February
9
2012
…cuz if you can’t trust a couple of creeps like these guys then who can you trust?
Guys, we had the Super Bowl. It was pretty cool. Now its time to repay the lady for all those jalapeno poppers (which she had to learn how to make) and for the pizza bagels (which had instructions on the box) she put together for you and your friends. Trust me, the drunk sex after the game wasn’t exactly what she had in mind as a “thank you”.
So we’re stocking up on a lot of adorable roasts and cute cuts to get you to those valuable relationship points. God knows you’ll need them down the road. Lamb, Filet Mignon, Center-Cut Chops, pates, terrines, house-made things and thingamajigs, and a lot besides that.
So here’s your shot. Valentine’s is a couple of days away and your girlfriend told me she likes steaks. Honestly, that’s what she said. We talk all the time.
February
1
2012
We’re Opening Early on Sunday…YAAAAY!
That’s right, folks. We’ll be open at 10am on Sunday so all the early birds can get in and out with your Super Bowl Snacks (see previous post for a full list). Get here early and you’ll get to see Brent and Ben nauseously hungover from a wedding party the night before!!!
…also maybe expect some “pre-game” breakfast beers on the house!
February
1
2012
Serious Snacking!
Guys, this Sunday’s not really about football. It’s not about sports, or commercials, or friends. It’s about snacks. Lots and lots of snacks. In the past couple months, you’ve come in for dry aged steaks and chops and ground beef–sure, we’ve got all that. But you know what else we’ll have? YOUR GODDAMN SNACKS.
Your sausage options run from classics like Hot and Sweet Italian to party favorites like Chicken Parm Pizza and Long Dong Bud. Come in or call to check out the rest of our selection. We’ll have plenty of beef and pork for chili, but if you don’t feel like making your own, we’ve got you covered.
Here’s the rundown on the good stuff:
Brent’s Buffalo Chicken Dip — spicy, cheesy, perfect for tortilla chips
Tom’s Autentico Refried Beans – put these on your nachos
Meat Hook Chili
Chili Mac — chili-topped mac and cheese, oven-ready
Dry Aged Burger Blend
Smoked Pig Heads
BBQ Meat — smoked, braised and sauced
Smoked Half Chickens
Bacon Scallion Dip — for a lighter option
Call ahead to reserve yours for pickup Saturday or Sunday. We’re even open early Sunday, from 10 am to 6 pm.
See you at the counter.
December
30
2011
Happy New Year’s! We’re Closing Early!
It’s been a long and (mostly) great year for everyone here at The Meat Hook! We hope it’s been the same for you. Remember to stock up this weekend before you go out and commit uncompromising, absolutely lacking in morality decisions that you would regret for the rest of your life if you remembered them at all. We’re here for that. Roasts, steaks, hams, smiles, shots, beers, etc. We have that covered.
As a note for the New Year’s Eve procrastinator, we’ll be closing early on Saturday at 4pm. On top of that we’ll be closed January 1st and 2nd. What, you think you’re going to be the only one with a hangover that would make the Gods shudder?
LET’S GO! PARTY!
December
19
2011
The Nitrite/Nitrate Dilemma.
Nitrates and nitrites get a bad rap. I don’t know exactly how this all started if I’m honest; the crusade against all preservatives. Can anyone give me a date? Did someone just flip a switch? Does anyone have the number for the guy who started all this? I’d like to talk to him.
We get questions pretty often in the shop asking if our bacon has nitrates. The answer is yes; which means no, they don’t want bacon. But nitrates serve a very important purpose. They’re not evil little molecules that we’re unleashing into an unsuspecting belly or sausage. They are beneficial to curing and a stern safety measure for the prevention of Clostridium Botulinum, which creates botulism. If you want to explain to your friends you have botulism, but you’ll be damned if that will upset your puritanical stance on food. Go right ahead, kid. You have the floor.
