Weird cuts of meat

Latatian

I keep seeing all these lovely recipes for pig's cheek, beef shin, brisket, 'scrag end' of lamb, pig's trotters. I want to learn how to cook a few of the old-fashioned things that come up in older cookery books.

But I haven't seen them round at all: everywhere seems to be mostly selling more expensive/leaner cuts. I know tesco has beef cheek/oxtail. I vaguely remember last Christmas eve seeing a whole pig's head in a butcher window in Dublin.

Anyone have any suggestions on sourcing, where and how to buy this kind of thing? I want to go a bit beyond the stuff I cook all the time. I might not be ready to tackle liver or kidneys yet, but I'd like to try some of the unusual cuts.

Mycroft H

Your local butcher should sort you out no?

hidinginthebush

Ask your butcher. They usually have a lot of that stuff in the back, for example I was able to get beef shin (for chili, that was amazing!) from my local butcher last week with no forewarning. If they don't have it, they should be able to get their hands on it easy enough. Plus butchers work out cheaper and the meat is nicer than from a supermarket.

Qualitymark

Local butcher +1.

Typical: a friend went down to the butcher in Rathmines near Slattery's looking for flank steak and came back loaded with a bunch of it to marinade with shallots & wine & garlic &c and stew slowly… I've bought belly of pork and lap of lamb there and it's been beautifully prepared.

BaZmO*

Yeah have to agree with everybody else, ask your local butcher. He wouldn't have the less common cuts on display as they wouldn't be big sellers. He'd either have them in the store or he'd definitely be able to order them in for you.

The Hill Billy

Liver is one of the best pieces of offal to start with. Get your butcher to cut into 1cm thick slices for you. To cook - dust lightly with seasoned flour & fry in butter on a medium heat for a couple of minutes each side. Serve with grilled bacon, mashed turnip & spuds.

Latatian

I don't eat enough meat to have a local butcher I know well. And it would be worth nobody's time to order anything in for me- I'd be getting for one person, and low budget. I don't want to go in and ask for something that I know absolutely nothing about; I am totally ignorant of these cuts or how they're bought or what I want or how much they would be. Is there anywhere in Dublin where I could just go in and point and not have to be a nuisance about it or look like a tit?

There's a lovely place in Galway that does pig's feet, near St Nicholas' church. So I was wondering if there was anywhere else like that,

I will happily try liver, provided it's cooked by someone who's better at cooking than I am! I tried it myself years ago, fried it, followed the recipe exactly, and it was the single most disgusting thing I've ever eaten. I had to just throw it out. So that's put paid to that for a while.

Jezek

meath street in dublin . there's a pork butcher that sells all cuts, a beef butcher etc.

ElleEm

Go into the butcher's nearest your house and ask- don't feel nervous about it. When I started going to a butcher's years ago, I could barely cook, so I would tell them what I wanted to make and for how many people. They would almost always give me tips or advice, it is part of their service. I have gotten way better at cooking now but I sometimes still have a yap with them about the method or recipe. If you buy enough for two/ four people, you can divide it before you cook or after and freeze it.

uck51js9zml2yt

Is there a comprehensive list of all these cuts.
I know my local and he did a piece on radio a few months back on how to cook them but I didn't have a pen to make notes.

The Hill Billy

FX Buckley on Moore St will have some of the more uncommon cuts on display. That would be a good spot if you don't want to appear to bea nuisance. That said most decent butchers are only too happy to help you & give advice.

FISMA

Latatian wrote: »

Anyone have any suggestions on sourcing

Do you know anyone that hunts deer?

Most deer hunters in Eire do not use the head and much of the organ meat.

Tongue and cheek (no pun intended) are some of the best meats on the deer and delicacies. Additionally, the heart is on par with fillet mignon.

Adrian J Lynch

If you approach your local butcher looking for somethung different I am sure he will be able to guide you through the various off cuts and how best to cook them. At the end of the day practice makes perfect. I personal love pig cheek

Bassfish

FISMA wrote: »

Additionally, the heart is on par with fillet mignon.

