Has /ck/ ever bought a whole lamb, half a pig, quarter of a cow etc?
This year I'm planning to buy a whole lamb, just want to know if it worked out for you.
Pic related a whole lamb.
>>7488547
dit a whole piglet and a whole lamb once. The pig turned out way better then the lamb, juicy tender with a crispy skin. The lamb became dry and a bit burned. But I may have rotated it to slowly because it was a bit to have for the skewer it was on. My guests seemed to enjoy it just fine though.
>>7488547
I grew up in a ranching community, was normal to buy half a beef every year or two. Just make sure you have a good deep freeze and enough room beforehand, never had any problems with it.
Kid goat, cut up as your lamb is, yes.
And if having it already cooked for you counts, I once bought a whole hog for a barbecue. Like whole, whole. Head attached and all that.
>>7488547
How do you get through the joints and ribs without power tools?
>>7488547
Whole hogs and half a beef most years, although I have them processed for me. If you have the freezer space and a backup plan to keep things frozen if the power's out long term it's great. Look for recipes from the poorer side of the tracks to find a way to use up everything that shows up, though.
>>7488547
We raise a cow every year to be butchered. At least 1/3 goes to extended family. Works out great for us. Last cow rendered about 470 # prime beef after butchering.
>>7491193
You better have turned some of that into jerky my man
Do you not need to eat it within a certain period of time to avoid loss of quality? Not thinking food safety but just degradation from eg freezer burn
>>7489631
How much does that run for?
>>7491209
We made a lot during the holidays last year and gave it away as gifts.
I prolly make a good size batch every month for myself and the wife.
>>7491216
lrn2freeze better
>>7491216
For us, We usually eat everything within 16- 18 months. All the meat is vacuum packed and in a deep freezer. I will give it away to family and friends before I let it go bad.
>>7491246
Must be a real load off your mind to have that kind of self sufficiency when it comes to your meat. Sounds comfy as shit desu
>>7491254
It is. We save quite a bit doing it this way. The cost is expensive initially but it's worth it for the amount of meat that we get. Pic related is one of the freezers, we have 2. We had the cow butchered and processed early December 2015. It's alot of meat. It looks messy but I keep things separated in boxes and paper bags. I use this one a lot and just add meat as necessary. This is the freezer in the house. There is another chest freezer full of beef in the garage. Love to fish so I have a lot of fish in the other one too. It's nice though because we really do give a lot of it away.
I do dread hurricane season though. About 5 years ago we had a hurricane come through and we were without power for 3 weeks. I have generators but without gas they aren't worth shit. Managed to make it 2 weeks before I had to start rationing the gas and use it in other areas. We lost 2 freezers full of food among other things. That situation made me feel absolutely helpless. I consider myself well prepared but it taught me a lot. Never again.
>>7488547
>just want to know if it worked out for you.
what's the fuckin mystery?? people do this all the time. not to mention those who hunt and slaughter animals themselves. cut your animal into pieces, pack and freeze it. enjoy.
>>7488547
I do mutiple wild boars and deer with my father every year (if we kill one, that is). Could be done quite easily with an hour or two on hand. Just need a sharp knife, a hacksaw for bones, and a bunch of bags to put pieces it in the freezer as you go.
>>7491231
How about your wife's son?
>>7489691
with a hacksaw
>>7488547
>whole lamb
>no head
you was robbed, cuz. lamb cheeks and brains are spectacular
why cut the rack into individual ribs?
what the hell is the point?
>>7491193
Assuming you own your own land or had it pastured, how much did you pay for feed and tender? Do you know the net $/#
>>7491308
>Never again.
Did you go with increased fuel storage, alternative electrical power, or keeping the supplies on hand to turn a freezer full of meat into a barrel full of salted meat? We've been fortunate in that most long power failures come in the winter, but the last few years we've been experimenting with drying, salt curing, or fermenting all kinds of stuff for storage.
pig is haram
>>7491498
>>7491498
Yes. We have plenty of pasture land. The last couple of years has been more expensive because of all the droughts. If the pasture is drying up then we have to supplement with hay and (sometimes) corn. Hay is expensive during the droughts, and we have had to travel many times to get a decent price on the large round bales because we had used up all the hay in the barn. In a perfect world the pasture is always green and plentiful. Doesn't always happen like that though.
