You are very welcome and thanks so much for watching! Your site looks great! I don't actually eat tons of meat these days, but I think getting it from local producers is the way to go! The NYTimes podcast (The Daily) had an episode a couple weeks ago about the food supply and they interviewed a few farmers who were getting mega screwed over by the meat industry - it was very eye opening and crazy to hear! I'm very grateful for farmers like you and what you do! It's frustrating to me these days that the emphasis is always on the lowest price for everything, even if that means the farmers, animals, or environment suffers. Good quality stuff takes time, energy, and money to produce, so thank you for doing what you do!!!
We’re going to be picking our quarter steer in 2 weeks. It will be dry aged a total of 3 weeks then butchered, vacuum sealed and frozen. It is grass fed beef. Thank you for sharing you experience.
Glad it was helpful - that's actually why I made this video! When I was researching the process of getting a quarter cow, I found it super challenging to find clear, concise info about what you get, pricing, etc. Enjoy your cow!
Nothing is better than fresh meat. Help your local farmers during covid. While the stores can't keep up, your local farmers will have all you need. 😁✌️
Exactly! I have actually heard that some farmers can't keep up with the demand, though. Such a weird time we are living through! Stay safe and healthy!
A good friend that used to cut meat for us, was a Cracker Barrel restaurant chain manager, and he said that cow tongue was a big seller for him once he got people to try it.
I just got my quarter cow and I got more hamburger than anything! You really got lucky you got everything I thought I was going to get. I wound up with 67 lbs of hamburger and a few roasts and a few cuts but this was not what I was expecting for sure.
Oh wow, interesting. Did you talk to the butcher in advance? I was crazy specific about what I wanted when I talked to the butcher. I know I would have gotten about 30 more pounds of ground beef if I hadn't been so specific. I actually met the farmer at a market a few months before and he had a giant list of different cuts that you could buy directly from him, so I knew that he was working with a butcher that could do pretty specific things. Obviously since we got a quarter cow, we couldn't get everything we wanted because it's hard to split it four ways, but we were pretty satisfied with the amount of each specific thing we got. I guess you will be having a lot of burgers and chili?!
@@rmoncak Hi Rob! I just found the email that had the cut list. Here goes! For roasts, we had the options of rump, sirloin tip, arm, and chuck (bone-in or boneless) - we got each of these, just had to specify the weight of each roast (2, 3, 4, or 5 pounds each), or if we didn't want any of these roasts, to grind them into hamburger (I got all of them, which I show in the video). For steaks, there were ribeye/ribsteak, porterhouse and t-bone or NY strip and tenderloin, and top sirloin (bone-in or boneless). We had to say the thickness we wanted for each type of steak and how many steaks per package (I think we did 1.5" for the steaks) and had one steak for package (since it's just me and my husband). Then there was a section for round steak, cube steak, stew meat, or grind into burger. I think for this section, I chose round steak for everything, since I knew I could just cut up a round steak if I wanted to turn it into stew. There was a section about short ribs and shanks (or grind them into burger). For hamburger, it asked if we wanted 1 or 1.5 pound packages, and if we wanted them to make patties with the burger (there was an extra charge for this). And then there was a section about the extra organs you could get - heart, liver, tongue. (And now that I have written this all out, I see that the meat market has a website and this form is online!!! Go to this link www.meatmarketbaraboo.com/## and click on the beef cut list and a PDF will open - that's what I am going off of.). If I remember correctly, for the roasts, we got some of each and we left the bone in and I think they were about 2 pounds each. Steaks we did 1.5 inches and one per package. Round steak, I think I said 1.5 inches, as well, and one per package. Burger - we did 1 pound packages. Kept the short ribs and soup shanks, and also got the organs (I remember that the butcher lady said that the organs were kind of first come, first served. We were splitting a cow were 3 other people and I was the first person the butcher talked to from our group, and since I said I wanted the organs, I got the heart and tongue, but I believe they cut up the liver and I got a small chunk of it. If I remember correctly, she said that they don't cut up the tongue or heart, but will slice up the liver to divide.) Let me know if you have more questions!!!
You got ripped off. I just had one of my cull heifers butchered. 843 pounds of meat. 124 pounds was ground beef. So you got almost half the ground beef off that animal that was butchered for you. Your quarter was padded with ground beef and someone got some of the better cuts you should have received. Butchers often process old cows and bulls that are almost always completely made into ground beef. So they almost always have too much ground beef. They probably gave you some ground beef from another animal like an old.bull.or cow.
Wow. I just paid $2.50/lb. I bought half a steer, angus raised on a beautiful family farm in Ohio. Hanging weight for my half was 400lbs and I paid $960 for my 1/2. Do you find value in grass fed? If so, why? I’m curious as to why people seek out grass fed.
Hi Dan! Yes, grass fed is definitely a lot more expensive than grain fed (although, it sounds like your angus steer was able to get pasture at least part of the time). I've read that grass fed beef is generally higher in nutrients, particularly some of the fatty acids (ALA and CLA) and certain vitamins, plus it tends to be leaner than grain fed. I was also pretty concerned about the quality of life that the animal had and we were able to visit the farm and go walk in the fields with the cows (they have a very idyllic life). Before ordering our quarter cow, we made sure to buy a few cuts of meat and a couple packs of ground beef to test.
I was going to ask about the deer meat... we don't call it venison, lol, its deer, dear! Haha.. we have tons of them on our farm, so needless to say, we have plenty!
This was very helpful. I have a standard freezer like the one on your left and I talked with my boyfriend about splitting a quarter cow with him. Looks like I will be upgrading my freezer (we are carnivore so it’ll be full of just the cow).
So glad to hear it! I really felt like there wasn't a lot of info out there when we bought our quarter cow, so I wanted to share the whole experience. Hope your beef is delicious!
Very well done. Matches my experience with 1/4 cow as well. Family of 4, the steaks didn't last long. Keep it up. We paid significantly less - there may be opportunities - but, i'm not sure they're considered grass fed. Beef is the best i've every had! Sous Vide everything is a youtube channel that has a great recipe for 24 hour short ribs! We do whole hog as well for around $1 a pound + processing.
Very cool, Bo, glad you had a good experience buying bulk beef and pork! The quality of buying meat like this is just so much different than stuff you get at the store. Thanks for the sous food channel recommendation. I haven't done the short ribs, yet, but plan to soon. I'd really like to get the hide of one of the Scottish Highland cows - I think it would just be so beautiful if I could get it tanned!
I am waiting on my 1/4 (first time buyer) and it was grass fed corn finished, 750 flat delivered locally, they say will be about 125lbs approx... we'll see. I am excited considering I just paid 20 bucks for a cheap ass chuck roast.
Haha, yup, meat prices are pretty wild these days! I'm sure that your quarter cow will be excellent quality! I feel like this is one of the best ways to get meat, especially these days. Eat local!!!
Just want to tell u that those scottish cows taste like between a bison and a cow. They take 3 years to grow just like a bison, cow takes 18 months. Thought u would want to know that.
Hi, Kendra. I know this is an older video, but it was still very informative and enjoyable. I think maybe the phrase you were looking for was "horn to hoof"? Meaning you make full use of the animal. You're pretty brave to post a video about meat consumption. Hope you didn't get too much hate mail. Again, thanks. (:
Yes, horn to hoof! I sometimes also hear snout to tail. But yes, making use of the full animal - that's the point I was trying to make! Haha, oh gosh, you know, I haven't really gotten much hate for consuming meat. I did get a lot of nasty comments about talking too much (like get to the point, Kendra, stop talking about the whole process, show us the meat), but the whole point of the video was to talk about my whole experience with it - visiting the farm, figuring out what we wanted, the experience with the butcher, why we chose the farmer that we did, and sharing the meat. (And actually, a producer from ABC contacted me about using a bit of this video on Good Morning America a few months ago - they just shared about a 2 second part of it where you only see my hands and all of the meat. That was kinda neat!)
Great breakdown 👌! My neighbor is processing one of his Black Angus, and I asked to go in on a 1/4 of it. So this helps out a lot to know what to expect. One thing is I added up the ttl lbs you got (not counting the bones) and I show 126 lbs and at $4.75 that's a total of $600. Even if you pay $0.55 per lbs (hanging weight) for processing, that only adds about $103, for a grand total of $703. Why did you get charged more?
Hey Kendra, great video. A couple of questions for you. What is the fat content of the ground beef? Does they give you options? I find that 80% is the best tasting. And do they sell the tallow?