Maybe I’m getting a little ahead of myself. Let’s talk about what we’re talking about. Nitrates and nitrites are essentially the same thing on a molecular level. There’s sodium nitrite or potassium nitrite and sodium nitrate or potassium nitrate. The difference is the addition of 1 oxygen molecule to create nitrate out of nitrite. Still with me? Cool. The reason they were originally used was for the pleasant color they left to meat after curing. Instead of turning an unpleasant brown/grey, the meat maintains a rosy hue, much like it’s original color before oxidation.
So, what does the addition of one oxygen molecule do? It does only one very important thing that you need to know. The addition of that molecule makes nitrate more sensitive to heat. In extremely high doses it is carcinogenic. That’s why (I guess) nitrites and nitrates get a bad name. It’s true, nitrate can give you cancer…if you swallow a glass a day for about a year. My advice as a food service professional would be to NOT do that. That is bad. It will taste horrible.
So how did this happen? Well, we’re over-reacting to the fact that most preservatives are essentially non-natural, steroided-out super-molecules. At least that’s how it looks from this side of the counter. Rather than look at each piece of the puzzle separately, we’ve judged them all by the same measure. ADD and ADHD preservatives you can judge all day. Some of these preservatives sound like they were made by scientists locked away in a small chem lab in the Death Star. Respiratory problems can come with some of them and yet here we are, living with them as a food enhancer.
I guess when science fails you (I’m looking at you, FDA), there is always history to fall back on. Everybody is scrambling to get back to “the way things were” so fast. The mad scramble to reach the future of hoverboards and flying cars seems to have dissipated in the last few years. We’re all anxious to find, once again, the traditions that got us to where we are as a culture. In our food culture, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a more necessary ingredient than salt. And that is exactly what we’re talking about.
December
19
2011
January Classes!
Get ready to start the new year right, fat kid! We have a bunch of classes that The Meat Hook crew is teaching this January. Whatever you’re looking to do, I think we got it covered…possibly in pig fat and braising liquid.
On Tuesday, January 17th, Ben Turley will be doing what he does best–making juvenile jokes about phallic objects in the Sausage-Making course! You’ll get to do all the work as Ben teaches you how to properly grind, mix, stuff, and link your own sausages at home. Be prepared to do some drinking, joking and having an all-around great time. Each person will be taking home some of the delicious sausages that you make yourselves! Sign up HERE.
On the 19th, Matt Greene will be teaching the first in an exciting new series called “Cooking with the Masters”. This first installation will be focused on the original great, Julia Child. Matt will be pulling from her books and cooking some of the seminal dishes she created and brought from her cooking adventures abroad. It’s one thing to read a recipe, it’s another to see it created. This will be a sit down dinner with drinks so get ready to get full RIGHT HERE!
Our very own Sara Bigelow will be teaching our Pig Butchering course on January 25th. This is maybe our most popular class and sells out so book it early. Sara will be taking you through every cut on a pig, helping to demystify where your favorite cuts come from on the animal. You’ll also be tasting some of our favorite cuts right off the pig! Enjoy some beers, bring some questions and watch as Sara shows you how it’s done. Sign up HERE.
Look forward to more great classes in February! Have a good holiday, guys!
November
8
2011
MEAT HOOK CLASSES IN NOVEMBER
Sara and Matt are both teaching classes this month in the Labs! You can bookend your Thanksgiving holiday with a heaping plate of meat-based knowledge.
Did you know that different meats braise differently? Yeah, me neither, but I guess it makes sense. Matt Greene knows all about it. On Nov. 16th he’s going to show you how to properly braise 3 different proteins. Sign up here, kid! You’ll have the chance to learn Coq au Vin–the classic French chicken dish–as well as Osso Buco done with pork shanks and beef short ribs. You’ll leave with a great understanding of different proteins and proper braising techniques. Guaranteed.
Later in the month, Sara (pictured above), will be doing Pig Butchering w/ The Meat Hook on Nov. 29th at 6:30 (join the party HERE). There will be Busch, a whole side of a pig, at least one drunk guy (maybe it’s YOU!), and Sara laying it down. Ever wonder what each cut is best used for, or even where your favorite cut comes from on the animal? Sara will answer all questions and arm-wrestling challenges for one night only!
