_JT_
Active Member
I'll put a vote in for butchering your own. Definitely a learning experience, but provided you have patience and a sharp knife you'll pick it up pretty quickly. Vacuum sealer is a must, and a grinder. I just use a meat grinder attachment for a kitchenaid that we have and it works just fine.
That being said, I'll still drop one a year off to the butcher if I'm pressed for time or want some specialty cuts ie bologna/jerky from places that do an outstanding job.
As far as the feeling of getting shorted, there's definitely been a difference in what I've gotten back by going to separate butchers. Some of it is how selective they are with the fat, and some of it imo is just honest mistakes of packaging and being overrun with work. Witnessed a pretty nasty spat between a processor and hunter a few years back. Hunter shot a 110lb deer with a 8mm that went thru both shoulders. Hunter refused to believe that blowing thru two shoulders would affect the total weight and it got pretty heated. At the end of the day, I wouldn't mess with the butcher because I'd venture to guess the guy could make someone disappear without a trace
That being said, I'll still drop one a year off to the butcher if I'm pressed for time or want some specialty cuts ie bologna/jerky from places that do an outstanding job.
As far as the feeling of getting shorted, there's definitely been a difference in what I've gotten back by going to separate butchers. Some of it is how selective they are with the fat, and some of it imo is just honest mistakes of packaging and being overrun with work. Witnessed a pretty nasty spat between a processor and hunter a few years back. Hunter shot a 110lb deer with a 8mm that went thru both shoulders. Hunter refused to believe that blowing thru two shoulders would affect the total weight and it got pretty heated. At the end of the day, I wouldn't mess with the butcher because I'd venture to guess the guy could make someone disappear without a trace