It's 2025.
And the world has changed drastically over the last 200 years in ways that your great grandma probably never seen coming.
In a way, she was privileged.
Because she got to grow up in a time where the family would get together several times a year for a butcher day.
Just think how connected she was to the meat on her plate.
Cows, lambs, pigs, chickens…
Instead of filling the cart up at the grocery store with meat, (from who knows where) like you can nowadays, the meat she ate was most likely all raised and then butchered on her family's farm where each animal was highly valued, and much of its carcass, fat, organs and meat were put to use.
And they did it without the convenience of dumping all their cuts into a chest freezer.
But lucky for them, they were still in tune with the wisdom that their ancestors had passed down to them.
It was all about the preservation methods.
Seasonal butchering for bigger animals was key, if the weather was cool, then they didn't have to worry about the meat going bad as quick.
It could hang out under the tree for days if the weather was around freezing, and it wouldn't be spoiled.
They also cured the meat with salts and brines and then could let them hang in the smokehouse for days, where the slow smoldering of smoke added another layer of preservation to the cuts.
Lard or tallow was rendered.
Organs like brain, liver, kidneys, and heart were highly valued for their vital nutrients.
And they did all of this without a chest freezer! (unless they lived in cold enough regions to have an icehouse)
Pretty amazing if you ask me.
But now, it's no longer 1872, and you have all the conveniences you could ever ask for.
Microwaves, ovens, air fryers, toasters, and of course, the good ole chest freezer.
But the sad thing about all of this, is that it's so convenient, that you've lost a lot of the connection, (that your great grandma had) to the food that goes into all these gadgets.
It's actually mind blowing if you think about it.
So, maybe you're a little like me and feel a little sad at the fact that you've lost that connection to the meat in your freezer.
Well, here's one thing you can do about it in 2025.
Start searching for local farmers in your area and buy your meat directly from them.
Or, you can find farmers like me, that want to ship meat directly from their farm to your door, and not just that, but will also show and tell you about the process from birth to butcher.
I don't know.
It's may not be the perfect solution for getting back to your great grandma's ancestorial wisdom, but at least it's better than buying mystery meat from who knows where, right?
-JT
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