Whether you’re a newbie or you frequent your local butcher shop, you may not know all the awesome things butchers can do for you. With endless meat customizations, they’ll make you feel like a King (or Queen) of your kitchen!
Firstly, if you’re stuck in the habit of buying prepackaged meat at the grocery store – you need to give your local butcher shop a shot. The freshness and quality at your local butcher can’t be beat. Plus, the meats are more likely to be ethically and sustainably raised. Remember, butchers are there to serve you and they want you to have the best possible experience.
A butcher is highly skilled and knowledgeable in breaking down whole carcasses, primals, and subprimals into individual cuts of meat. They embrace nose-to-tail processing in which they use every cut of meat with little waste (besides the trim). The rib primal is broken into rib steaks, uncommon steaks like Denver and flat iron are trimmed and displayed in the butcher case, oxtail and shanks are cut into wheels, the bones are made to use broth or sold to customers to make their own. So many incredible cuts are waiting to be discovered at your local butcher shop! If you missed it, we shared the Top 8 Best Cuts of Meat at You Local Butcher Shop in this blog post.
Let’s take a closer look at all the things butchers can do for you!
1. Trim and Cut Meat
This one may seem obvious. Yes, we know they can trim and cut meat. But they can do it exactly how you want it! Want an extra fat cap left on your brisket? Looking for thinner steaks than you see in the meat case? Your butchers got your back! And they can even cut through bones with their hand saws and bandsaws.
2. Debone
Butchers are savvy with wielding their sharp knives and can effortlessly remove bones from meat. This opens up a host of different recipes for you and most importantly – saves you time! Because if there were ever a contest on who could debone a chicken thigh fastest, your butcher is likely going to win that one. A common request is a spatchcock chicken. The backbone is removed so that the whole chicken lays flat for more even cooking or grilling.
3. Tie Your Meat
Your butcher can tie your meat which makes for a much nicer presentation. You’ll often find roasts are tied so they are compact and cook evenly, such as prime rib roast, pork roasts and more.
4. Grind Your Meat
When visiting your local butcher, you’ll often find that ground beef is already available in the meat counter. You might even find ground chicken and pork too. But did you know you can make special requests for ground meat that you don’t see in the meat counter?
You can ask for ground sirloin or even ground brisket mixed with ground chuck. Your butcher can grind whatever your heart desires.
5. Custom Dry Aged Beef
Dry aged beef is an extra special treat, particularly when it’s aged longer than the typical 21-30 days. So, if you’re looking for beef that’s dry aged to your liking, your butcher will happily accommodate. Maybe your preference is to dry age for 60 days? 90 days? Or more? Have your butcher put your name on a shortloin or rib and they’ll keep it for you until it’s completed the dry aging process.
Not every butcher will offer this, so check to see if your butcher dry ages onsite and if they take custom dry aged beef requests.
6. Stuffed & Seasoned
Butchers often have seasonings and rubs available to punch up the flavours of your meats. Just ask at the meat counter.
7. Custom Cutting
Sometimes your butcher won’t have every cut on hand at all times. You can put in custom requests for these items and return another day to pick them. Just be sure to plan ahead if it’s for a special event or party.
8. Offer Cuts You Can’t Find at the Grocery Store
That’s right…there are way more cuts available than what the grocery store has to offer. And to be frank, you’ve been missing out if you haven’t been to your local meat shop. They have an arsenal of steaks worth trying such as oyster steak, bavette, skirt, flat iron, Denver steak and more!
9. Butchers Have Dinner Ideas
When you’re stuck for ideas on what to make tonight or even this week, butchers are great at making recommendations. Let them know how you like to cook your meats (grill, pan fry, slow roast, dry roast) and they can make some suggestions that fit your cooking style.
10. Party Planning
Sometimes party planning can be overwhelming. Feel free to get your butcher involved in deciding what meats work best for your party. Share the details about the event like how many people and what your budget is for meat. Your butcher can help by making recommendations so you can pull of a party to remember.
