Last night was the second meeting (and first 'working' class -- the first one was just to pass out materials and give an overview of the course) of the culinary class in which I am enrolled. It's called BUTCHERY & FISH MONGERING.

The first question a lot of people ask is "Why fish mongering?". The way it was explained to me is a BUTCHER cuts up animals that walk on the land. A FISH MONGER does the same thing with fishies. Different terms for the same thing, kinda like "astoundingly sexy" and "The Drew™".

Though it sounds vaguely prurient to me, Webster's describes "monger" as:
Main Entry: mon·ger
Pronunciation: 'm&[ng]-g&r, 'mä[ng]-
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English mongere, from Old English mangere, from Latin mangon-, mango, of Greek origin; akin to Greek manganon charm, philter
1 : BROKER, DEALER -- usually used in combination <alemonger>

The second question a lot of people ask is, "I didn't want to know the origin of the word... Why are YOU (The Drew™) taking that class?!". I'd like to be able to claim that I am very interested in all areas of culinary arts and am therefore taking it to broaden my horizons. I'd like to say that I hate to see the art of meat fabrication lost to modernity (apparently, it's increasingly difficult to get carcases that are NOT pre-fabricated for us to learn on). But the reality is that in order to take some classes LATER that I want to take, I have to take this one. It is, plain and simple, a pre-requisite.

That being said, I am interested in the process not because I ever see myself as a meatcutter, but because it will make me a better consumer of items from the butcher's case. Additionally, and very tangentally, the restaurant where I'm interning cuts their own meat, so it is a skill I will immediately be able to use.

The class itself consists of an abbreviated lecture (complete with PowerPoint slides) on the topic of the day -- yesterday was LAMB. Then we go into the 'lab' to work with the aforementioned topic of the day, again, LAMB.

Let me tell you about the lab. Imagine a big steel room. Imagine a big steel room about 50 feet wide by 60 feet long. Now imagine this room kept at a mind-chilling 30 degrees. Now imagine being in that room for, oh, 4.5-5 hours. That's the 'lab'.

We'd been instructed at the first class meeting to dress for the lab. However, the sweater over a shirt over a t-shirt, under a lab coat under an apron combination (very fashionable, I tell you) I wore was insufficient. I was C-O-L-D.

Chef Nease brought out a lamb (an import, so it was on the small side) and quickly cut it (using a bandsaw and a giant hand-saw) into primals, explaining each cut and the pitfalls to consider when cutting it ("now, the bone will grab your blade and twist it right back on you if you're not careful here"). We then got our own primals to futher process into finished, saleable products once they went through the Cryovac.

What I found to be difficulty was keeping track of the anatomy & orientation of the parts-n-pieces as we worked on them, and, of course, the elements. Working in that cold lab was difficult and considering that we're working with VERY sharp knives, cleavers, and scimitars, you want to be very vigilant while cutting. Otherwise, I felt like it was reasonably easy to understand, and, with practice, something I could do well.

That reminds me of the long-lost Over the Rhine album...
Click to view attachment *
~fff

* - yeah, similar to the Monkey Butt album...

Oh my gosh, Dan. I adore you.

The bandsaw thing is kinda hot.

Synonymous!

: )

I enjoyed this post, Drew. Ever since I started watching The Food Network a couple of years ago, I've become sorta fascinated with the whole process that goes into cooking ... and I always love the tips the pros give regarding various spices, cuts of meat, etc. Sounds as if this class will be quite useful.

Drew you should take a wander out to Pike Place Fish Market in Seattle sometime and see the activity. I'm sure they'd be overjoyed to show you around the whole place and all they do....and how fast they do it!



Oh....and keep your eyes open and your head down while you're there!