Thanks! I think that it ended up being maybe 15% fat in the ground beef, but I'm not completely positive (I remember getting off the phone with the butcher and was like, oh crap I forgot to ask the fat content!). So nope, they didn't give me options for fat, but I think if I had asked about it, they could have done something. I don't remember seeing anything about buying the tallow, but my guess is that if I had wanted it, I could have gotten it. I got the heart, tongue, and a couple chunks of liver because I asked for them. I also asked for extra bones and got those. And I even emailed the farmer after getting the meat and asked if it would ever be possible to buy a hide to have tanned. I haven't done this yet because I think it might be pretty pricey to find someone to actually tan it, but he did say he could get a hide back easily (think I'd have to pay maybe 40 bucks for it - I guess the butcher shop sells the hides to a company to help offset the cost, which makes the processing fee pretty low, so yes I would have to pay a bit for it). The butcher shop was really friendly and helpful and was totally fine with doing whatever I requested!
So helpful thanks so much for sharing! I recently bought a 7 cu ft freezer and planning to purchase a whole cow (likely 600lb hanging weight), I'm stressing out since I'm not sure if it will fit, do you think it would it work?
Ok, I just googled it and it says that you should plan for one cubic foot of freezer space for every 35 - 40 pounds of meat. The site I found says 16 - 17 cubic feet for a full cow (5 - 7 cubic feet for a quarter cow, 8 cubic feet for a half). The farmer that we bought our quarter from said a quarter cow can usually fit into the 3.5 cubic foot freezer, but I'm glad we had extra space because I don't think we could have fit it all into our small freezer. Have you already ordered the cow? Maybe start with a half cow unless you want to get a bigger freezer? If the cow is 600 pounds hanging weight, you'll probably end up with about 400 or so pounds of meat - I'd guess you'd need at least 10 cubic feet for that amount. Do you have freezer space in the freezer above your fridge? Or do you have a friend or family member with extra space in a freezer where you could store some meat?
That's awesome! Good time to make sure you have enough food - who knows how this virus situation is going to play out?! If I had a house and some land, I'd buy some chicks to raise for eggs and meat.
Oooooh, I don't really know Neenah well, but have been to Hilbert a bunch cuz that's where my dad grew up. I've been reading about the sturgeon caviar scandal happening over on Winnebago - crazy!!! I've never tried Butcherbox and haven't even heard of Crowd Cow - hope they are working out for you!
Just going through comments on here to see what I missed and wanted to also mention Good Chop for meat. They actually sent me a box of meat, so I'll be testing that out and reporting back in the next few weeks! Always good to have options (especially if you don't have the space for a quarter cow!).
Those are big animals! Our farm just changed to a smaller race and we get a whole beef, split it with all the kids. I get all the bones, the tail, the kidney fat, and the organs - my kids don't like 😁 and when the son in law comes I make us liver!!! The past 2 years we only took half a beef, still enough to feed all of us (7 adults 4 kids under 10), even if hubby doesn't get a deer......
Oh awesome! How do you cook the liver? Any tips for the heart or tongue? How much freezer space did the full cow take up?! Between venison from my dad and this quarter cow, we are stocked for the year!
@@crazykenz4203 liver I make the easy way now, half thawed slices best and I cut it into bite sized pieces. Put those on paper towel to dry them off, then into some flour. Sometimes I add salt, pepper, thyme or sage to the flour. Fry them in bacon grease is really good, but you can use oil or ghee. Once brown on one side turn, once brown turn again; no more blood should ooze out when stuck with a fork. You can do the same with a large size of liver, I just like the smaller pieces because I usually forget to get it out of the freezer the night before! Liver does not take long! If you overcook it it gets tough. Add a splash of ACV to the pan for "sour" liver and serve with caramelized onion with apple slices and mashed potato. Tongue and heart I cook in plenty of water with b ayleaf, allspice, peppercorns, onion and what ever you want to add. You could put a bone with it as well, add a splash of ACV and you get broth for a few days. Bring to a boil then simmer, usually over night on low. One beef tongue makes a few meals, or slice thin and use on sandwiches, cube and make like a chicken salad. Endless options. Take the skin off after it is cooked! Heart we eat like a roast, usually put it in the crockpot with what ever spices you like, it makes enough liquid on its own. We fill I think a 7.5 freezer with half, looks to be the size of your larger one. It still fills it now that we get less since I have a few chickens in and there is always ground left from the prior year - half the ground and cuts go to my one daughter, I have the bones to fit as well. Sometimes we have to stash the older ground in the fridge freezer, this year I took 15 pounds or so out prior and canned it. My first time canning beef, pretty good and quick meal, I will can some more over early summer when I can do it outdoors. My large pressure canner doesn't fit on my stove 😁 only the smaller one which only holds 7 pints. Hope that answers your questions - I can write more 😊
Thanks so much for the ideas for the liver, heart, and tongue - I'll let you know what I end up doing! That's so interesting about canning beef - I think my mom said that my grandma used to do that with either ground beef or venison (for sure they canned cubed venison). What kind of pressure canner do you have? I don't have one yet, but it's always in the back of my mind as one of my final kitchen items. We have a glass top stove in our current apartment, so I am a bit hesitant about pressure canning on that - scared to crack the glass (I was also a bit concerned with water bath canning this previous summer, but luckily was ok).
@@crazykenz4203 I got an All American that fits quarts and pints on top, but I didn't measure the space between stove and useless microwave above! Not enough space for that size canner. So I found me a used Presto, looks well taken care of! Plus I got a slew of jars and lids and bands with it. Perfect size for the stove top. Of course it holds a lot less, I can look up the volume when I get home, but it fits 7 pints (I think I did 5 quarts in it as well) and that one or a similar small one you could use on a glass top. I just use the huge one outdoors with the gas burner when the weather suits 😊 Canned meat is definitely worth it!!! I did chicken before, it can be waterbathed, the only meat you can waterbath, but now they all get pressure cooked, finally 😊
Oh, if you still have the booklet to the glasstop, check in there, otherwise call the manufacturer if you are too worried; it's quite a bit of weight, so much that I never take the pot off the burner after it is done canning, as recommended. But I have gas and that doesn't keep heating once turned off.
Yummmmm that sounds amazing! The farm that we got our cow from also does pork (half or whole pig), but we just don't have any extra freezer space for that! I want to find a local pastured chicken place, too.
Maybe next time I'll do that! Seriously, I was so overwhelmed with this whole process - I don't know a whole lot about cuts of beef, but man am I learning. Any tips for making tallow? I buy duck fat and beef tallow for roasting potatoes, but it's a tad pricey, so would love to be able to do it myself (ok, clearly I just need to stop renting and buy some big place with lots of storage in the country cuz I have way too many food projects).
They gave you a split quarter. Brisket comes from the chest of a cow and sirloins come from the back. That's not a common technique unless you specifically ask for it.
@@crazykenz4203 It's all just preference honestly. If you like brisket or sirloins, then yes. 😂 The cuts in between those are the ribeye and the strip loin.
I just stumbled across this video as I’m searching for examples of cuts (we’re ordering a 1/4 cow)....and all the sudden you’re from Madison!! We live in Waunakee 😊
My husband’s cousins here in Waunakee have a farm, and we split the cow with my sister in law. I also just bought my first local chicken and it was AMAZING - Schwoerer Acres is the name of the farm. I bought two frozen birds and eggs. I love getting our meat local, from farmers we trust 🥰
YES!!! Local chicken is the only way to go (I mean, local meat in general is the way to go, but gosh, so much chicken at the grocery stores, even the fancy stores, is BAD). I haven't actually been eating much meat lately (my health is weird and I kept getting sick after eating meat, ugh), but if I have a hankering for chicken, I'll keep your place in mind - thanks!
@@crazykenz4203 I have been following a “Vegan Before 6 pm” diet, and though I could eat meat for dinner I feel so good I usually don’t want to (I made an exception for a dairy free chicken enchilada bake though 🥇). Plant based just feels so GOOD!!!
I feel the same way!!! I don't get sick every time I eat meat, but gosh, when I do react to meat, ugh, it's the worst - super headachy, nauseous, tired, just super out of it for a couple days. Mmmmm your enchilada bake sounds sooooo good. It's hard living in Wisconsin and being surrounded with cheese, but I feel terrible when I eat cheese (but of course my husband, who is French and will never give up cheese, devours cheese like there is no tomorrow!).
It's kind of funny because about three months after we got the quarter cow, I was told that I'm actually very sensitive to beef and to not eat it very often...so the quarter cow lasted us a rather long time!!!
Do you know how they determin a quarter beef? I'm a butcher from California and we sell quarters and halves. When you ask for a quarter here you choose from either a forequarter or hindquarter. Looks like you got cuts from both. Sorry if it sounds confusing ha.
Yup, this was a mixed quarter (and we knew that was how this farmer and the butcher shop did it). For you, which quarter is better - front or back? (I don't know much about beef!)