Hope you guys have a great holiday!
October
27
2011
Midnight Mass at Meat Hook!
On October 30th, The Meat Hook is teaming up with Lee Tiernan from St. John’s Bread & Wine for a one-night-only dinner.
Remember being a kid? Halloween was always one of the best nights of the year. The costumes, going out, the candy, the bingeing. Well, we want to recreate that for you as an adult. We want to bring that same feeling to this dinner. If you know us, you know that we love to go big. It’s not in our blood (speaking of, blood is on the menu) to hold back. So, our friend Lee is going to join us for one night to make a Halloween dinner like no other. We absolutely guarantee you’ve never done anything like this. We also guarantee an amazing time. That bingeing on candy as a kid? Expect that, but, you know, with lamb heads.
Beverages will be served at 9 with dinner starting at 10. Expect a great time, 70′s horror tunes and one of the most singular and insane dinner experiences of your life.
No food restrictions allowed. No bad vibes allowed. Halloween vibes a must. Costumes optional. Let’s party.
October
12
2011
Thanksgiving Turkey Pre-orders Available Now!
Hey, everyone! We’re really excited to announce that we have our turkeys ready for pre-order starting immediately and YOU CAN ORDER THEM RIGHT HERE! Our turkeys are broad-breasted whites that have been raised specifically for us in upstate New York. They’re fully pasture-raised without hormones or antibiotics.
We’ve been keeping in touch with our main man upstate and we’re making sure we have plenty of these pretty birds available this holiday, but it’s always best to order early to make sure you get the size bird you want. You can order in advance on The Brooklyn Kitchen website HERE. Our available sizes are 10#-14#, 14#-19# and 19#-22#. The price is $6.99/# and I dare you to find another pastured, local holiday bird at such a price!
We do expect to sell out, so please order in advance! If you’d like more information on the farm and people raising these birds, check out this video made last year. Yes, it’s weird, and yes, you’re going to hear the same song 10 times in just 11 minutes, but no one ever said farmers were natural filmmakers.
Last but not least, if you need bacon, stuffing sausage, brining kits, roasting racks, or anything else for your holiday, we’ll have it. Our Lab 1 is being converted into a Thanksgiving Headquarters or sorts where we’ll have EVERYTHING you could possibly desire…that’s related to Thanksgiving.
Happy Holidays, ya’ll!!!
September
27
2011
Farm Trip USA
We’re jackasses, yes. Self-depricating, heavy metal loving jerks with questionable morals. But we also fiercely believe in our food systems and the transparency of our butcher shop. So we might be jerks, but we’re not full of shit.
So here you go. We shut down the shop to take our employees and interns to go learn a thing or two on a field trip to our major producers.
We first went to visit our main pork producer, Bruce, at Sir William Berkshire. We talked pigs, Irine damage, the ins and outs of grain production, and a lot about his impressive library.
Next stop was Hilltown Pork, the slaughterhouse Bruce uses for our pork. Sorry there aren’t any photos for this one, (USDA is still a bit sketchy about that), but everyone watched hog processing for an hour. Truly a process conscious eaters should experience.
Kinderhook Farm
Yeah, chickens just chill out. Have a brew. Nap at will.
Morgan and Jamie with Lee, owner of Kinderhook
We then headed up to our main beef farm, Kinderhook. We throw around the name Kinderhook a lot at the shop because they are the epitome of an ideal farm. Lee and Georgia have been farming for over 20 years and have dialed in the nuances of running a sustainable operation. Nothing too fast. Each year something new. They started with beef, then on to laying hens, then on to meat birds, then lambs, and pigs. All on sunshine and good grass. We’ve grown with them over the past 4 years, and have had a remarkable working relationship. We talk on the phone every week to let them know how the meat looks, and they tell us how the grass is growing.
Tom--The Sinister King of Sheep
Sara and Mercedez are just 2 of the 3 adorable chicks pictured.
Our relationship with our farmers is of the utmost importance because our transparency is directly presented to each customer. You should know where your food comes from and with us, you do.
From Lee, to us, to you.
