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I agree that the incident itself isn't funny, but this bit breaks me up!

My bad. I was flipping back and forth between the two threads in buying half a cow and put that comment here by mistake. I’m not offended if you move it to the other thread

@BaxterBaker Yes indeed , supporting local , and husbandry id a very fine thing ! I know you will truly enjoy every cut , burger , and meatloaf meatloaf. P.S. who got the tail ? and cheeks ! congratulation on your project . Yum Yum . P.S.: Id like to hear about that 1/2 ' hog' ' pig ? ' if you can manage it . Quite some time ago , people who had the land , and , you bet help raised 6 or so pigs . maybe more , maybe less . Breed unknown but this was before attention to breed , over all so , generic pig. parts were individually gifted to local friends a rack , loin and tenderloin , fresh , not injected etc , was gifted to friends of ypur ' up there ' , and we went over , and had roasted ' straight ' rack of lamb. I took care of the Jus and made gravy from it and made Mashed Russets it was very tasty. and so very different from pork , in any way id had in a great great while . Its a wonderful direction you get to enjoy following. looking forward to it .

A slice of the walnut torte… it’s delicious, was very good but I am also going to be trying a slightly different version.

Please clarify your question. Do you mean, say, two families splitting a cow but asking for different cuts? And do note that BaxterBaker did this on his own, at least this time around. @rotuts, he states in his "introduction" post that he's in Tennessee. But you raise a good question about whether directly-sold, grass-fed cows are graded the way wholesale, standard-commercially-sold cows are. @BaxterBaker, I echo rotuts' request for shots of the meat as you pull it out for cooking. I applaud your paying attention to the treatment and feeding of the animals.

@rotus….stop the hunt, I made it with tart cherry juice, a little sugar + citric acid . I cooked down TJ’s tart cherry juice to a syrupy consistency…it’s delicious, better than pomegranate which I also make.

Hey, another random question. Has anyone done something like this with another family/cook/carnivore with different culinary preferences?

I have a Tojiro petty (paring knife) and have been quite happy with it, along with our Tojiro chicken boning knife. Other manufacturers may be better entries in a "my knife is sharper than yours" contest () but I have found Tojiro to be easily sharp enough for everything I need to do, quite durable, and excellent value. Tojiro petty (clicky) ^ I did not do a price check, so other sources may be less expensive. Good luck with whatever you choose!

I guess that is not what you want, but it is advertised and sold as an Asian Utility knife. Are you looking for an Asian brand?

I've decided to get these: (eG-friendly Amazon.com link) (eG-friendly Amazon.com link) Small size, good reviews, I've seen them in action and liked what I saw. They've not arrived yet.

I really like the look of that knife but I want an Asian blade for the extra sharpness

Asian blades have a 15 degree bevel. a picture can't show that.

Looks like they ground most of the braising cuts? Although it looks like you got a bunch of brisket and chuck. Did you get any short ribs? Did you get a hanger steak? What’s your plan for the cow and what do you like to cook? Also, I’m curious how the meat goes in the freezer. Is it vacuum sealed?

Any chance you can link to a photo that shows the Asian blade? I’m curious what it looks like an how it’s used. My paring knife went missing so I bought this cheapie Victorinox paring knife (eG-friendly Amazon.com link) It scared my old one out of hiding but it’s been handy to have a spare.

I have this one, the 4 1/2" Wustoff Classic and am very happy with it.

@BaxterBaker, make sure to check out this earlier topic: Buying Half a Cow

Welcome. Look forward to hearing about your cooking

@BaxterBaker thank you for starting this thread . this is a fine start . when you get to the various cuts , can you post of pic of a few of them ? Id like to see what the cut meat looks like , intramuscular fat , etc. and , generally speaking , where are you from ? does this cow have a ' grade ' to it , if that's something in your area ?

I need a new 4" parring knife with an Asian blade. Do you have any recommendations? I know there some sharp knife enthusiasts among us.