Great content, very informative. Did you try the liver, heart, and tongue? If so, did you like all of them? I've heard a lot of people have a hard time with the texture.
I had very grand plans to eat all of that stuff...but never got around to it...and eventually found out that my cousin loved that stuff, so gave it to her! If I recall correctly, for the tongue, she chops it in pretty small pieces and fries it. I can't speak for what to do with the heart or liver, but I have definitely eaten deer heart stew and that was always really tasty and tender (you just can't think about what you're eating!), so I imagine you could do something similar with the heart. I reckon you could just fry up the liver with onions and garlic. I've heard the tongue has the weirdest texture of the three. Good luck!
My guess is it will last about a year. We also have a lot of venison (deer meat) from my dad, so we shouldn't have to buy any red meat for a year or more. I will def keep you posted! Haha, and yup, Kimchi would love to get into this! (And so would her sister...but Kobe throws up whenever she has beef, so she won't be getting any!)
Hi Kendra, Just wondering how long the meat lasts in the freezer and how you guys did with that amount of meat- did you wind up having to throw out a lot of it due to it going bad over time? Thanks!! The video was so great and informative!!
Hi Taylor! It actually lasted really well in the freezer for a loooong time, much longer than I had planned for! It's already been about 2.5 years since I made this video - and we legit still have meat left. My mom used a couple of the roasts a couple weeks ago (in the crock pot) and my husband kept talking about how good it was. I just saw that my mom has a couple of the shanks and another roast that she's thawing out to use now, too. We used the ground beef relatively quickly, as well as the steaks and more "normal" kind of cuts. I actually had to stop eating too much beef shortly after we got the quarter cow (I know, I have impeccable timing!), so we didn't eat it super frequently. I gave some to my parents, too. So yeah, I'd say that it definitely kept very well in the freezer for a long time and the quality was still fine (although I'd recommend trying to get through it in a year or so). I also didn't think the plastic wrap that was used for wrapping each piece was that amazing (like I wish that had used something more heavy duty like Food Saver bags and vacuum pack it), but the quality still seems good! None of the meat, even 2.5 years later, had freezer burn. If you know you will be eating beef even once a week, I think it's good to buy in bulk like this. (And if you eat beef a couple times a week, definitely go for it!). We didn't throw any of the meat away (I did give the liver, tongue, and heart to a cousin who likes those parts, but it wasn't cuz it went bad - I just wasn't feeling overly adventurous!). I've been following a lot of forums regarding food shortages and prices rising, so I definitely think this is a good way to go if you are a big meat eater!!! Let me know what you end up doing!!!
@@crazykenz4203 thank you so much for the quick reply!! That’s awesome! Yes - with all the rising prices and not knowing much at all about store bought meats (where they comes from, what they’re fed, what they’re injected with, living conditions etc) this is something that is definitely intriguing to me!
Oh gosh, yes, meat quality is so important!!! It was so nice being able to visit the farm and see how the cows were raised and what they ate! We don't really eat tons of meat anymore, but I definitely understand how you feel with the rising costs of food! Do you have enough freezer space? I know that chest freezers are kind of a hot commodity these days and can be a tad challenging to find!
@@crazykenz4203 an extra freezer was actually something I was just mentioning to my husband! Obviously that’s a huge factor we are currently in an apartment but will possibly be moving soon so if space allows we would have to look into purchasing one. I just started doing research and reading up on purchasing meat from a farmer and I had stumbled upon your video so I’m very early on in the process 😂
We were in an apartment when we got the quarter cow (in a different apt now, but at least we have a private garage where the freezers live). Not ideal, but we did have two chest freezers (on carpet!) in our apartment. I think I've heard that chest freezers are more energy efficient than upright freezers (something about how they lose less cold when they are opened, while uprights lose a lot of cold, I can't remember exactly!), but the next freezer we get will be an upright cuz chest freezers can be so annoying to find stuff in, especially when it's super full!!! Those blue bins I showed in the video are so helpful, though, so if you do get a big chest freezer, figure out some sort of organizational system so stuff doesn't get lost! Good luck with your potential quarter cow purchase!!!
Thank you! It is definitely an investment, but it will end up being more affordable in the long run. Plus, I just feel like it's a more sustainable way to get meat, and I trust the quality more than getting it at the store. Thanks so much for watching!
The butcher took the oyster stake from the knee area. Didn't hear that in there, maybe put it into the ground. That's a good piece of meat, ask for that, butchers mostly take that for keeps.
Hi Kendra...Thank you so much for posting this as it’s very informative and useful. We’re planning on doing the same thing here soon, so I have a couple of questions. 1) Can you specify the ground beef fat content? My wife likes 85-90%. 2) Do they hand it over to you in a frozen state or is it “blast frozen?”. 3) Did they say how long you can expect the meat to last frozen in a freezer? I’m guessing 6 months to a year? Again, thank you so much!
Hi Gil, glad you found my video and it was helpful! To answer your questions: 1) For the beef fat percentage, I believe you can request a certain percentage - I can't remember, though! I think I had intended to ask when I talked to the butcher because my husband likes it less fatty, but think I maybe forgot. I think it really just depends on the butcher. Have you found the place you want to get the quarter/half/whole cow from? If so, ask who the butcher is and give the butcher a call. I'd imagine it depends from business to business. (One thing with our quarter, though - because our specific cow was being shared by four people, we did have to be flexible. I don't know if they process all of the ground beef at the same time, but reckon if you wanted your beef to be less fatty, it would be possible.) I know that some butchers offer quarter/half/whole cows to be ordered directly from them, so I'd suggest shopping around and asking questions about how they process the meat. 2) The meat was very thoroughly frozen. We picked it up directly at the farmer's place and it was very solid. (Sorry, I don't really know what blast freezing is!) I believe that the meat was frozen at the butcher and then the farmer went to get it. The farmer has a big truck that he uses for markets and there are several chest freezers in it, so reckon that's where the beef was placed for transporting it back to the farm. 3) I think the recommend that we use the meat within a year, but we still do have some left. I actually had some health problems come up only a couple months after getting the quarter cow and had to reduce how much beef I ate...yeah, great timing, I know. It's been about a year and three months since we got it and whenever I take out meat (mainly for my husband now), it's totally fine. Hope that helps! Let me know if you have more questions!
They said that we would get a mixed quarter of pieces from the front and back. Basically they paired us up with another customer who was getting a quarter, then they divided up that half. I don't think the farm that we went with does the option of either a front or a rear quarter (but I really don't remember!).
I'm trying to find a place in my area (tampa bay area) where I can buy a quarter cow. Any tips on how to search? Throwing stuff in Google is not helpful thus far..
Are there any butchers in your area? You could try asking them if they know of any local farmers that do bulk meat. I suppose you could also post on Facebook or Nextdoor and see if any local people have any ideas. Are there any farmer's markets near you? A lot of the small local farms that sell bulk beef and pork often have stands at farmer's market in Wisconsin. Also, sometimes restaurants will get meat from local sources and they will usually display this in their menus or online - could be a way to find leads on bulk beef sales. Good luck!
@@crazykenz4203 thank you so much! I'm now 1 week away from meeting a somewhat local farmer and picking up my 1/4 beef and I'm super excited. Thank you for your video and your advice. It helped me find someone!
Do you think a quarter of a cow is too much meat for just two people? I ask because we are considering buying fresh beef, just dont want to get too much. Thanks
Get your chest freezer ready! Yes, it's a lot, but it will be great for you to have that and have good food security - I am reading about shortages and price hikes all over the place right now!
@@crazykenz4203 I think I am going to pick up another freezer because I have a ton of frozen vegetables in my current freezer. Hopefully FB market has an inexpensive one.
Yes, definitely try to get another one. I know that appliances like this have been hard to get the last couple of years, so fingers crossed you can find one! Never hurts to get an extra one - there's so much stuff to freeze. :D
@@crazykenz4203 New subbie. Loved your video! Quick question: f you had to guess, how long do you think 1/4 cow would last 2 adults that ate beef maybe 1-2X per week?
So sorry for the delayed response - I only get notifications for new comments, not comments on comments, so sometimes they got lost! I'd say about a year! A quarter cow is A LOT of meat. We got over 100 pounds of meat, so even if you cooked a pound of beef twice a week (you'd probably have leftovers), that would get you through at least a year.
They're so useful for organizing a chest freezer! Chest freezers can be such a pain if you have a variety of things and need to dig around in there a lot!
I ended up giving the heart, liver, and tongue to my cousins...no idea what they did with them (but I know they used them, as they were happy to get them).
I haven't decided what I'll do yet, but I'm thinking that I'll either use my sous vide machine or a slow cooker. I've heard the key to brisket is low and slow cooking.
