Whole Beast Butchery: The Complete Visual Guide to Beef, Lamb, and Pork [Hardcover]

Ryan Farr (Author), Brigit Binns (Collaborator), Ed Anderson (Photographer)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 16, 2011

DIY fever + quality meat mania = old-school butchery revival! Artisan cooks who are familiar with their farmers market are now buying small farm raised meat in butcher-sized portions. Dubbed a rock star butcher by the New York Times, San Francisco chef and self-taught meat expert Ryan Farr demystifies the butchery process with 500 step-by-step photographs, master recipes for key cuts, and a primer on tools, techniques, and meat handling. This visual manual is the first to teach by showing exactly what butchers know, whether cooks want to learn how to turn a primal into familiar and special cuts or to simply identify everything in the case at the market.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Ryan has given us a thorough master class in how to choose, prepare, and utilize whole animals in this practical and instructive exploration into the craft of the butcher. Start with sourcing local, sustainably raised meat beyond the supermarket; this book shows you how to make the most of it. -Chad Robertson, chef-owner of Tartine and Bar Tartine and author of Tartine Bread Having trained under a great butcher, I don't hand out praise lightly but Ryan Farr has blown me away with his passion for his craft. This book will be an indispensable resource for aspiring chefs and butchers and a valued book in my library as well. -Michael Tusk, chef-owner of Quince and Cotogna In an era when more cooks want to take control of their food, eat humanely raised meat more responsibly, and enjoy it more, Ryan Farr's book is essential for its superb photography and clear, concise information on the craft of butchery. It's an invaluable resource for chefs and home cooks who want to make use of all parts of the animals we eat. -Michael Ruhlman, author of Ruhlman's Twenty and Charcuterie Ryan's butchery techniques and recipes are spot on. -David Chang, chef/owner of Momofuku Both in restaurants and at home, interest in eating well-raised animals is resurgent for reasons of quality and health. In hundreds of pictures and clear, easy-to-understand text, Ryan Farr demystifies the lost art of whole animal butchery. Whole Beast will be an essential reference for a generation of young cooks. -Daniel Patterson, chef-owner of Coi

About the Author

Brigit Binns is the author or co-author of 23 cookbooks.

Ryan Farr is the owner and founder of 4505 Meats, where he makes artisanal sausages and his patented chicharrones, and teaches sell-out butchery classes for home and professional cooks. He lives in San Francisco.

Ed Anderson is a photographer specializing in food and the people who make it. He lives in Petaluma, California.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Chronicle Books (November 16, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1452100594
• ISBN-13: 978-1452100593
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 8.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,610 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #6 in Books > Cookbooks, Food & Wine > Cooking by Ingredient > Meat, Poultry & Seafood > Meats
  • #21 in Books > Cookbooks, Food & Wine > Culinary Arts & Techniques

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars thank you Ryan Farr......, November 10, 2011

By 

Philip Vogelzang - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Whole Beast Butchery: The Complete Visual Guide to Beef, Lamb, and Pork (Hardcover)

As someone who began raising and butchering his own livestock several years ago, I've developed quite a library of "how to butcher" books. Most of them are quite useful and I've usually been able to take home a least a couple of "pearls" that I find useful in my private on-the-farm butchershop. Needless to say it's been quite a journey and I still have a long way to go, so it was definitely a sense of relief when I opened Mr. Farr's new instructional manual and found to my surprise loads of useful tips and ideas.

The book is divided into three main parts - beef, lamb and pork. Each section begins with a clear schematic the various parts of each animal. Each schematic is then reproduced in miniature at the top of each ensuing page, keeping the reader oriented as to where in the animal the current photos originate. I for one, found this extremely useful

And what photos! Each one is clear, detailed and nicely laid out, accompanied by short and concise notes. It's harder than you might think to describe in words accurately how to break down an animal carcass. Believe me, I've read some other texts that leave you so confused, you don't know which end is up. Not here. Farrs descriptions are smart, pithy and to the point. Not to mention plentiful.

One aspect that this book doesn't cover (nor does it claim to) is the livestock side of things. Farr assumes you will be picking up your carcass from a local butcher. He offers no advise or instruction on how to slaughter a live animal, something many of us small scale livestock farmers need. But there are other good texts for that such as The Complete Book of Butchering, Smoking, Curing, and Sausage Making: How to Harvest Your Livestock & Wild Game by Philip Hasheider. Together with Whole Beast Butchery, these two texts are all an amateur butcher needs to get started. Thanks Ryan! Great job!

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A living craft, November 11, 2011

By 

K. Schoberle (San Francisco, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Whole Beast Butchery: The Complete Visual Guide to Beef, Lamb, and Pork (Hardcover)

The concept of whole animal butchery and utilization is fairly new to me. It wasn't something I grew up with, nor did the story of how the animal got to my plate ever occur to me until I moved to California a few years back. I found out about Ryan Farr and 4505 Meats during that time. He was offering whole animal butchering classes, and from the moment I signed up for that first class, I knew it was the next logical step to my tasty education. Having now taken all the butchering classes he has to offer, I can honestly say that this book is a true expression of that living craft he continues to teach people. The step by step manner in which the book is presented, along with simple but clever visual aids, provides an effective method for understanding the butchering process. I will never think of meat in the same way again. In fact, I will never buy meat the same way again.

I feel very lucky to be a part of this growing movement of people who are both reviving vitally important skills and forging new paths in the world of sustainable meat. Ryan Farr is one of those people, and his book, Whole Beast Butchery, will serve as an important personal reference for years to come. If you eat meat, regardless of whether or not you intend to butcher your own, this book should be a part of your library, period.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Whole Lotta Love for Whole Beast Butchery, November 11, 2011

By 

Hostess with the Mostest (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Whole Beast Butchery: The Complete Visual Guide to Beef, Lamb, and Pork (Hardcover)

It's great that more people are moving away from the nasty plastic-wrapped meat in the supermarket and hitting up farmers' markets and old-school butchers. You can take it one step further by learning how to actually butcher your own meat. You want a true farm to table experience? Pick up Whole Beast Butchery, source a whole pig or a lamb or go in with a group of friends on a steer and go to town! Ryan Farr shows how, with hundreds of very cool-looking step-by-step photos, breaking down everything you'd ever want to know about breaking down beef, lamb or pork. And even if you don't feel up to the task, the book is worth it for the recipes alone -- Spice-Cured Beef Brisket, Merguez Sausage, Crispy Pork Shoulder...
This man knows his meat.