What does deer heart taste like? Is it gamey? I'm intrigued!

yellowlabrador

most butchers would be delighted to sell you 'scrag end of lamb' but don't let him bone it. It's basically the neck and shoulders and is lovely for lamb stew.
heart is another great one. Bones are great to make soup. butchers will welcome you with open arms, so many of them are closing as supermarkets are so cheap. I love a proper butcher because they can be so helpful and can tailor your order to your needs.

Stheno

Connor Bald Mayonnaise wrote: »

Is there a comprehensive list of all these cuts.
I know my local and he did a piece on radio a few months back on how to cook them but I didn't have a pen to make notes.

There is an online butcher I came across on here who do a great job of explaining the cuts if I remember it I'll post the link

Any good cooking book will do it for you though

FISMA

Bassfish wrote: »

What does deer heart taste like? Is it gamey? I'm intrigued!

Depends on what the deer ate. Generally speaking, it tastes like a fine cut of beef.

I usually take corn fed deer. The meat never tastes gamey. Other times when the deer have that gamey scent, a night in buttermilk - and you would be hard pressed to tell the venison from beef.

Heart, of any animal, is often the best meat.

monty_python

FISMA wrote: »

Additionally, the heart is on par with fillet mignon.

it is like ****. fillet is the most tender cut and the heart isnt far of the toughest cut.

your way of with that statement

The Hill Billy

FISMA wrote: »

Depends on what the deer ate. Generally speaking, it tastes like a fine cut of beef.

I usually take corn fed deer. The meat never tastes gamey. Other times when the deer have that gamey scent, a night in buttermilk - and you would be hard pressed to tell the venison from beef.

Heart, of any animal, is often the best meat.

Venison should taste like venison. Beef should taste like beef. Its texture may be similar to beef, but it has a fuller flavour. If I had venison that was hardly distinguishable from beef - it would be crap venison.

Heart meat is tough as old boots as it is the hardest working muscle in any animal. Its flavour will not be noticeably influenced by what it eats. Granted, it is very flavoursome, but needs long, slow cooking to break down the fibers. Nothing like filet mignôn, which from a muscular perspective does very little.

And corn-fed deer? Seriously? That is like expressing a preference for a battery hen over free range.

Canis Lupus

The one and only time I had venison I thought it tasted vaguely of liver. Wasn't particularly impressed. And as above I can't see how heart could be compared to fillet. Having said that (and I could very well be mistaken) I thought heart also had to be cooked hard and fast otherwise it becomes chewy?

The Hill Billy

I suppose you could try slicing heart & flash frying. It would be hard to know which was to cut as the fibers run in several directions around the heart. Horizontal cuts would probably be best for a cross-grain cut of the muscle fibers for quick cooking. But then you'd have holes in your slices from the internal chambers.

I've only ever cooked them whole & find slow, slow, braising to be best.

CSSE09

Latatian wrote: »

I don't eat enough meat to have a local butcher I know well. And it would be worth nobody's time to order anything in for me- I'd be getting for one person, and low budget. I don't want to go in and ask for something that I know absolutely nothing about; I am totally ignorant of these cuts or how they're bought or what I want or how much they would be. Is there anywhere in Dublin where I could just go in and point and not have to be a nuisance about it or look like a tit?

My family have a butchers so take it from me you won't look silly asking, I've often had many many people come in that didn't have a notion and it was no bother helping them out. What other people have said is true about keeping the uncommon cuts out the back simply because it'd take up space and not a lot of people would look for it, just ask though and more often than not it can be cut there and then.

Munster Tom

I got some fantastic beef shin from my local butcher recently and used it to make an amazing Ossobuco ... well worth trying a recipe if you are experimenting ...

I have been looking for Mutton in butchers up and down the country with no joy ... the closest I got was in two butchers at the English Market in Cork, but they were both out of it ... There are two recipes I am looking to produce that need it - and I don't want to substitute Lamb (dressed as mutton ha ha) ... Cassoulet and MLT I would also like to make a very slow cooked Irish Stew with it to compare to the Lamb stew that I normally cook ...