Ok, so speaking of Portlandia...I have to share this story cuz it makes me giggle. I went to Portland a few years ago with my husband. We had watched all seasons of Portlandia before our trip, so were familiar with the theme song. So we're cruising into Portland, bright sunny day, windows are down, and we look over at the car next to us - young gal has her windows open, blasting the theme song, totally getting into it. We start to giggle...her windows roll up and she has a very sheepish look on her face. That's one way to pick out the tourists in Portland, I guess!
Tongue is a fabulous piece of meat believe it or not. If cooked properly it’s just as good prime rib. Parboil, skin, trim and season really well. Brown in a hot skillet on all sides, then add to a Dutch oven or slow cooker with the vegetables of your choice.
Ooooh good to know! I ended up giving it to my cousin because his daughter really likes it. Putting your comment into my brain in case I ever have the chance to get a tongue again...
Oh gosh, it just depends on each cut. For the ground beef, it's usually used for burgers, chili, or taco meat. The steaks are usually just seared in a cast iron pan. I did try to smoke the large brisket last summer with a charcoal grill - the flavor was good, but I'm not exactly a barbecue expert. I gave the other brisket to my mom and think she made it in a slow cooker. Some of the tougher cuts of meat soften up in a slow cooker or Instant Pot (round steak, for example).
Wow..she goes on and on and on..i felt choked within 5min. Jokes aside, thanks for the useful info. I know it takes a lot of effort and time in creating a video like this and I am thankful.
Yes, this video is long because I wanted to explain the entire process, why we chose this farm, cost, and exact cuts of meat. When I was researching buying a quarter cow, I didn't find a lot of information out there, so a video like this would have been helpful for me, which is why I made it. And yes, it does take A LOT of time and energy to make videos.
They split a half cow between two customers who are getting quarters, so the butcher kind of has to figure out who gets what and make it as fair as possible. What I showed in my video is what we got - so I guess whatever isn't there, the other customer got? We did get rib steaks, so that would be part of the ribs, and we also got some T-bones, which includes some tenderloin. I'm guessing the butcher won't give one customer the whole tenderloin (or cut it into filet mignon), as it's pretty desirable, so they probably just offer up T-bones and divide them.
Apparently the cow that we got was a lot bigger than normal. Plus I guess it would all depend on the breed. How much did you get? Do you know what kind of cow it was?
I wanted to explain everything about the whole process, pricing, visiting the farm, etc, as these were things that I tried to research a lot before ordering our quarter cow, but couldn't find a lot of it. You can always skip forward in videos, you know!
Thanks for your information, I am dealing with this guy. O think he's very shady, it's been almost a year. He just called to say the meat is ready. He too my deposit of $350 , upon no circumstances, will you get a refund. The grass fed beef was priced @8$ per lb.
I don't think they'd take food stamps for a quarter cow, but I do not that there are a lot of local farmers by me that are doing what they can to help people out during this crazy time. Stay safe!
I hate to tell you this your butcher did not do a good job packaging your meat. If your meat were vacuum packed properly as it should be, you would not see all that frost inside your wrapping which leads to freezer burn and that ruins your meat.
looks like a full heart to me. next time get the kidney, slice it up into tiny steaks and fry in a pan, so good. has to be grass-fed though store-bought is disgusting.
I actually ended up giving the heart, tongue, and liver to my cousin who really loves that stuff! Interesting about the kidneys (and yes, store bought kidneys just sound a bit gross!). Thanks so much for watching :D
I think it depends on the butcher. I'm guessing they can really maximize the amount of cuts (steaks, roast, etc), but there might be some stuff that would get turned to ground beef. Find a farm that sells bulk beef and ask where they get the meat processed, then contact that butcher. (I really don't know much about butchering, so not sure - but I reckon you could request a minimal amount of ground beef.)
The price for the hanging weight was $4.75 per pound, but I think it ended up being about $7 per pound for the actual weight we got (you usually end up with about 2/3 of the hanging weight in actual meat once the bones and fat are cut out).
Yup, it's been very good quality so far! I'd say we have about a half of our meat left (didn't eat too much meat this summer because it was hot and we opted more for fresh garden stuff, but now that it's cold, think we'll be doing stews more often!).
@@crazykenz4203 hah, I had coloured hair since I was 12 but I'm only 14 so it not quite as long of a time. I grew it out and cut it last month. I love my natural colour.
Same here - I hated my natural color for years and now I think it's just fine (even with a few grays sprouting here and there!). I figure once I'm an old lady and am naturally grey/white, then I'll get some funky colors and use those (but don't want to bleach my hair out for wild colors now, too much upkeep!). How's your jun going?
Only 125 pounds? You got robbed. A 1/4 should be close to #200. Also, my I HIGHLY recommend grain fed. Much, much more flavor. Grass tastes like grass. Tougher as well. Just my opinion. Watch comparison videos.
From a local farmer, thank you, excellent info on what we are trying to do. I am going to add your video to my site as it is really helpful.
You are very welcome and thanks so much for watching! Your site looks great! I don't actually eat tons of meat these days, but I think getting it from local producers is the way to go!
The NYTimes podcast (The Daily) had an episode a couple weeks ago about the food supply and they interviewed a few farmers who were getting mega screwed over by the meat industry - it was very eye opening and crazy to hear! I'm very grateful for farmers like you and what you do! It's frustrating to me these days that the emphasis is always on the lowest price for everything, even if that means the farmers, animals, or environment suffers. Good quality stuff takes time, energy, and money to produce, so thank you for doing what you do!!!
This was an amazing explanation for a newbie at ordering a quarter cow. Thanks so much for taking the time to share this with everyone!
We’re going to be picking our quarter steer in 2 weeks. It will be dry aged a total of 3 weeks then butchered, vacuum sealed and frozen. It is grass fed beef.
Thank you for sharing you experience.
Nice!!! Good time to be buying a quarter (or more) of a cow with these crazy stories of food shortages and price increases!
This was hugely informative and helpful. I am waiting on a quarter cow portion now and had NO idea what to expect. Thank you so much!
Glad it was helpful - that's actually why I made this video! When I was researching the process of getting a quarter cow, I found it super challenging to find clear, concise info about what you get, pricing, etc. Enjoy your cow!
I greatly appreciate Kendra's Integrity. Sharing uncertainly adds value to this video. Very well done.
Thank you very much for saying that!!! Have a great day!
Thanks so much. I just paid my deposit for our first time. We orderd a 1/4
Awesome! I hope you will have a great experience with the quarter cow. Get the freezer space ready!
Thank you for sharing! We pick up our 1/4 lb beef next weekend!
Awesome! I hope it will be delicious!
Nothing is better than fresh meat. Help your local farmers during covid. While the stores can't keep up, your local farmers will have all you need. 😁✌️
Exactly! I have actually heard that some farmers can't keep up with the demand, though. Such a weird time we are living through! Stay safe and healthy!
Thanks for sharing your experience! This was really insightful. You could make barbacoa tacos from the cow tongue.
Ooooh that's an interesting idea! I was just looking up a recipe for barbacoa chuck roast, so will def keep that in mind for the tongue! Thank you!
A good friend that used to cut meat for us, was a Cracker Barrel restaurant chain manager, and he said that cow tongue was a big seller for him once he got people to try it.
Mmmmm 😋 taquitos de lengua en barbacoa !!
I just got my quarter cow and I got more hamburger than anything! You really got lucky you got everything I thought I was going to get. I wound up with 67 lbs of hamburger and a few roasts and a few cuts but this was not what I was expecting for sure.
Oh wow, interesting. Did you talk to the butcher in advance? I was crazy specific about what I wanted when I talked to the butcher. I know I would have gotten about 30 more pounds of ground beef if I hadn't been so specific. I actually met the farmer at a market a few months before and he had a giant list of different cuts that you could buy directly from him, so I knew that he was working with a butcher that could do pretty specific things. Obviously since we got a quarter cow, we couldn't get everything we wanted because it's hard to split it four ways, but we were pretty satisfied with the amount of each specific thing we got. I guess you will be having a lot of burgers and chili?!
@@crazykenz4203 what exactly did you ask for?
