Beef from

cattle

Veal from calves

Pork from hogs

Mutton from mature sheep

Lamb from
young sheep

Venison from deer;

other game incl. wild
boar, moose, and elk.
 Meats sold in the United
States are always inspected
by federal agents of the
Food & Drug Administration
(FDA)… from live animal to
the grocery store case.
Inspection stamps appear
on the meat itself, often in
the form of a edible, purple
vegetable dye. Both safety
and quality are determined.
 After each animal
is slaughtered, the
carcass is cut into
halves or quarters
called primary
cuts. It is then
hung to age for
48 hours- 21 days.
The hanging
position lengthens
the fibers and
creates more
tenderness. If left
to age longer, the
meat becomes
darker and more
The meat continues to be inspected
flavorful… but
throughout this process.
more expensive.
 Some call these second
cuts ‘primal’ cuts, as
well.

After aging, the carcass is cut again…

this time into large wholesale cuts.
Grocery stores often buy these cuts,
and butchers cut them up as customers
place their orders.
Fabrication is the cutting of wholesale
cuts into retail cuts of meat. The
customer or restaurant can order their
steaks cut ½, 1, or 2” thick OR get a 4,
5, or 20# roast… as they desire. Most
retail cuts are packaged and sold to
grocery stores for individual customer
purchasing.
Chuck Blade Steaks and Roasts Round
Shoulder Rump/Butt
Rib Loin Sirloin Ham

Plate
Belly, Bacon Flank
Arm Brisket
Spare or Hamburger
Shank
short ribs
 When cutting or purchasing Less tender top
Most tender
steaks (T-bones, rib, loin, round
bottom or
round, sirloin, etc.) the larger eye of round
section of meat at the top side
of the bone is less tender. The
smaller eye or bottom section is
A rib eye steak
the most tender.
is VERY
tender.
Hamburger or ground beef is made by
grinding up less tender meat and
scraps of meat and fat. It is sold by
the percentage of lean meat to fat:
85/15 means 85% lean red meat and
15% fat per pound. The lower
percentage of fat means ‘healthier…
but less flavorful’.
 When the eye is left
whole and not cut
crosswise into steaks… it
is called the tenderloin.
This is the small but very
best cut of meat. It is also
the most expensive cut.

Before roasting trim

the tenderloin. The
silverskin, which is the
tough membrane that
surrounds the
tenderloin, and the fat
or gristle is cut away.
 This is a butterfly chop..

Tying a roast
with string
ensures even
cooking and
helps keep the
shape of the The term butterfly
meat. means to cut the piece
of meat lengthwise,
nearly in half, so it
Medallions or the opens out and lies flat.
French term This speeds the
Noisettes cooking process.
(nwah-ZET)
refers to small, The term kosher is
usually round, meat or poultry that
boneless and has been slaughtered
tender cuts of to comply with
meat. Jewish dietary laws.
 Brains

Liver

Heart Tripe
(stomach lining)
Tongue
Sweetbreads Kidneys
(thymus glands)

Variety or offal (OH-fel) meats are edible

animal organs…extremely high in nutrients,
but high in calories and cholesterol also.
Chitterlings Prices may be low if demand is low. For
(CHIT-lins) some people, eating these foods is like an
(intestines) episode of FEAR FACTOR!
 The primal or wholesale meat cuts on
an animal are very large cuts of meat.

Muscle fibers are long, thin

muscle cells. They are
thinnest (and most tender) in
parts of the animal that get
little exercise. They thicken
(and are less tender) in older Can you rationalize which cuts
animals and parts that get a of this beef carcass are tender,
lot of exercise. and which are less tender?
 1. COLLAGEN is a thin, white
connective issue that will soften in
moist-heat cooking methods.

The amount of
connective
tissue
increases as
an animal ages
2. ELASTIN is a yellow connective tissue and when the
that will not soften. It must be pounded, animal gets a
cut, or ground to make it chewable. This lot of exercise.
might be done by pounding with a utensil
called a meat tenderizer.
 Suppose these arrows represent
long fibers in the meat running in a
horizontal direction…the grain.

If the butcher or
carver cuts the
meat WITH the
grain, the fibers
remain long in each
piece and difficult
to chew.

If you cut ACROSS the grain, however, the long fibers are
cut into short pieces. This makes them easier to chew.
Always carve across the grain for tenderness!
 VISIBLE FAT is found under the skin
of the animal, in the belly parts, and
surrounding the large muscle
portions. Cook meat “fat side up” to
allow the flavor to melt down through
the meat while cooking.
MARBLING is the white flecks or
streaks that appear within the
lean meat. Abundant marbling is
associated with tenderness.

