A pig story -

This time of year is an exciting one in my house because this is the time when our pig becomes pork!. When I say "Our Pig" I mean the one that Windsor Family Farms reared for us. This year is even more exciting in that we finally went for the whole Hog! (in past years we just had half of one!)

This post might not be for the squeamish or vegetarians, whom I have a lot of respect for, but I am, a meat eater, and I worry about where my meat comes from and how it was raised. If you haven't asked yourself these questions yet then I suggest you watch Food Inc or read Omnivores Dilemma. Where our meat comes from and how it is raised is a bit of an issue today because our typical mode of buying meat leads us to pre-packed lumps of protein sitting in a cold chest with labels to remind us which species of animal it belongs to.

When I embarked on this slow food journey sourcing local and ethically raised meat was the one part which really worried me the most. Obviously there was no way I was going to get away with starting a small farm in the back yard so I had to research. Firstly I found a good set of resources online, Niman Ranch was my first find and these guys do an awesome job and provide a great service. Secondly there are the local farmers markets where some producers sell grass fed and humanely reared meat and finally I live just down the road from a large Wholefoods who at least tell me where the meat is from. All of these sources are convenient but they can be expensive.

Then, by accident, I found Windsor Family Farms, a very small farm just 40 mins away from Cupertino in San Martin. The farm is run by Kim and Kyle Windsor (and their children) is what would be called a small holding in the UK, they rear a few animals really well with the care and respect that leads to the best possible health and eventually meat. Buying meat direct from a farm may seem like a scary deal but it actually turned out to be quite painless. It is best to do a bit research on the animal your buying and at least know the main cuts (known as the prime cuts) and preparations. You will also need a freezer, not as large as you might think but you will need one. In case you are thinking that at some point a dead animal will end up on your doorstep, or perhaps worse a live one, for you to deal with! Don't panic it isn't like this at all. When the animal is due to go to slaughter (and the exact time will depend on the how Farmer thinks the animal is doing) you get a notification to prepare yourself. This is a time to clear out all those left overs from your freezer. The next thing that happens is, you call the butcher that receives the animal (or they will call you). All local meat producers work with a local butcher who will prepare the meat how you want it (yes you can have it your way!) in the case of Windsor they use Freedom Meats in Freedom near Watsonville (an excellent butcher and curer of meat). The butcher will prepare the meat into the cuts, turn the trimmings into mince and basically do what you want. Freedom will even cured your hams, and make your bacon (assuming you are picking up a pig). They flash freeze and box it up for you to collect. That is it! Costs factored as follows, there is a live weight fee for the animal and nominal slaughter fee (goes to the producer) and then the costs of Butchering. However when you factor in everything your Pork is going to cost around $3:50 - $5.00 per pound depending on how much work you want the butcher to do (this year for grass fed beef I paid about $7.00 per pound). Which is a deal! and if you have freezer a good way to go and the meat is absolutely top notch.

The Windsors deal mainly in pigs, they do have a steer occasionally. I have also found a couple of larger local farms, well ranches in the area. Morris Grass Fed Beef in San Juan Batista and Paicines Ranch in Paicines CA. These operate in a similar fashion to Windsor but on a larger scale and they deliver the butchered meat straight from the farm.  Paicines also operate a meat CSA through Eat with the Seasons. Typically there is a minimum order for delivery and an upfront deposit. The larger farms such as Paicines will allow you buy cuts of meat ala-cart but the prices go up considerable, buying in bulk gets the best price. Going directly to the source of your meat is great experience, you get to the see the passion and care these people put into rearing they animals and you get to understand the process and most important just who is messing with your meat!! if you live in the Cupertino area I encourage you to check out the resources above, if not then do some research on local producers in your area.

Potential Gross part ahead!

So in a week of so I expect a call from Freedom telling me my hog is ready. I have them do minimal processing because I like to do my own curing and sausage making which I will post about during the year. I also enjoy the offal which isn't for everyone but I would say you haven't tasted the real stuff until you have had it fresh. Offal needs to be eaten or processed with 72 hrs of slaughter. One really nice thing about working directly with the farmer is that you can get the offal fresh. I picked up the offal from my Hog last weekend and spent a day prepping it and turning it into yummy things can be frozen without losing the quality or texture. The main parts I use is the heart, liver and kidneys.

I made two family favorites, a rich liver pâté, and a dish from back in the UK which has an unfortunate name, one that is used in a derogatory sense in the US. So here I mean it in the culinary sense, this dish is called Faggots which are savory dumplings made from the liver and the heart mixed with herbs and spices (recipes available on request) and delicious with onion gravy and peas..

So more on the pig story when rest arrives, can't wait!.