Rudey
10-27-2006, 04:51 PM
This was copied/pasted directly from a thread I started on the old forum in January 2005. Hope someone can get some use from it!
I don't remember who was asking earlier this week about doing their own processing at home (Wisecountybuck, et al?!) but I did some last night and took some pics to give you a general idea of what I do. Bear in mind that this is the way I do it, not necessarily the way everybody does it (see my signature :) ).
Start with a cooler of meat.
1808
Prepare your table with the necessary implements of destruction.
1809
I started on one of the hams. This ham I went through and separated the muscles to cut into steaks. It really very simple if you just take your time. Just go through the ham, finding the seams between the different muscles.
1810
Follow the seams and you'll end up separating a large, single muscle from the ham.
1811
Keep doing this, separating the large muscles from each other...
1812
...until you end up with bare bones...
1814
...and a bowl of trimmings for chili grind.
1815
There are smaller muscles in the hams that aren't suitable for steaks, and those are the ones that end up being chopped for chili grind.
Then, all you do is clean up the individual muscles (trimming silver skin, sinew, etc) and chop them into whatever thickness steaks you want.
1816
Until you end up with a tub of steaks...
1817
...and a bowl of trimmings.
1818
The next ham I decided not to steak out. Instead, I cut to the bone and fileted all the muscles together off the bone until they came off as a group. I cleaned these up, seasoned them, then rolled and tied them into a rolled roast for future use in a King Ranch Casserole (http://www.txbeef.org/recipe.php3?980199740).
1819
My next was to clean up the backstraps by removing any silver skin (if you can filet a fish, you will have zero problems with this).
1820
Until you're left with nothing but good, clean backstraps! These, I froze whole to use later as stuffed backstraps, bacon wrapped medallions, or whatever. You maintain some versatility by freezing them whole. If you want fried backstrap, just thaw, slice, and cook.
1821
I know these aren't the greatest instructions in the world, but I hope they'll at least give you some idea of how to get started doing your own processing at home. It doesn't take up near as much room as some people think, huh? I do it right at the kitchen table in sight of the TV, near the refrigerator with the cold beer in it. Just take your time, don't rush, and you'll end up with some nice packages of meat that you know are yours, you know were taken care of properly, and you can be proud that you did the entire process yourself.
Hope this helps.
Rudey
I don't remember who was asking earlier this week about doing their own processing at home (Wisecountybuck, et al?!) but I did some last night and took some pics to give you a general idea of what I do. Bear in mind that this is the way I do it, not necessarily the way everybody does it (see my signature :) ).
Start with a cooler of meat.
1808
Prepare your table with the necessary implements of destruction.
1809
I started on one of the hams. This ham I went through and separated the muscles to cut into steaks. It really very simple if you just take your time. Just go through the ham, finding the seams between the different muscles.
1810
Follow the seams and you'll end up separating a large, single muscle from the ham.
1811
Keep doing this, separating the large muscles from each other...
1812
...until you end up with bare bones...
1814
...and a bowl of trimmings for chili grind.
1815
There are smaller muscles in the hams that aren't suitable for steaks, and those are the ones that end up being chopped for chili grind.
Then, all you do is clean up the individual muscles (trimming silver skin, sinew, etc) and chop them into whatever thickness steaks you want.
1816
Until you end up with a tub of steaks...
1817
...and a bowl of trimmings.
1818
The next ham I decided not to steak out. Instead, I cut to the bone and fileted all the muscles together off the bone until they came off as a group. I cleaned these up, seasoned them, then rolled and tied them into a rolled roast for future use in a King Ranch Casserole (http://www.txbeef.org/recipe.php3?980199740).
1819
My next was to clean up the backstraps by removing any silver skin (if you can filet a fish, you will have zero problems with this).
1820
Until you're left with nothing but good, clean backstraps! These, I froze whole to use later as stuffed backstraps, bacon wrapped medallions, or whatever. You maintain some versatility by freezing them whole. If you want fried backstrap, just thaw, slice, and cook.
1821
I know these aren't the greatest instructions in the world, but I hope they'll at least give you some idea of how to get started doing your own processing at home. It doesn't take up near as much room as some people think, huh? I do it right at the kitchen table in sight of the TV, near the refrigerator with the cold beer in it. Just take your time, don't rush, and you'll end up with some nice packages of meat that you know are yours, you know were taken care of properly, and you can be proud that you did the entire process yourself.
Hope this helps.
Rudey