TALLOW is a type of hard fat that

thickens and coats the mouth when
cooled. It is found primarily in venison,
mutton, and lamb.
1. Braising 1. Roasting (no lid and
and on a rack) Moist-heat cooking
2. Cooking in liquid methods soften
(stewing) 2. Frying connective tissue
and less tender cuts
3. Steaming 3. Grilling/broiling of meat. Use water,
broth, or tomato
4. Using a lid/cover 4. Deep fat frying
juice for liquid, plus
a lid.
 In addition to the utensil called a meat
tenderizer (a mechanical tool that is used
to pound meat and break up elastin
tissue), several forms of chemical meat
tenderizers are also used.

MONOSODIUM GLUTAMATE (MSG) is an artificial

enzyme that comes in a powdered form and can be
sprinkled or rubbed on meat as a tenderizer.
PAPAIN is a natural enzyme found in fresh
pineapple, papayas, and tomatoes. Cooking meats
with these foods cause the meat to become more
tender.
 A marinade is a liquid made from
oil, and acid such as vinegar or
wine, and herbs and spices. The
meat may be soaked in it prior to
cooking, as the acid breaks down
the collagen and adds flavor.
A spice rub or dry marinade
may be applied to the meat
before cooking to improve
appearance and flavor.

To bard meat means to tie a

layer of fat on top or around it
to moisten and flavor it while
cooking. Bacon is often used.
 Searing meat means to quickly
brown it in a very hot skillet prior to
usual cooking methods. Searing,
although it does not seal in juices
as once believed, does improve
flavor and appearance.
Deglaze the pan after cooking the
meat by adding water or liquid, and
swirling it around to loosen the
food particles on the bottom. The
liquid becomes the jus (ZHEW). If
the jus is thickened with
cornstarch, it is called jus lié
(zhew-lee-AY). Jus thickened with
a roux is called pan gravy.
 Charcuterie (sha-COO-tree)
is French for ‘cooked
flesh’, and refers to
specially prepared pork
products including
sausage, smoked ham,
bacon, pâté, and terrine.
Sausages:
Bockwurst (BAHK-wurst ); white; veal
Sausage is plain or Cajun or milder French Andouille
(ann-DO-ee)
seasoned ground pork, German pork bratwurst
game, beef, veal, poultry, Mexican or Spanish chorizo (chuh-REE-zoh)
fish, shellfish, and even Hot dogs or Weiners
Italian sausage with garlic and fennel
vegetables… usually Polish kielbasa (keel-BAH-suh)
forced into a casing made Knockwurst (NAK-vursht) with garlic 
of animal intestines or Pepperoni
Scrapple (sausage and cornmeal)
synthetic materials. Vienna sausages (short, canned)
 Quenelles

Forcemeat is a mixture of lean ground

meat and fat that is forced to combine, in a
food grinder. It is then forced through a
sieve to make a very smooth paste. It can
be made into a rich mixture called a pâté,
and baked in an earthenware mold called a
terrine. A pâté de campagne (pah-TAY de
kom-PAN-yuh) uses cured meat. Pâté en croûte
Foie gras (FWA-gra) is the liver from a
fattened goose or duck, and may be used in
a pâté. Mousseline (moose-us-LEEN) is a
delicately-flavored forcemeat made from
veal, poultry, or fish. When shaped into
Pâté dumplings and poached in a rich stock, they
are called quenelles (kuh-NEL).
Pâté en croûte (pah-TAY on kroot) is forcemeat wrapped in
dough. Galantine (gal-en-TEEN) is wrapped in chicken skin.
 Processed
meats have
undergone
some sort of
additional
treatment to
either extend
shelf life or
Luncheon meats create a
distinctive
flavor.

Sausages, often smoked

Curing meat (with a

mixture of salt, nitrite,
Drying and ascorbic acid, etc):
salting meat: ham is an example
 This pork chop looks yummy,
but if cooked improperly
could be responsible for
illness and even death.

e.Coli is a bacteria that

lives in the digestive
system of a healthy animal.
The bacteria may come in
contact with the meat. If the
meat is then undercooked
Trichinae worms are
and eaten, the bacteria is
parasites, living in the
transferred to the human. It
muscle of hogs. When the
can cause death.
infected meat is eaten by
humans, the worm then Cooking meat until no pink remains
infects the human destroys both trichinae and e.coli.
muscles. Trichinosis is Even slight overcooking, however,
accompanied by arthritis- may cause meat to be less-juicy
type symptoms. and less-tender.
 Like meat, poultry is
inspected by the federal
government. The grades
are:

USDA A
USDA B
USDA C Fresh poultry has a short
shelf life, but can be frozen.
Factors that determine It should never be gray in
grade are the shape of the color or have a pasty feel,
carcass, ratio of meat to and odor should be minimal.
bone, amount of feathers, Never store uncooked
and number of cuts or stuffing in a raw bird. Cook
broken bones. all poultry thoroughly.
Chicken and turkey have both white and dark
meat. White meat is leaner with a mild flavor.
Ducks and geese have only dark meat,
which is more flavorful but higher in fat. The
part of the bird getting more exercise is
darker, such as the legs and thighs of a
chicken. Free-range poultry is
raised in large yards where the bird can get
more exercise, and there is more dark meat.
Game birds that do more actual
“flying”, have more dark meat.
Wild game might include quail,
pheasant, wild turkey, ducks,
geese or turtledove. Domesticated
birds have far more white meat.
 The method used for
cooking poultry depends
on the age of the bird. Young
birds can be cooked in dry
heat, such as grilling, frying,
and roasting.

