacksaw - and I think it was the right thing to do to find out - but now we know we will be doing it again, we will buy that saw from scobies.. some of the bone cutting was hard work, and we got the heads back whole, so had to split them too - that was lots of work with an inferior saw! agree that the skill of a butcher is to do a good neat job in next to no time. whereas we did a perfectly ok job in lots of time. |
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| colour it green |
I dreamt last night that I learned the secret of the butchers knot. but when i woke, I had forgotton it again! think maybe I have been reading up on the subject of butchery a lot lately! |
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| Rob R |
I remember learning to tie ropes for loads of straw & getting confused over which loop goes where  Haven't done it in a while now, but I'm pretty sure I could do it with a rope, if not explain it. I was almost doing it in my sleep when I was doing it every day.
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| Helen M |
you have the same chopping board as me
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| colour it green |
I'm guessing you mean bodger.. as my chopping board was a bit of ply wood we found in the shed and cleaned up.... but to be fair we didn't actually chop anything on it.. we sawed everything. |
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| colour it green |
I can believe that.. I can still do the nautical knots such as bowlines etc.. even though I refuse to go to sea anymore (on the grounds of always being seasick) Still, handy when tying up the tomatoes (tomato bondage as we call it in this house) once learnt never forgotten. |
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| Bulgarianlily |
The best advice I can give having been cutting up my own meat for years is never let anyone demand that you do 'chops'. The ones in the butcher's shop are done on a band saw I think! Home made ones don't look anything like them. | ||||||
| Rob R |
I very much doubt that- chops need cutting with a knife and the last 'chop' through the cartilage, so would be too fiddly to switch to the saw, and then having to clean the bone dust off each one would take too long. It's relatively easy to get the 'line' as you always have that bone as a guide. You may end up with the odd one that is too thin & odd shaped at the end, but that can just go in the mincing pile. 
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| Ixy |
the clue's in the name - chop! it's a chopping motion
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| bodger |
If the meat is for your own consumption then chopping it up yourself is all part of the fun and it doesn't matter if you get a few strange looking joints. if you're selling your meat, then my advice would be to get an expert to do it. | ||||||
| colour it green |
we kept cut the loin into three loin roasts - keeps your options open then - you can still cut up further into chops.
found cutting between the bones very easy - just cut with the knife, then sawed the last bit, and cleaned up. not a biggy. |
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| bring me sunshine |
Hmmm, I always assumed that the chopping and sawing etc would be really difficult, not that my current circumstances would enable me to take on such a task.
But it's EuroMillions tonight and the Lotto tomorrow - so when I spend the weekend celebrating my new found wealth and am able to buy my own farm instead of renting a field, I shall have a go myself
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| Ixy |
if you're selling meat, paying an expert can seriously eat into your profit margin! | ||||||
| RichardW |
Not doing so can seriously damage your repeat custom. Unless you have the skills. |
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| Behemoth |
Yes, I watched one of our market butchers prepare his frozen NZ lamb in just this way. |
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| Rob R |
Good plan, I find myself doing that rather a lot, obviously I can't expect customers to do the same ( ) but it works for me. Often chop up a joint for diced pork as well.
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| Rob R |
 Maybe I've been missing a trick there- fresh cut could be a whole new selling point...
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| Ixy |
So it's well worth learning; so you're not at a disadvantage to your competitors. |
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| gardening-girl |
OK, another question!
After pigs have been slaughtered,do people hang them before butchering. We never even thought about this, but the chap having half a pig is going to hang his for a week or two. |
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| Rob R |
We hang ours for between 1 and 7 days, but that is only for convenience of when it is required, not for any taste reasons. Like with both the sheep & cattle, people don't notice any discernible difference however long we hang, although we cater to requirements, as far as practical. | ||||||
| Shan |
I think hanging makes a huge difference. It intensifies the flavour and helps keep the meat tender. | ||||||
| RichardW |
You dont really need to hang pork for very long if at all. For other animals then yes. |
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| colour it green |
ours weren't hung really.. they were slaughtered on Monday we collected on Wednesday...
can report the meat was tender and tasty |
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| RichardW |
Thats just giving it time to properly chill & the meat "set". Anyone that has cut up a fresh warm kill will tell you that the meat is very floppy till its had time to cool / set. | ||||||
| Rob R |
I disagree- I find that if the meat starts off tender & flavourful, then hanging doesn't keep it that way, although it may make tougher meat more tender with hanging, which is perhaps what Shan meant. |