First visit to butcher

crazyhazy

Since coming on here a few months ago I've been meaning to go to our local butchers but kept forgetting (no excuse as there is one at the bottom of the road!). But on saturday I decided to go. Found it a little daunting not just being able to pick everything up and through in a trolley but managed ok. We got 2 chicken breasts, 500g of beef mince and some lamb (got butchers recommendation for a stew). We thought it was a little expensive, at about £11, but when we actually got home and thought about it, the 2 chicken breasts weighed in at about 500g, which we'd have paid £5 for in asda and the mince would have been about £3, which would leave £3 for the lamb which would have been quite a bit more than that cos there was loads!

Then the real test came - the taste! We made a lamb stew on saturday night, had enough to freeze some aswell and it was lovely!
Have made spag bol with the mince but frozen it so won't know till we eat it at the weekend.
But the chicken was lovely! 1 breast was more than enough for 2 of us and it just tasted so much better than usual.

So, think we are definately converted now, no more asda meat for us!

VickyA_2

It's great when you first do it, isn't it? Quite scary running away from those packs that you can so easily pick up. And your butcher gave you a recommendation for a stew - probably can't get that from every Asda assistant, can you? The meat is more than likely from a very local source, like our butcher's, and therefore fewer "food miles" and more environmentally friendly!

sarah1

Now that you have found a good butcher , the sky is the limit. You can buy loads of things that your supermarket does not sell and they are not filled with water and the flavour is so much better too.
You can get loads of cheap cuts which taste great like brisket, belly draft , bacon, sausages and gammon joints make a lovely dinner aswell as boiled ham for sandwiches all week. eggs are much better aswell they are larger and taste better.
I always find that timing is the key aswell, i always go at the end of the day on a saturday they almost give the stuff away and you know that it is fresh because they would have sold the older things during the day. We've all got a freezer and mine is always full with loads of variety so no-one gets bored.

Mado

Well done. It really feels good when you put a bit of humanity and pride back into shopping.

I swear by my local fruit and veg stall at the market, and the fishmonger when I manage to go on wednesdays... Unlike the supermarket, he knows what's fresh or how to cook it.
Same people every week with their smile, comments on my little helpers when they join me, good stuff and now that they know me... I get the occasional "take an extra mango this one is a bit soft".
AND best pices too as we eat a LOT of fruit and veg.

Debt_Free_Chick

crazyhazy wrote:

Found it a little daunting not just being able to pick everything up and through in a trolley but managed ok.

I am a huge advocate for the local butcher - so pleased it worked out for you.

You may feel a little daunted at first but please, please, please ... talk to your butcher. Ask his advice. Ask him what's particularly "good" this week. Ask him for a thrify cut of meat and advice on how to cook it. And ask if he makes his own sausage - all good butchers do and you'll find them meatier than pre-packed from the supermarket

If you like meat, get Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's Meat book from the library. He'll tell you everything you need to know about buying meat, as well as cooking it.

Hope you stay converted My only weekly shop is at the local butcher and occasionally the farm shop (to supplement home-grown veg - or rather lack of it!). The result is that I only have to go to the supermarket every three months