Tag Archives: Butchering

EARLY FOOD STAPLES

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Our foremothers never got a break; they were always keeping one step ahead of the next meal. They made premade gravies, sauces, jellies, bread to go stale for crumbs, among other items to have on hand to add to the fresh meat, fish, and vegetables they would have for dinner. To prepare for my hearth cooking classes I have to do the same thing.

I needed to have pig’s leaf lard to fry with and trotters for jelly. From the lamb came the caul and the lard and marrow bones from the cow. So I called Lemay’s Butchery in Goffstown and placed my order. Within a few days I picked it up. It’s amazing how many parts there are to farm animals and the foods that can be made from them

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I chopped the suet and leaf lard in pieces. I put just a little water in the suet to get it started, and gave the leaf lard a good four cups to boil in. These were both simmered, as the water evaporated from the suet, it melted nicely. The leaf lard took a bit longer yet when it was strained and cold, it was a lovely white, soft paste that looks like Crisco. After sitting in the refrigerator overnight, the melted suet was white and hard as a rock, perfect for coffin dough.

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Allan cut the pig’s feet in half. They were so long they would not fit into the pot. I scrubbed in between the pigs toes and took a knife and scraped the skin to remove all and any residue. After giving them a good wash into a large pot they went. They simmered for 5 hours then cooled overnight, and then simmered for 3 more hours the next day. Then the liquid was poured off into a clean towel, placed in a strainer, and then the jelly was poured into a jar with a good tight lid. The pig’s feet jelly will be added to gravy.

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I rinsed and rinsed the caul and picked the small veins out. I wrapped it in parchment paper and froze it. It is a really nice piece and will be used to wrap forced meat to be fried in the leaf lard and placed in the coffin made with the beef suet.  With the marrow bone roasted and browned, I scooped out the inside and saved them for the Lumber Pie. I also made two gravies to have for the two coffins. Thankfully, I have refrigeration to be able to keep these food items in a healthy manner.

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Next I needed to make the manchets so they could be made into bread crumbs, then I headed to Tender Crop Farm in Newburyport, Massachusetts, for some fresh turkey breast for the turkey pie. manchetfirecopy

The day before the class I walked the farm market in Exeter to find the best carrots, beets and apples for our carrot pudding, the fried beets and custard apples.

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There is a lot of preparation needed to have a group come and cook at the hearth. It’s not just preparing some staples ahead of time. There is also the decoding of early receipts that are written in a narrative form that need to be transformed into modern-day measurement, and sometimes food substitutions. However, I enjoy sharing my experiences with others, and though it can be messy and challenging sometimes, I love the connection with the cooks of the past and the present-day participants who come to hearth cook for the day.

 Sandie

“To speak then of the outward and active knowledge which belong to our English Houfe-Wife, I hold the first and most principal to be, a perfect skill and knowledge in Cookery,”

 Gervase Markham – The English House-Wife 1683

TURKEY SLAUGHTERING & CLEANING 101

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ALHFAM workshop presented by: Victoria Belisle, Lead Interpreter of Freeman Farmhouse and Sewing at Old Sturbridge Village This workshop provided step-by-step instructions on slaughtering and cleaning a turkey. This was a hands-on workshop. Being that it is winter, and not the time of year that you can find a heritage turkey for butchering, two white farm turkeys were used. However, the process is the same; you just have a fatter bird with two large legs and a large breast.

THIS POST IS NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART.

Slaughtering and cleaning a turkey is bloody work, literally.

Saturday dawned, a cold and dreary day, not just weather-wise, but also for the fate of two turkeys that were bound for the table at OSV. We were told to dress warm and in layers; I took that to heart and bundled up with as many layers as I could put on and still move. We all left the educational building and met outside where we were greeted by the turkeys and Dave. The turkeys were un-named at first but by the end of the outdoor session, the names Louis and Marie were heard.