@@rmoncak Hi Rob! I just found the email that had the cut list. Here goes! For roasts, we had the options of rump, sirloin tip, arm, and chuck (bone-in or boneless) - we got each of these, just had to specify the weight of each roast (2, 3, 4, or 5 pounds each), or if we didn't want any of these roasts, to grind them into hamburger (I got all of them, which I show in the video). For steaks, there were ribeye/ribsteak, porterhouse and t-bone or NY strip and tenderloin, and top sirloin (bone-in or boneless). We had to say the thickness we wanted for each type of steak and how many steaks per package (I think we did 1.5" for the steaks) and had one steak for package (since it's just me and my husband). Then there was a section for round steak, cube steak, stew meat, or grind into burger. I think for this section, I chose round steak for everything, since I knew I could just cut up a round steak if I wanted to turn it into stew. There was a section about short ribs and shanks (or grind them into burger). For hamburger, it asked if we wanted 1 or 1.5 pound packages, and if we wanted them to make patties with the burger (there was an extra charge for this). And then there was a section about the extra organs you could get - heart, liver, tongue. (And now that I have written this all out, I see that the meat market has a website and this form is online!!! Go to this link www.meatmarketbaraboo.com/## and click on the beef cut list and a PDF will open - that's what I am going off of.).
If I remember correctly, for the roasts, we got some of each and we left the bone in and I think they were about 2 pounds each. Steaks we did 1.5 inches and one per package. Round steak, I think I said 1.5 inches, as well, and one per package. Burger - we did 1 pound packages. Kept the short ribs and soup shanks, and also got the organs (I remember that the butcher lady said that the organs were kind of first come, first served. We were splitting a cow were 3 other people and I was the first person the butcher talked to from our group, and since I said I wanted the organs, I got the heart and tongue, but I believe they cut up the liver and I got a small chunk of it. If I remember correctly, she said that they don't cut up the tongue or heart, but will slice up the liver to divide.)
Let me know if you have more questions!!!
Should prob have been closer to 50lbs depending on cow. You have to be VERY specific on cut sheet re how much ground vs cubed etc. Next time!
You got ripped off. I just had one of my cull heifers butchered. 843 pounds of meat. 124 pounds was ground beef. So you got almost half the ground beef off that animal that was butchered for you. Your quarter was padded with ground beef and someone got some of the better cuts you should have received. Butchers often process old cows and bulls that are almost always completely made into ground beef. So they almost always have too much ground beef. They probably gave you some ground beef from another animal like an old.bull.or cow.
Wow. I just paid $2.50/lb. I bought half a steer, angus raised on a beautiful family farm in Ohio. Hanging weight for my half was 400lbs and I paid $960 for my 1/2. Do you find value in grass fed? If so, why? I’m curious as to why people seek out grass fed.
Hi Dan! Yes, grass fed is definitely a lot more expensive than grain fed (although, it sounds like your angus steer was able to get pasture at least part of the time). I've read that grass fed beef is generally higher in nutrients, particularly some of the fatty acids (ALA and CLA) and certain vitamins, plus it tends to be leaner than grain fed.
I was also pretty concerned about the quality of life that the animal had and we were able to visit the farm and go walk in the fields with the cows (they have a very idyllic life). Before ordering our quarter cow, we made sure to buy a few cuts of meat and a couple packs of ground beef to test.
Holy I thought my $2.05 per pound was expensive. We get grass fed angus beef. Nice to see other prices from around the USA.
Yup, it really depends on the type of cow, how it's fed, location, etc.!
How long did it take you to get through it all? My wife and I are wrapping up our first quarter in about 8-9 months!
I was going to ask about the deer meat... we don't call it venison, lol, its deer, dear! Haha.. we have tons of them on our farm, so needless to say, we have plenty!
Haha, I call it by both names (except in front of my dad - then it's venison all the way!).
HOLY COW that’s a lot of meat!
Hahaha, yup it is!
This was very helpful. I have a standard freezer like the one on your left and I talked with my boyfriend about splitting a quarter cow with him. Looks like I will be upgrading my freezer (we are carnivore so it’ll be full of just the cow).
My husband and I bought a quarter of a beef from his parents so far we are enjoying having the beef.
Great!!! So glad you found a great (and close) source for beef!
This made me feel way more comfortable about buying half a cow
So glad to hear it! I really felt like there wasn't a lot of info out there when we bought our quarter cow, so I wanted to share the whole experience. Hope your beef is delicious!
Very well done. Matches my experience with 1/4 cow as well. Family of 4, the steaks didn't last long. Keep it up. We paid significantly less - there may be opportunities - but, i'm not sure they're considered grass fed. Beef is the best i've every had! Sous Vide everything is a youtube channel that has a great recipe for 24 hour short ribs! We do whole hog as well for around $1 a pound + processing.
Very cool, Bo, glad you had a good experience buying bulk beef and pork! The quality of buying meat like this is just so much different than stuff you get at the store. Thanks for the sous food channel recommendation. I haven't done the short ribs, yet, but plan to soon. I'd really like to get the hide of one of the Scottish Highland cows - I think it would just be so beautiful if I could get it tanned!
I am waiting on my 1/4 (first time buyer) and it was grass fed corn finished, 750 flat delivered locally, they say will be about 125lbs approx... we'll see. I am excited considering I just paid 20 bucks for a cheap ass chuck roast.
Haha, yup, meat prices are pretty wild these days! I'm sure that your quarter cow will be excellent quality! I feel like this is one of the best ways to get meat, especially these days. Eat local!!!
Just want to tell u that those scottish cows taste like between a bison and a cow. They take 3 years to grow just like a bison, cow takes 18 months. Thought u would want to know that.
Oh that's so interesting! I had never heard anything like that, good to know!
Might explain the difference in cost between this video and what posters are saying.
Hi, Kendra. I know this is an older video, but it was still very informative and enjoyable. I think maybe the phrase you were looking for was "horn to hoof"? Meaning you make full use of the animal. You're pretty brave to post a video about meat consumption. Hope you didn't get too much hate mail. Again, thanks. (:
Yes, horn to hoof! I sometimes also hear snout to tail. But yes, making use of the full animal - that's the point I was trying to make! Haha, oh gosh, you know, I haven't really gotten much hate for consuming meat. I did get a lot of nasty comments about talking too much (like get to the point, Kendra, stop talking about the whole process, show us the meat), but the whole point of the video was to talk about my whole experience with it - visiting the farm, figuring out what we wanted, the experience with the butcher, why we chose the farmer that we did, and sharing the meat. (And actually, a producer from ABC contacted me about using a bit of this video on Good Morning America a few months ago - they just shared about a 2 second part of it where you only see my hands and all of the meat. That was kinda neat!)
Great breakdown 👌! My neighbor is processing one of his Black Angus, and I asked to go in on a 1/4 of it. So this helps out a lot to know what to expect.
One thing is I added up the ttl lbs you got (not counting the bones) and I show 126 lbs and at $4.75 that's a total of $600. Even if you pay $0.55 per lbs (hanging weight) for processing, that only adds about $103, for a grand total of $703. Why did you get charged more?
butcher/packaging probably since she wanted all custom cuts
Great job explaining all of this...
Hey Kendra, great video. A couple of questions for you. What is the fat content of the ground beef? Does they give you options? I find that 80% is the best tasting. And do they sell the tallow?
Thanks! I think that it ended up being maybe 15% fat in the ground beef, but I'm not completely positive (I remember getting off the phone with the butcher and was like, oh crap I forgot to ask the fat content!). So nope, they didn't give me options for fat, but I think if I had asked about it, they could have done something. I don't remember seeing anything about buying the tallow, but my guess is that if I had wanted it, I could have gotten it. I got the heart, tongue, and a couple chunks of liver because I asked for them. I also asked for extra bones and got those. And I even emailed the farmer after getting the meat and asked if it would ever be possible to buy a hide to have tanned. I haven't done this yet because I think it might be pretty pricey to find someone to actually tan it, but he did say he could get a hide back easily (think I'd have to pay maybe 40 bucks for it - I guess the butcher shop sells the hides to a company to help offset the cost, which makes the processing fee pretty low, so yes I would have to pay a bit for it). The butcher shop was really friendly and helpful and was totally fine with doing whatever I requested!
So helpful thanks so much for sharing! I recently bought a 7 cu ft freezer and planning to purchase a whole cow (likely 600lb hanging weight), I'm stressing out since I'm not sure if it will fit, do you think it would it work?
Ok, I just googled it and it says that you should plan for one cubic foot of freezer space for every 35 - 40 pounds of meat. The site I found says 16 - 17 cubic feet for a full cow (5 - 7 cubic feet for a quarter cow, 8 cubic feet for a half). The farmer that we bought our quarter from said a quarter cow can usually fit into the 3.5 cubic foot freezer, but I'm glad we had extra space because I don't think we could have fit it all into our small freezer. Have you already ordered the cow? Maybe start with a half cow unless you want to get a bigger freezer? If the cow is 600 pounds hanging weight, you'll probably end up with about 400 or so pounds of meat - I'd guess you'd need at least 10 cubic feet for that amount. Do you have freezer space in the freezer above your fridge? Or do you have a friend or family member with extra space in a freezer where you could store some meat?
Really helpful, getting a 1/2 this week and this info was valuable!
