Meaty Classes at Pine Street Market

I had the opportunity to attend the Whole Hog Class at Pine Street Market for free in partnership with Culinary Local in exchange for my honest and unbiased review. I learned oh so much from Rusty #knowyourbutcher. #ad

Warning: A cut up animal picture is below.

If you do not like to see cut up animals, this class is definitely not for you.  

Have you always wondered where various parts of the pig come from? Have you wondered about the process of how bacon is made or pork butt? Did you know that the pork butt actually comes from the shoulder of the pig? I had no clue, but I found out that and more.

Some of these questions and more have crossed my mind, but I never thought that I would be able to get the answers upfront and personal. Education is the key if you ask me and I like to be educated especially about things I eat, so as mentioned, thanks to culinary local I was able to learn some things. True, I could have looked online and some of it is true, but what is better than getting the information first hand from a butcher who has been doing in the business for over 15 years.

First things first though, a waiver had to be signed before we could go to the back to start the class which made sense to me, but what I did not expect were the recipes for some tasty treats including bacon.

To me there could not have been a better teacher, so from start to finish Rusty Bowers, Whole Animal Craft Butcher, #knowyourbutcher, from Pine Street Market, showed about 10 of us from start to finish the breakdown of a pig. We saw everything from the cooler and the room used for curing and smoking the pork.

After showing us how to cut our pork chops, each one of us took turns to cut our own and when class was over we took some home with us and yes it was good if you were wondering. Each participant received as well 2lbs of bacon and it was good. Simply seasoned and oh so tasty.

If you were wondering if they had more than pork, they do, including lamb, chicken and turkey.

All of the staff helping Rusty were very very helpful and knowledgeable and it was kinda fun to see while the class was going some of his patrons’ watching the class take place (they are all future attendees I am sure). We learned about various types of pigs and this one came from Riverview Farms.

We were served various parts of the pig and all of them were moist and we received tips on how not dry out the meat, how long let certain pieces sit in brine, and more.  Rusty had one of his good friends there, Brad from Moody Tongue, that provided us with some refreshments that paired well with what we had.

Check out the pics of what we were able to try during our visit:

Would I pay for a class? Yes, I would and would not hesitate. How about you?

For information on the next class, coming up soon so stay tuned to www.culinarylocal.com for the upcoming classes.