Thank you for this detailed description. I'm sure it will generate a lot of good ideas and discussion. I'll start with an idea for the fat: your dog may wish some of it, but I'll also point out that beef fat, rendered to get the tallow, can make an excellent frying medium. It depends on your cooking style, of course. I have no idea how much rendered tallow you would get out of 12.44 pounds of fat; maybe somebody else will know.

A few months ago I made a major change to my diet and I'm now eating whole foods of very high quality, a higher percentage of calories from high-quality fats, a focus on protein, and moderate carb intake. Part of this change in strategy includes buying grass-fed beef. I found a farmer local to me (Wade) who claims to be a regenerative farmer. He raises cows, pigs, and chickens. He uses the "Chicken Tractor" method for his chickens, which I think is very clever. I think it works well as long as he drags the tractors to fresh grass every couple of days. The pigs are kept only in pens and I'm not sure what he feeds them. They look well cared for. I asked why he didn't put them outside and he said they are very destructive and will ruin their enclosure in just a few days. Too much work. I've decided not to buy pork from him because I found another farm near me that does keep their pigs outside and I'm more confident that this farmer feeds them better food as well. I've ordered half a pig from this farmer. I bought a new 21cf upright freezer for $1,000 in preparation for all this. I'm fortunate that I've got extra space where I am, due to my business, and I found a perfect place for it inside where it is conditioned space. I just got the half cow into the freezer. Wade dropped everything off on his way through from the processor. The meat was cold but not frozen. The freezer worked hard for a couple of days getting it all down to temperature. I started this thread because I hope this information is helpful to those thinking of doing the same and because I have questions for the group. But I'll wait to ask my questions as this thread develops - this first post is long enough as is. Here's a breakdown of the order: Processing fee was $434.35 Wade's fee for half cow $1,350 Total $1,784.35 Per Pound of processed meat average $10.64 (not including bones for broth, fat for ??, and kidneys for my dog) In pounds: Total of everything received = 199.87 Meat other than Ground Beef Total = 75.69 Ground Beef Total = 92 Bones, Fat, Kidneys Total = 32.18 Individual cuts, total and breakdown of pieces: Rib Roast 7.56 New York Strip Total = 2.17 1.06 1.11 Chuck Roast Total = 14.27 3.95 2.25 4.06 4.01 Rib Steak Total = 7.27 1.89 1.91 1.61 1.86 Skirt Total = 3.29 1.04 2.25 Flat Iron Total = 1.44 .52 .50 .42 Flank 1.68 Brisket Total = 9.51 4.59 4.92 Rump Roast Total = 12.83 2.68 1.69 3.69 2.07 2.70 Sirloin Steak Total = 5.45 1.28 1.28 .9 .9 1.09 T-Bone Total = 9.63 1.33 1.50 1.04 1.35 1.44 1.43 1.54 Filet Total = 2.27 .34 .34 .61 .55 .43 Bones Total = 17.68 1.42 2.72 1.65 2.38 .77 1.43 2.36 2.26 1.13 1.56 Fat Total = 12.44 2.47 4.99 4.98 Kidneys Total = 2.06 1.06 1.0 I didn't get the hanging weight of the cow.

@Shel_B, have you gotten a new grater yet? If so, which did you choose and how do you like it?

This incident isn’t really funny, but has inspired some good comments. Like the first sentence in this piece, Missouri big rig fire burns 40,000 pounds of ribeyes, which begins, “A tractor-trailer fire in Missouri gives new meaning to well done.” The Doolittle Rural Fire Department that responded to the fire posted on their Facebook page: “Nothing says ‘welcome to the fire service’ like sending the probie to put out 40,000 pounds of flaming ribeye. Probationary Firefighter Jenna Ulrich is the only vegan on our department——so naturally, her very first fire involved a tractor trailer carrying 40,000 pounds of ribeye steak.” Of course there was much speculation in the comments on what it smelled like!

I got excited for a moment there. I thought, "If I eat that shrimp, I could become a mobile atomic clock!" But alas, the clock uses cesium-133, not 137.

Glazed tuna with sautéed Napa cabbage, miso broiled eggplant, and rice