Awesome! Hope it's delicious!
I’m doing the same and some fresh chickens..
That's awesome! Good time to make sure you have enough food - who knows how this virus situation is going to play out?! If I had a house and some land, I'd buy some chicks to raise for eggs and meat.
Wow just googling about quarter cow and your channel was the first ww clicked into! We live by Neenah! Been doing butcherbox and crowd cow right now
Oooooh, I don't really know Neenah well, but have been to Hilbert a bunch cuz that's where my dad grew up. I've been reading about the sturgeon caviar scandal happening over on Winnebago - crazy!!! I've never tried Butcherbox and haven't even heard of Crowd Cow - hope they are working out for you!
Just going through comments on here to see what I missed and wanted to also mention Good Chop for meat. They actually sent me a box of meat, so I'll be testing that out and reporting back in the next few weeks! Always good to have options (especially if you don't have the space for a quarter cow!).
Those are big animals! Our farm just changed to a smaller race and we get a whole beef, split it with all the kids. I get all the bones, the tail, the kidney fat, and the organs - my kids don't like 😁 and when the son in law comes I make us liver!!!
The past 2 years we only took half a beef, still enough to feed all of us (7 adults 4 kids under 10), even if hubby doesn't get a deer......
Oh awesome! How do you cook the liver? Any tips for the heart or tongue? How much freezer space did the full cow take up?! Between venison from my dad and this quarter cow, we are stocked for the year!
@@crazykenz4203 liver I make the easy way now, half thawed slices best and I cut it into bite sized pieces. Put those on paper towel to dry them off, then into some flour. Sometimes I add salt, pepper, thyme or sage to the flour. Fry them in bacon grease is really good, but you can use oil or ghee. Once brown on one side turn, once brown turn again; no more blood should ooze out when stuck with a fork. You can do the same with a large size of liver, I just like the smaller pieces because I usually forget to get it out of the freezer the night before! Liver does not take long! If you overcook it it gets tough. Add a splash of ACV to the pan for "sour" liver and serve with caramelized onion with apple slices and mashed potato. Tongue and heart I cook in plenty of water with b ayleaf, allspice, peppercorns, onion and what ever you want to add. You could put a bone with it as well, add a splash of ACV and you get broth for a few days. Bring to a boil then simmer, usually over night on low. One beef tongue makes a few meals, or slice thin and use on sandwiches, cube and make like a chicken salad. Endless options. Take the skin off after it is cooked! Heart we eat like a roast, usually put it in the crockpot with what ever spices you like, it makes enough liquid on its own.
We fill I think a 7.5 freezer with half, looks to be the size of your larger one. It still fills it now that we get less since I have a few chickens in and there is always ground left from the prior year - half the ground and cuts go to my one daughter, I have the bones to fit as well. Sometimes we have to stash the older ground in the fridge freezer, this year I took 15 pounds or so out prior and canned it. My first time canning beef, pretty good and quick meal, I will can some more over early summer when I can do it outdoors. My large pressure canner doesn't fit on my stove 😁 only the smaller one which only holds 7 pints.
Hope that answers your questions - I can write more 😊
Thanks so much for the ideas for the liver, heart, and tongue - I'll let you know what I end up doing! That's so interesting about canning beef - I think my mom said that my grandma used to do that with either ground beef or venison (for sure they canned cubed venison). What kind of pressure canner do you have? I don't have one yet, but it's always in the back of my mind as one of my final kitchen items. We have a glass top stove in our current apartment, so I am a bit hesitant about pressure canning on that - scared to crack the glass (I was also a bit concerned with water bath canning this previous summer, but luckily was ok).
@@crazykenz4203 I got an All American that fits quarts and pints on top, but I didn't measure the space between stove and useless microwave above! Not enough space for that size canner. So I found me a used Presto, looks well taken care of! Plus I got a slew of jars and lids and bands with it. Perfect size for the stove top. Of course it holds a lot less, I can look up the volume when I get home, but it fits 7 pints (I think I did 5 quarts in it as well) and that one or a similar small one you could use on a glass top. I just use the huge one outdoors with the gas burner when the weather suits 😊
Canned meat is definitely worth it!!!
I did chicken before, it can be waterbathed, the only meat you can waterbath, but now they all get pressure cooked, finally 😊
Oh, if you still have the booklet to the glasstop, check in there, otherwise call the manufacturer if you are too worried; it's quite a bit of weight, so much that I never take the pot off the burner after it is done canning, as recommended. But I have gas and that doesn't keep heating once turned off.
We also buy fresh organic pork and just bought a whole pig. And it is so good.
Yummmmm that sounds amazing! The farm that we got our cow from also does pork (half or whole pig), but we just don't have any extra freezer space for that! I want to find a local pastured chicken place, too.
$1000 of beef in the freezer. I’d be too worried about a power outage! I’m surprised you didn’t get the fat to make beef tallow
Maybe next time I'll do that! Seriously, I was so overwhelmed with this whole process - I don't know a whole lot about cuts of beef, but man am I learning. Any tips for making tallow? I buy duck fat and beef tallow for roasting potatoes, but it's a tad pricey, so would love to be able to do it myself (ok, clearly I just need to stop renting and buy some big place with lots of storage in the country cuz I have way too many food projects).
Liv'n Lujin hey I’m from the city. What’s beef tallow? Please
@@JohnSmith-jz4pk And beef tallow (or duck fat) make the most amazing roasted potatoes!!!!!
They gave you a split quarter. Brisket comes from the chest of a cow and sirloins come from the back. That's not a common technique unless you specifically ask for it.
Ok so is that a good thing!?
@@crazykenz4203 It's all just preference honestly. If you like brisket or sirloins, then yes. 😂 The cuts in between those are the ribeye and the strip loin.
Exactly what I was looking for
Great informative video. How much would you say you saved had you bought all of this retail?
Wow the color of the meat is different from getting it in a store too...ery intetesting
What does it cost
I just stumbled across this video as I’m searching for examples of cuts (we’re ordering a 1/4 cow)....and all the sudden you’re from Madison!! We live in Waunakee 😊
Awesome, Waunakee is so nice! Where are you getting your quarter cow from?!
My husband’s cousins here in Waunakee have a farm, and we split the cow with my sister in law. I also just bought my first local chicken and it was AMAZING - Schwoerer Acres is the name of the farm. I bought two frozen birds and eggs. I love getting our meat local, from farmers we trust 🥰
YES!!! Local chicken is the only way to go (I mean, local meat in general is the way to go, but gosh, so much chicken at the grocery stores, even the fancy stores, is BAD). I haven't actually been eating much meat lately (my health is weird and I kept getting sick after eating meat, ugh), but if I have a hankering for chicken, I'll keep your place in mind - thanks!
@@crazykenz4203 I have been following a “Vegan Before 6 pm” diet, and though I could eat meat for dinner I feel so good I usually don’t want to (I made an exception for a dairy free chicken enchilada bake though 🥇). Plant based just feels so GOOD!!!
I feel the same way!!! I don't get sick every time I eat meat, but gosh, when I do react to meat, ugh, it's the worst - super headachy, nauseous, tired, just super out of it for a couple days. Mmmmm your enchilada bake sounds sooooo good. It's hard living in Wisconsin and being surrounded with cheese, but I feel terrible when I eat cheese (but of course my husband, who is French and will never give up cheese, devours cheese like there is no tomorrow!).
Kendra where did you purchase your freezer tray?
I love that people love meat this much.
It's kind of funny because about three months after we got the quarter cow, I was told that I'm actually very sensitive to beef and to not eat it very often...so the quarter cow lasted us a rather long time!!!
Do you know how they determin a quarter beef? I'm a butcher from California and we sell quarters and halves. When you ask for a quarter here you choose from either a forequarter or hindquarter. Looks like you got cuts from both. Sorry if it sounds confusing ha.
Yup, this was a mixed quarter (and we knew that was how this farmer and the butcher shop did it). For you, which quarter is better - front or back? (I don't know much about beef!)
Interesting, how much did you pay per pound inclusive of everything? thanks
Great content, very informative. Did you try the liver, heart, and tongue? If so, did you like all of them? I've heard a lot of people have a hard time with the texture.
I had very grand plans to eat all of that stuff...but never got around to it...and eventually found out that my cousin loved that stuff, so gave it to her! If I recall correctly, for the tongue, she chops it in pretty small pieces and fries it. I can't speak for what to do with the heart or liver, but I have definitely eaten deer heart stew and that was always really tasty and tender (you just can't think about what you're eating!), so I imagine you could do something similar with the heart. I reckon you could just fry up the liver with onions and garlic. I've heard the tongue has the weirdest texture of the three. Good luck!
i love that smile and wave...
