A masterclass in beef butchery at the Ginger Pig
As a butcher's granddaughter I have eaten my fair share of meat although as I've become older I have to admit to some doubts about the ethics of it all. There is no denying that I enjoy it, I have vivid memories of my granddad's tales of frying 'lights' (lungs) and listening to them whistling in the pan. My English grandmother used to spoil me with home cooked ham sandwiches for breakfast on school holidays, humouring her half Dutch grandchild who had a liking for continental breakfasts. Homemade brawn was a delicious treat and the pig's head and trotters boiling in the pan held no fear for us curious children. As an economy conscious student I was a regular customer at our local butcher and was often rewarded with thick pork chops with perfect kidneys attached. Pictures of our ancestors shop laden with Christmas turkeys, rabbits and pheasants holds pride of place in both mine and my brother's house. However the growth of supermarket shopping where all such products are pre-packaged in plastic and several food industry scares had damaged my confidence as a carnivore and I was keen to restore my faith and find out more about eating quality meat. So as a special birthday treat for my Dad, I bought a couple of tickets for a beef masterclass at the Ginger Pig, a small chain of inspirational butchers working hard to bring the good name back to butchery.
The class is held in the shop itself, with the eager students crowded around an enormous wooden butchers block holding half a carcass, each student suitably attired in a butchers overall and all wearing proper closed in shoes (no open toes for obvious reasons). On initial inspection the meat itself looks very black but we are all reassured that this is properly dry aged beef (minimum of 28 days and up to 40 and sometimes longer).
Whilst the students learn the merits of ageing and location of fore rib, wing rib, rump roast, sirloin, rib eye, filet mignon, chateaubriand, t-bone and porterhouse, a large fillet has been seared on a griddle, sliced and handed around for tasting. There are many 'mmmmms' and 'aaaahhhhs' as we all agree that it is really fantastically tasty and very tender. We then get to grips with the large side of beef in front of us, learning to use the knife and saw under expert and friendly tuition. Time flies and there are some wonderful smells coming from the oven at the back where a large fore rib is roasting away. It's very hard to stop your stomach rumbling. First we are given our own fore rib joint to prepare French style. The size of the joint is huge, it'll feed us for over a week, much bigger than I will have ever cooked before and preparing it as instructed is harder than it looked despite very clear instructions. Still, we get the knack of it and even learn some butchers knots in the process. After a quick scrub up we rejoin our tutor as he unwraps the giant roast and get a masterclass in carving the joint. The butchers blocks are turned into impromptu tables, covered in tablecloths and set with knives and forks and huge bowls of mixed green salad (the vegetarian option). The luscious beef is plated up and we queue Oliver Twist style for a portion of garlicky potato Dauphinoise and grab a generously filled glass of red wine.
Wow....it was so good, tender, full of flavour, the sort of roast you dream about but rarely have. It was so good that I have to apologise for the photo above as I started to stuff my face and only remembered to take the photo about 10 minutes later. I didn't expect anything else after such a feast yet they followed it with an enormous bread and butter pudding with chocolate and yes, of course I had some. These courses are rightly popular and are actually incredibly good value. I left with a great deal of respect for my grandfather and his father before him and a very full belly!
The class is held in the shop itself, with the eager students crowded around an enormous wooden butchers block holding half a carcass, each student suitably attired in a butchers overall and all wearing proper closed in shoes (no open toes for obvious reasons). On initial inspection the meat itself looks very black but we are all reassured that this is properly dry aged beef (minimum of 28 days and up to 40 and sometimes longer).
Whilst the students learn the merits of ageing and location of fore rib, wing rib, rump roast, sirloin, rib eye, filet mignon, chateaubriand, t-bone and porterhouse, a large fillet has been seared on a griddle, sliced and handed around for tasting. There are many 'mmmmms' and 'aaaahhhhs' as we all agree that it is really fantastically tasty and very tender. We then get to grips with the large side of beef in front of us, learning to use the knife and saw under expert and friendly tuition. Time flies and there are some wonderful smells coming from the oven at the back where a large fore rib is roasting away. It's very hard to stop your stomach rumbling. First we are given our own fore rib joint to prepare French style. The size of the joint is huge, it'll feed us for over a week, much bigger than I will have ever cooked before and preparing it as instructed is harder than it looked despite very clear instructions. Still, we get the knack of it and even learn some butchers knots in the process. After a quick scrub up we rejoin our tutor as he unwraps the giant roast and get a masterclass in carving the joint. The butchers blocks are turned into impromptu tables, covered in tablecloths and set with knives and forks and huge bowls of mixed green salad (the vegetarian option). The luscious beef is plated up and we queue Oliver Twist style for a portion of garlicky potato Dauphinoise and grab a generously filled glass of red wine.
Wow....it was so good, tender, full of flavour, the sort of roast you dream about but rarely have. It was so good that I have to apologise for the photo above as I started to stuff my face and only remembered to take the photo about 10 minutes later. I didn't expect anything else after such a feast yet they followed it with an enormous bread and butter pudding with chocolate and yes, of course I had some. These courses are rightly popular and are actually incredibly good value. I left with a great deal of respect for my grandfather and his father before him and a very full belly!
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