When all goes well our prices can be as low as 59-80 cents per pound. It can go as high as $ 2.80 $3.00+ during very dry times or if you have to buy a calf.
Local cut and wrap of 49 cents/lb hanging weight. On a 22mo old 1/2 beef, 1/2 dairy home raised steer we weighed the finished product from the butcher minus bones and fat and our final cost was under .80 cents per pound.
>>7488547
I've bought whole pigs before. Both to cook whole for a big BBQ and also to portion up and use for various things. Some cuts get frozen, others get used for making bacon, guanicale, sausage, etc.
>>7491571
Yes, we've increased our fuel storage and have also installed an automatic propane generator. It cost about $6800.00 for the unit and installation but it was worth it and a solar panel on the well.
We do make a lot of jerky.
For those of you who are buying this much meat in bulk, are you vacuum sealing it yourselves? If so, what sealer do you use? Just as important, which bags?
>>7493905
I use sandwich baggies. My brother uses FoodSaver brand bags and sealer, though.
I buy half lambs from my butcher. He keeps the more expensive cuts from them though like cutlets and loin and I just end up with shanks, shoulder, ribs, legs and stuff. It keeps the cost down for me and I prefer cuts that require slow cooking and stuff.
>>7493905
Vacuum sealing
>>7488547
No, I'm not some fucking scumbag that buys hunks of animal carcass so I can slobber my fat fucking face all over it like some psychopath who supports mass gruesome slaughter and destruction of the environment
>>7491216
>Do you not need to eat it within a certain period of time to avoid loss of quality?
You'll be good for about two years if you properly vacuum-seal your meat.
I've had shit get lost in my deep freeze longer than that. I just made a crock pot italian beef with it so any textural damage wasn't noticeable.
>>7492479
nice one. my aunt used to raise beef cattle, she had about 80 acres of decent property, on a good year she could run 2 dozen beef and would get around $1.20-$1.50lb at sale. She's gotten too old to maintain the fences tho, so only raises goats and chickens and the odd bull for studding anymore.
goats milk is horrible. goat's milk ice cream is fucking amazing. Not sure exactly how that works, but it's better than froyo
>>7488547
You call that a whole lamb? What is this pussy shit.
Buy an actual whole lamb and stick it on a spit
>>7494140
I'll buy your mother and stick her on my dick.
>>7494140
Excuse me sir or madam, but I do believe your whole lamb is wholly missing its skin. Bad show, I say.
>>7494159
Skin is always left on, you just can't see it in the pic very well. You're looking for this sort of crispy finish, by the time it's ready.
Only if you kill the lamb with your own hands. Then you have my permission to eat it's flesh.
>>7488547
We get 1/4 beef, ( split with family, we all go in to cover the cost) whole hog, deer, fish every year, dove and quail if we're lucky and get a good season. Also chickens, which we raise for eggs and meat.
We vacuum seal most of it with a Food Saver. Butcher paper for things we know we will be eating within about 4 months.
>>7495045
1/4 beef----I mean we get a whole cow and split the cost and meat 4 ways.
>>7488547
Grandfather keeps a hobby flock of sheep and cattle, and every few months he'll get a 3-4 lambs and 1 or 2 beef cows. they're shot, skinned and hung right in the paddock, zero stress and zero fuss. get the meat butchered to order a few days later. if you ever get the opportunity to eat mothers milk fed lamb, definitely do it. it's unreal.
>>7495047
How much is it for the whole cow?
>>7495062
Generally $900-$1100 for a 1300# cow. (Depends on the area) you will get about 600 -650 pounds of hanging weight off of that.
It's much cheaper if you can raise it yourself and just put it out to pasture. Fatten it up with some clean grain towards the end.
>>7495062
I'm in Texas. It costs us roughly $1500. Usual yield is about 600# or just slightly under. It works out to approx. $2.50, give or take, per pound.
This is for everything, cow, transport, kill, cut, process, wrap.
>>7488547
Yes and it's worth doing if you can manage it.