Hiiiiii, how are you?! Happy New Year!
@@crazykenz4203 Thanks.. Im all over the place.
Did you do the cow route or get a steer?
Haha, the car would probably be really excited to help finish all of this off. ;) This was very interesting to see.
It would be interesting to know how long this lasted you. Maybe you could do an update. :)
My guess is it will last about a year. We also have a lot of venison (deer meat) from my dad, so we shouldn't have to buy any red meat for a year or more. I will def keep you posted! Haha, and yup, Kimchi would love to get into this! (And so would her sister...but Kobe throws up whenever she has beef, so she won't be getting any!)
Hi Kendra,
Just wondering how long the meat lasts in the freezer and how you guys did with that amount of meat- did you wind up having to throw out a lot of it due to it going bad over time? Thanks!! The video was so great and informative!!
Hi Taylor! It actually lasted really well in the freezer for a loooong time, much longer than I had planned for! It's already been about 2.5 years since I made this video - and we legit still have meat left. My mom used a couple of the roasts a couple weeks ago (in the crock pot) and my husband kept talking about how good it was. I just saw that my mom has a couple of the shanks and another roast that she's thawing out to use now, too.
We used the ground beef relatively quickly, as well as the steaks and more "normal" kind of cuts. I actually had to stop eating too much beef shortly after we got the quarter cow (I know, I have impeccable timing!), so we didn't eat it super frequently. I gave some to my parents, too.
So yeah, I'd say that it definitely kept very well in the freezer for a long time and the quality was still fine (although I'd recommend trying to get through it in a year or so). I also didn't think the plastic wrap that was used for wrapping each piece was that amazing (like I wish that had used something more heavy duty like Food Saver bags and vacuum pack it), but the quality still seems good! None of the meat, even 2.5 years later, had freezer burn. If you know you will be eating beef even once a week, I think it's good to buy in bulk like this. (And if you eat beef a couple times a week, definitely go for it!). We didn't throw any of the meat away (I did give the liver, tongue, and heart to a cousin who likes those parts, but it wasn't cuz it went bad - I just wasn't feeling overly adventurous!).
I've been following a lot of forums regarding food shortages and prices rising, so I definitely think this is a good way to go if you are a big meat eater!!! Let me know what you end up doing!!!
@@crazykenz4203 thank you so much for the quick reply!! That’s awesome! Yes - with all the rising prices and not knowing much at all about store bought meats (where they comes from, what they’re fed, what they’re injected with, living conditions etc) this is something that is definitely intriguing to me!
Oh gosh, yes, meat quality is so important!!! It was so nice being able to visit the farm and see how the cows were raised and what they ate! We don't really eat tons of meat anymore, but I definitely understand how you feel with the rising costs of food! Do you have enough freezer space? I know that chest freezers are kind of a hot commodity these days and can be a tad challenging to find!
@@crazykenz4203 an extra freezer was actually something I was just mentioning to my husband! Obviously that’s a huge factor we are currently in an apartment but will possibly be moving soon so if space allows we would have to look into purchasing one. I just started doing research and reading up on purchasing meat from a farmer and I had stumbled upon your video so I’m very early on in the process 😂
We were in an apartment when we got the quarter cow (in a different apt now, but at least we have a private garage where the freezers live). Not ideal, but we did have two chest freezers (on carpet!) in our apartment.
I think I've heard that chest freezers are more energy efficient than upright freezers (something about how they lose less cold when they are opened, while uprights lose a lot of cold, I can't remember exactly!), but the next freezer we get will be an upright cuz chest freezers can be so annoying to find stuff in, especially when it's super full!!! Those blue bins I showed in the video are so helpful, though, so if you do get a big chest freezer, figure out some sort of organizational system so stuff doesn't get lost!
Good luck with your potential quarter cow purchase!!!
Thanks for the vid. I
've been wanting to order something like this. Good info!
Thank you! It is definitely an investment, but it will end up being more affordable in the long run. Plus, I just feel like it's a more sustainable way to get meat, and I trust the quality more than getting it at the store. Thanks so much for watching!
@@crazykenz4203 how much was it?
@@loveking4797 It all depends on the weight of the cow. A typical cow is $3 a pound. If you love steak, it's WAAY cheaper to buy this way.
The butcher took the oyster stake from the knee area. Didn't hear that in there, maybe put it into the ground. That's a good piece of meat, ask for that, butchers mostly take that for keeps.
That definitely was not on the list of cuts, haha! Maybe the butcher snatched it!
I called my butcher and asked for it and they said they don’t give it out
Hi Kendra...Thank you so much for posting this as it’s very informative and useful. We’re planning on doing the same thing here soon, so I have a couple of questions. 1) Can you specify the ground beef fat content? My wife likes 85-90%. 2) Do they hand it over to you in a frozen state or is it “blast frozen?”. 3) Did they say how long you can expect the meat to last frozen in a freezer? I’m guessing 6 months to a year? Again, thank you so much!
Hi Gil, glad you found my video and it was helpful!
To answer your questions:
1) For the beef fat percentage, I believe you can request a certain percentage - I can't remember, though! I think I had intended to ask when I talked to the butcher because my husband likes it less fatty, but think I maybe forgot. I think it really just depends on the butcher. Have you found the place you want to get the quarter/half/whole cow from? If so, ask who the butcher is and give the butcher a call. I'd imagine it depends from business to business. (One thing with our quarter, though - because our specific cow was being shared by four people, we did have to be flexible. I don't know if they process all of the ground beef at the same time, but reckon if you wanted your beef to be less fatty, it would be possible.) I know that some butchers offer quarter/half/whole cows to be ordered directly from them, so I'd suggest shopping around and asking questions about how they process the meat.
2) The meat was very thoroughly frozen. We picked it up directly at the farmer's place and it was very solid. (Sorry, I don't really know what blast freezing is!) I believe that the meat was frozen at the butcher and then the farmer went to get it. The farmer has a big truck that he uses for markets and there are several chest freezers in it, so reckon that's where the beef was placed for transporting it back to the farm.
3) I think the recommend that we use the meat within a year, but we still do have some left. I actually had some health problems come up only a couple months after getting the quarter cow and had to reduce how much beef I ate...yeah, great timing, I know. It's been about a year and three months since we got it and whenever I take out meat (mainly for my husband now), it's totally fine.
Hope that helps! Let me know if you have more questions!
the Tongue makes AMAZING tacos, Tacos De lengua. Look it up here on UA-cam on how to make them. Thanks for sharing!
did you request parts from 2 quarters? you got cuts from both front and rear
They said that we would get a mixed quarter of pieces from the front and back. Basically they paired us up with another customer who was getting a quarter, then they divided up that half. I don't think the farm that we went with does the option of either a front or a rear quarter (but I really don't remember!).
I'm trying to find a place in my area (tampa bay area) where I can buy a quarter cow. Any tips on how to search? Throwing stuff in Google is not helpful thus far..
Are there any butchers in your area? You could try asking them if they know of any local farmers that do bulk meat. I suppose you could also post on Facebook or Nextdoor and see if any local people have any ideas. Are there any farmer's markets near you? A lot of the small local farms that sell bulk beef and pork often have stands at farmer's market in Wisconsin. Also, sometimes restaurants will get meat from local sources and they will usually display this in their menus or online - could be a way to find leads on bulk beef sales. Good luck!
@@crazykenz4203 thank you so much! I'm now 1 week away from meeting a somewhat local farmer and picking up my 1/4 beef and I'm super excited. Thank you for your video and your advice. It helped me find someone!
Do you think a quarter of a cow is too much meat for just two people? I ask because we are considering buying fresh beef, just dont want to get too much. Thanks
I think if you eat beef a couple times a week, it's totally fine! Just make sure you have enough freezer space!
Thank you we are on the verge of getting a qtr cow.....goodness that’s a lot of meat.
Get your chest freezer ready! Yes, it's a lot, but it will be great for you to have that and have good food security - I am reading about shortages and price hikes all over the place right now!
@@crazykenz4203 I think I am going to pick up another freezer because I have a ton of frozen vegetables in my current freezer. Hopefully FB market has an inexpensive one.
Yes, definitely try to get another one. I know that appliances like this have been hard to get the last couple of years, so fingers crossed you can find one! Never hurts to get an extra one - there's so much stuff to freeze. :D
I have a quarter grass fed grain finished cow in the freezer. Or what's left of it.
Oh gosh we still have so much left! We are stocked for a long time!
@@crazykenz4203 New subbie. Loved your video! Quick question: f you had to guess, how long do you think 1/4 cow would last 2 adults that ate beef maybe 1-2X per week?