If anyone knows of a butcher that sells Mutton could they let me know?

hardCopy

In my experience any local butcher will be delighted to help a curious customer. Most of them have started pre-packing the more popular products like chicken fillets and minced beef the lads at the counter are happy to chat about their craft and do a bit more than checkout duty.

Shin beef wouldn't be a particularly exotic cut and I've seen it at the counter in my local butcher's. Maybe start there as it'll more than likely be in stock.

The next couple of days might not be the best time to look for anything too odd as they're likely stuffed to the gills with pre-ordered turkey and may have a queue out the door for collections.

Rew

Latatian wrote: »

I keep seeing all these lovely recipes for pig's cheek, beef shin, brisket, 'scrag end' of lamb, pig's trotters. I want to learn how to cook a few of the old-fashioned things that come up in older cookery books.

But I haven't seen them round at all: everywhere seems to be mostly selling more expensive/leaner cuts. I know tesco has beef cheek/oxtail. I vaguely remember last Christmas eve seeing a whole pig's head in a butcher window in Dublin.

Anyone have any suggestions on sourcing, where and how to buy this kind of thing? I want to go a bit beyond the stuff I cook all the time. I might not be ready to tackle liver or kidneys yet, but I'd like to try some of the unusual cuts.

Ive cooked beef cheek quite a few times now and love it. I did pork cheek recently and it was also very tasty. Beef cheek isn't too hard to come by but I hard a fair bit of trouble getting pork cheek. I accidentally ended up with a a load of pig jowls which are most definitely not the same thing!! Fallon and Byrne sorted me out for the pig cheeks in the end (cheek fillet would be a better description). Im pretty sure they have beef shin a swell.

Latatian

Munster Tom- ooh, now I have yet another aspiration!

HardCopy- I was planning on waiting 'til after Christmas for that reason. I reckon they've probably had a few panicked people in today.

I was in an Asian food shop in Dublin today and saw pig intestines! I am not that adventurous yet, sadly. They had trotters and tails, too, but no cheek etc. on display.

beer enigma

Bassfish wrote: »

What does deer heart taste like? Is it gamey? I'm intrigued!

Cooked correctly hearts of any animal is delicious, deer or lamb are two I use regularly. You can cook them for a couple of hours, slow cooker tecnique, but generally I take out the sinew and flash fry in the same way as I cook liver.

twerg_85

Munster Tom wrote: »

If anyone knows of a butcher that sells Mutton could they let me know?

You'll get hogget in plenty of butchers - also some of the stuff labelled as lamb could well be hogget anyway.

If you want somehting a bit different, try goat - I've got this in FXB moore street a few times. Did a lovely curry with it.

You could also try these guys - www.wildirishgame.ie/ or your local butcher might order form them for you.

F.

Latatian

Mods- apologies if this is against forum policies re necroposting. The usual forum I frequent reckons it's more polite to update to thank people for their advice than it is impolite to necropost. I am happy for this to be deleted if this isn't the case here.

Went to a few local butchers, 'Ehhh- no' was about the sum of the response. Not interested. Fair enough, they said something about how all the stuff comes to them pre-butchered now so they don't actually have offal and don't have the demand to want to get it in or know where to get it.

Found a great place called Dores in Kilkenny though, stocked up while I was there. Prices seemed very reasonable.

Dubl07

FX Buckleys break down their carcasses in their factory in Greenogue Industrial Estate, Rathcoole. Give them a bell and they may be able to help. 01 4013925.

The Farrelly brothers in Delgany have their own abattoir behind the butcher's shop but it's a small operation and again a phone call to see what they're slaughtering in a given week would be advisable. 01 2874211

Faith

Latatian wrote: »

Mods- apologies if this is against forum policies re necroposting. The usual forum I frequent reckons it's more polite to update to thank people for their advice than it is impolite to necropost. I am happy for this to be deleted if this isn't the case here.

Went to a few local butchers, 'Ehhh- no' was about the sum of the response. Not interested. Fair enough, they said something about how all the stuff comes to them pre-butchered now so they don't actually have offal and don't have the demand to want to get it in or know where to get it.

Found a great place called Dores in Kilkenny though, stocked up while I was there. Prices seemed very reasonable.

We have no problem with posters coming back to give an update