Victoria removed a bird and Dave did the chopping, I was going to hold the second bird, however, when I saw the way they flap and the blood squirting out everywhere, I passed. I needed to stay clean for the next workshop. With both birds ready for feather removal, the water was tested to make sure it was not too hot. Don’t want to cook the meat.  I picked up one turkey and dunked it in the hot water for 60 seconds to help loosen up the pores so the feathers would come out easily.untitled-1-copy 60 seconds go by and out comes the turkey, and is it heavy, sodden with all that water. Tom and I begin to plucking the feathers which remove quickly and help keep our hands warm. The down is so soft and, being wet, it sticks to your hands. At the same time, the rest of our group works on the second turkey. We found that we needed to dip the birds more than once to loosen up the large feathers. You want to be very careful not to tear the skin so the pores need to be open; that is why there is a second and third dip.  With the bird de-feathered, Victoria and Tom carry them into the educational building. We compare a heritage chicken to the breast of the new-bred farm turkey. There is a big difference from one to the other. 2copy Then it’s time to learn how to take the intestines out. First, you carefully cut around the vent, (a bird’s all-purpose rear orifice) ideally without spilling any of the contents. Once there is an opening, you stick your hand inside and disconnect the membrane around the intestines. You are trying to separate the intestines from the fat and meat without puncturing anything that might contaminate the bird. Make sure you remove your rings first! 3copy After the neck end is disconnected, the guts are pulled out, this is not a good smell. Victoria shows us the eggs and other parts of the intestines. Next the legs are cut off and the bird is ready for a good wash. Then it will be butchered and cooked.4copy At this point I needed to go off and prepare for the workshop I was giving, so I missed the second bird being done and the washing. However, I’m sure it was the same technique used. Thanks to Victoria and Dave for a great workshop.

Sandie

OPEN HEARTH COOKING CLASSES

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I have just posted my up-coming classes for April – May

Look for them in the gray box on the right side of the site –

OPEN HEARTH COOKING CLASSES

Hope you can join us

Sandie

Heritage Breed Pig

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Old Sturbridge Village

DAY ONE – On a gloomy foggy, damp and cold day I walked to the Freeman Farm at OSV with a mission, which was to learn how to butcher a pig.

According to state laws, the pig was shot in the head with a gun. This was done before visitors were allowed in the park. It took four men to drag the pig from the sty to the barn and hang him up. The English Black was only eleven months old and was estimated to be around 400 pounds. Fed with the leftover whey and scraps from the kitchen, he was one healthy pig.

First order of the day was to drain out the blood. Rowan, one of the ladies from the kitchen, sat and collected as much blood in a tin wash pan as she could. This would be turned into blood sausage.

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Next the hair needed to be removed from the skin. This was done by scalding the front half of the pig in water that was about 120 to 150 degrees. Out it came and then placed on the table where the men, with hog scrapers, remove as much hair as possible. It took several more times of dipping to remove most of the hair. The pig was turned about and dunked tail first to finish the job of hair removal. What was left would be candled off later if needed.

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While the men scraped the pig, I went into the house and watched the ladies make the blood sausage. They used an old receipt for blood pudding. It was very important to keep stirring the blood so it would not coagulate and, when measured, it came to about 1 ½ pints of fresh blood. They set out cubes of bread soaked in milk, corn meal with a bit of water, chopped hog’s fat, and many spices; adding 6 eggs, they mixed it all together. What they ended up with was a loose mixture they could pour through the tin sausage maker, which they used like a funnel. With a knot on the end of the small intestines, from last year’s pig, they started to make links by tying off every four inches or so with string. You must leave room for the corn meal to expand when they are boiled. After a short boil over the fire, the blood sausage are taken out and brought to the buttry to dry. They could have been eaten then; however, they will be preserved for the long winter months to come.