So sorry for the delayed response - I only get notifications for new comments, not comments on comments, so sometimes they got lost! I'd say about a year! A quarter cow is A LOT of meat. We got over 100 pounds of meat, so even if you cooked a pound of beef twice a week (you'd probably have leftovers), that would get you through at least a year.
Rooter to the tooter..snout to tail ☺️
Video starts at 8:40
That’s crazy this bitch never stops yapping
Love the bins....i ordered some similar blue recycle bins from the container store!!!
They're so useful for organizing a chest freezer! Chest freezers can be such a pain if you have a variety of things and need to dig around in there a lot!
@@crazykenz4203 yes a nothing gets lost at the bottom....love the handles on the bins too !!
Great video
Curious what u did with the heart, liver, tongue? Pate? Cool hotdogs!
I ended up giving the heart, liver, and tongue to my cousins...no idea what they did with them (but I know they used them, as they were happy to get them).
Awesome information. Ty
Thanks so much for watching!
The meat market is an AMAZING place to go. We go there very often and they have great meat! Thank you for sharing!
So glad you found a good source for meat!!!
What does every one do with the brisket .??
I haven't decided what I'll do yet, but I'm thinking that I'll either use my sous vide machine or a slow cooker. I've heard the key to brisket is low and slow cooking.
@@crazykenz4203 yup, low and slow gives you mouthwatering!!!!
How much would I get from a like a really big neighbors cat?
OMG!
OMG = Oi mucho gato?? Lots of cat? Thanks for your help in this matter
thanks
You bet!
Can you tell the price too please
I mention it in the video. It was about $8 a pound hanging weight. I can't remember the total offhand, but it's in the video.
Pro tip. Don't ever order a 1/4 beef. Someone is almost always losing out on prime cuts. Order a 1/2 or whole beef to not get ripped off.
It’s like an episode of Portlandia
Ok, so speaking of Portlandia...I have to share this story cuz it makes me giggle. I went to Portland a few years ago with my husband. We had watched all seasons of Portlandia before our trip, so were familiar with the theme song. So we're cruising into Portland, bright sunny day, windows are down, and we look over at the car next to us - young gal has her windows open, blasting the theme song, totally getting into it. We start to giggle...her windows roll up and she has a very sheepish look on her face. That's one way to pick out the tourists in Portland, I guess!
Nice
My brother cooks the tongue in a slow cooker
I'm guessing I'll do something similar for the tongue.
Tongue is a fabulous piece of meat believe it or not. If cooked properly it’s just as good prime rib. Parboil, skin, trim and season really well. Brown in a hot skillet on all sides, then add to a Dutch oven or slow cooker with the vegetables of your choice.
Ooooh good to know! I ended up giving it to my cousin because his daughter really likes it. Putting your comment into my brain in case I ever have the chance to get a tongue again...
How do you cook them? Do you cook each pound steak whole? What about the 5 pound brisket? Jaja love the video
Oh gosh, it just depends on each cut. For the ground beef, it's usually used for burgers, chili, or taco meat. The steaks are usually just seared in a cast iron pan. I did try to smoke the large brisket last summer with a charcoal grill - the flavor was good, but I'm not exactly a barbecue expert. I gave the other brisket to my mom and think she made it in a slow cooker. Some of the tougher cuts of meat soften up in a slow cooker or Instant Pot (round steak, for example).
Kendra Lee i see, i have never tried cooking meat that big jaja. Nice video, learned a lot thanks
I'm so jealous 😣🤣
With a name like Carnivoro, I can imagine!
How long will all that meat last frozen ?
I know that the farmer said it was good for at least one year, but we actually still have a bit left (and it's almost at two years!).
Wow..she goes on and on and on..i felt choked within 5min. Jokes aside, thanks for the useful info. I know it takes a lot of effort and time in creating a video like this and I am thankful.
Yes, this video is long because I wanted to explain the entire process, why we chose this farm, cost, and exact cuts of meat. When I was researching buying a quarter cow, I didn't find a lot of information out there, so a video like this would have been helpful for me, which is why I made it. And yes, it does take A LOT of time and energy to make videos.
Love this comment, thank you for the giggle!
Grass fed will always be leaner than grain fed, Less fat, Just remember the flavor is mainly in the fat,
This lady is the definition of beauty.
funny sweater
What is there website
We went with this farm - www.highlandspringfarm.com/
Rooter to the tooter
where is the tenderloin and the ribs?
They split a half cow between two customers who are getting quarters, so the butcher kind of has to figure out who gets what and make it as fair as possible. What I showed in my video is what we got - so I guess whatever isn't there, the other customer got? We did get rib steaks, so that would be part of the ribs, and we also got some T-bones, which includes some tenderloin. I'm guessing the butcher won't give one customer the whole tenderloin (or cut it into filet mignon), as it's pretty desirable, so they probably just offer up T-bones and divide them.
so like $8 a pound?
You got wayyyy more than I got
Apparently the cow that we got was a lot bigger than normal. Plus I guess it would all depend on the breed. How much did you get? Do you know what kind of cow it was?
Kendra Lee I got 130lbs of butchered meat
$4.75 is fairly high.
Over 8 mins before any meat shots.
Where’s the beef!?!?
I wanted to explain everything about the whole process, pricing, visiting the farm, etc, as these were things that I tried to research a lot before ordering our quarter cow, but couldn't find a lot of it. You can always skip forward in videos, you know!
Thanks for your information, I am dealing with this guy. O think he's very shady, it's been almost a year. He just called to say the meat is ready. He too my deposit of $350 , upon no circumstances, will you get a refund. The grass fed beef was priced @8$ per lb.
That is very suspicious for sure
@@B00TYclapperCLUB69
I got my purchase and I am very happy 😊
I wonder if they take food stamps : )
I don't think they'd take food stamps for a quarter cow, but I do not that there are a lot of local farmers by me that are doing what they can to help people out during this crazy time. Stay safe!
I hate to tell you this your butcher did not do a good job packaging your meat. If your meat were vacuum packed properly as it should be, you would not see all that frost inside your wrapping which leads to freezer burn and that ruins your meat.
looks like a full heart to me. next time get the kidney, slice it up into tiny steaks and fry in a pan, so good. has to be grass-fed though store-bought is disgusting.
I actually ended up giving the heart, tongue, and liver to my cousin who really loves that stuff! Interesting about the kidneys (and yes, store bought kidneys just sound a bit gross!). Thanks so much for watching :D
Beautiful enough to eat yum yum yum yum yum
Yum yum yum!!! Funny enough, over a year and a half later, we are still finishing up the beef!
Can you request not to have ground meat ?
I think it depends on the butcher. I'm guessing they can really maximize the amount of cuts (steaks, roast, etc), but there might be some stuff that would get turned to ground beef. Find a farm that sells bulk beef and ask where they get the meat processed, then contact that butcher. (I really don't know much about butchering, so not sure - but I reckon you could request a minimal amount of ground beef.)
$/lbs?
The price for the hanging weight was $4.75 per pound, but I think it ended up being about $7 per pound for the actual weight we got (you usually end up with about 2/3 of the hanging weight in actual meat once the bones and fat are cut out).
I WOULD EAT IT , THE MEAT I MEAN
😂🤣😂 me too
I blame my dad I swear if that man hadent slapped some sense into me I’d still be a unhealthy bastard curse him for making me care about being healthy
Glad you are being healthy!
Omg can she just come out as a vegetarian already??
delcious
wow great, they left a good portion of animal fat on the meat.
Yup, it's been very good quality so far! I'd say we have about a half of our meat left (didn't eat too much meat this summer because it was hot and we opted more for fresh garden stuff, but now that it's cold, think we'll be doing stews more often!).
Sorry, Vegans.....
Hahahaha yeah I think I may have offended some folks with this one. But hey, if you're gonna get meat, local grass-fed is the way to go!
@@crazykenz4203 yeah. Lol. I love your hair in this video. The ombre is cute.
Thanks! I'm slowly growing out the ombre - haven't had natural hair since I was about 12 (and coloring hair just gets so pricey!).
@@crazykenz4203 hah, I had coloured hair since I was 12 but I'm only 14 so it not quite as long of a time. I grew it out and cut it last month. I love my natural colour.
Same here - I hated my natural color for years and now I think it's just fine (even with a few grays sprouting here and there!). I figure once I'm an old lady and am naturally grey/white, then I'll get some funky colors and use those (but don't want to bleach my hair out for wild colors now, too much upkeep!). How's your jun going?
Only 125 pounds? You got robbed. A 1/4 should be close to #200. Also, my I HIGHLY recommend grain fed. Much, much more flavor. Grass tastes like grass. Tougher as well. Just my opinion. Watch comparison videos.
125 that's small cow
125 pounds was for a quarter cow!
9 vegans downvoted