Chicken is often
dredged in flour
before frying to
form a coating and
seal in juices.

Older birds and game birds are less tender,

and need to be cooked in moist heat. Use a
lid and add liquid or gravy during cooking.
Stewing, or boiling older birds is common.
 Trussing a bird means the legs
and wings are tied to the bird’s
body, so the entire bird will
cook evenly and stay moist.

Chicken can be
purchased whole
to save money;
you cut it up
yourself OR you
Deboning poultry means to separate can purchase it
the meat from the bone and cut the already cut up
bird into pieces. Clean work OR purchase just
surfaces and equipment carefully to the pieces you
avoid cross-contamination. want.
 The skin on the
poultry is high in
fat content. For that
reason, many
people remove the
skin before eating
the poultry.
In the picture to the
left, the chicken
breast has been
GIBLETS (JIB-lets)are halved, boned, and
the edible poultry skinned.
organs, including the
liver, heart, and
gizzard (a digestive
organ).
Giblets and the neck are often packaged
separately in the cavity of the raw bird;
cooked, and used in the stuffing.
 Cooking does not stop
immediately when food is
taken from the heat. This is
called carryover cooking,
and the larger the item the
more heat it will retain.

Poultry should be cooked

à point (ah PWAH), all the
way through but not
overcooked. Allow meat or
poultry to rest after removed
from the oven. This allows time
for carryover cooking and
allows less juice to be lost
 Flat and round fin fish can be
divided into two categories by the
color of their flesh…

Light or white fish have a mild flavor,

tender texture, and low fat. They
include catfish, cod, flounder, haddock,
halibut, perch, pike, pollack (PŎL-luck),
pompano (POM-pa-nō), turbot
(TER-bet), red snapper, sole, trout, and
whitefish.

Darker fish flesh has a more pronounced flavor,

firm texture, and higher fat content. These
include bluefish, mackerel, salmon, swordfish,
and tuna.
 CRUSTACEANS have long
bodies with jointed limbs
covered with shells,
including crab, crayfish,
lobster, and shrimp.

MOLLUSKS have soft bodies covered by at least one

shell, including clams, mussels, oysters, scallops, and
squid. Removing them from the shell is called
‘shucking’.
 Purchase fresh fish by appearance
and a mild, fresh aroma. Eyes should
be clear and full; gills should have a
red or maroon color. Inspection is
not required, but generally Grade A
fish are for cooking; grades B and C
are for canning.

Oyster
in the
shell

Live crab/lobster should be moving around; lobster tails

should curl under when picked up; clams, mussels, and
oysters should be tightly closed.
 Click on this fish icon to see a demonstration
on Asian speed-cooking of snake & fish

Scaling fish means to

remove the hard and inedible
scales from the skin.
To gut a fish, make a slit in
the belly OR cut off the head
and pull out the insides.

FILET (fil-LAY) is a procedure to

remove bones or a piece of fish
“without bones”.
 De-veining shrimp means
to remove the digestive
tract.
1.
3.
2.

Gently pull off heads. Pull off legs and then peel back shell OR peel
back shell and then remove any remaining legs.

4.

6.
5.
Peel off shell and then Make a shallow slit down Pull out the intestine
remove tail if desired. the back to expose the with your knife,
vein (digestive tract). fingers, or toothpick.
 Fish can be cut into
goujonettes (goo-sha-NET)
or small strips OR paupiettes
(pō-peeEHT) thin rolled
fillets filled with stuffing.
Fish may be canned in oil for flavor, or
water to cut calories. It can be preserved by
pickling, smoking, curing or drying. Lox is
a fish that is smoked and cured, and
commonly served with bagels.
Fish is very tender. It should be
cooked until it flakes easily and is
opaque in color. All cooking methods
can be used… grilling, frying, and
deep fat frying, boiling, steaming, etc.
 En papillote
(en paw-pee-YOTE)
is a moist-heat
cooking method, well
suited for fish. The
fish, vegetables,
herbs, etc. are
encased in parchment Seafood Newburg is lobster, crab, or
paper and baked, or shrimp in a rich sauce made from butter,
steamed in foil. cream, egg yolks, sherry, and seasonings.
Jambalaya
(jam-bo-LIE-ah) is
a Creole stew
made from rice or
pasta, shellfish,
and vegetables.