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Back to the barn I went to see the men cut open the pig. It is very important to not cut the diaphragm as this is what divides the edible organs from the bad stuff. Everyone pitches in and helps when the opening was made in the front half, Dan used an ax to split the chest bone and reached in and pulled out the heart.  Untitled-5 copy

Then the pig was hoisted up again by his feet so they could carefully cut the rear. You don’t want to nick the intestines and contaminate anything. It was moved closer to the table while hanging and the insides were removed starting with the intestines and ending up with the liver, lungs, kidneys and so forth.

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This pig had a lovely caul. I would have loved to have it for cooking. They did not keep it, however, as it is too fancy an item for OSV. Back on the table, the pelvis was split with the ax and cut in two pieces and hung. It needs to spend a night in the barn to let rigamortis set in. This would make it easier to butcher the meat. pig_diagram

DAY TWO – The butchering begins. The ladies have a bit of fun out in the barn, knowing full well this poor piggy will be in pieces soon. I arrive and had to have my picture taken also.

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Justin and Dave lower the pig and bring it into the house.

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The ladies flip it over and take out the leaf lard, this snow white fat that lies between the ribs and the organs and feels like butter it is prized for its taste and consistency.

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Next the tenderloin was removed and put aside; it was later fried with onions and spices by Ryan, who then served it to all the workers at lunch.

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Flipping the pig over, Victoria cuts the ham out, with help from Pauline and Dave with his ax. Now it is interesting to note that cuts of pork were very unlike ours today. They were large, and even though pork chops were known of, they were reserved for very special occasions. The front and back legs were huge pieces of meat and the ribs were cut into large roast.

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The head needs to be removed before you can cut the shoulder. Once that is done, the ear is cut off. The pig’s jowl is cut off next; along with a wonderful piece of neck meat that will become a roast. Then the jowl is trimmed for jowl bacon. Victoria and Erica cut the back fat from the outer ribs and peel the ribs away.

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While this is going on, Rowan is cleaning out the small intestines. To clean the intestines, you need to take off the hard fat that surrounds it and then place it in a bowl of water and turn the casing inside out and then scrape with a knife to remove all the stuff that is stuck on it and clean the inside. Then you turn it inside out again and repeat until the casing is white and super clean. This will be used for sausage. This is a long process, and, yesterday, everyone helped with the task.

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Now the ribs are completely removed and the bacon exposed. The ax is used to divide the ribs into three roasts. The large layer of fat with its skin is removed from the bacon. The bacon, ribs and legs all have a lot of exposed meat so this is trimmed off down to the fat layer and saved in the scrap bowl for the sausage or to boil. This is done so there is no waste when it is smoked.

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On the table is a leg, and bacon that has already been smoked. The leg looks like glass but is surprisingly soft on the other side, same with the bacon. Everything is placed on the table while and Ryan points out the layer of meat in the bacon that has been smoked.

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I wish I had counted how many visitors they had throughout the day. It was one large group after another, and only four people that I saw left the room abruptly. The children made wonderful comments and really enjoyed the experience as much as I did. One girl thanked the ladies for the demonstration and said “It was gross, but interesting.” Don’t you just love kids?

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The men did a great job of preparing the pig for butchering, and the ladies were expert in doing so. All this pork will be used in the programs at OSV during the year. Every part of the pig was used. The ear, tail, and feet will be made into souse a gravy-like jello, with vinegar in it, to preserve it. The head will be boiled and made into head cheese. The heart, lungs, kidneys, tongue, liver and any other organ meat will be processed for use. The large cuts will be brined and placed in the cellar, after 6 weeks some will be hung in their smokehouse for another 6 weeks above a smoldering fire of corncobs and applewood, giving the meat a distinctive OSV flavor.

This was a great experience and I can’t thank the ladies enough for letting me record their work. Now I will have to get half of a pig of my own for next year and butcher it myself, some to eat right away with my cooking classes and some to go down in the new root cellar. Now I just need my husband to build me a smokehouse.

I hope you enjoyed this blog and will continue to subscribe and receive the new posts of culinary treats and happenings around the Colonial Table.

Sandie