Yesterday was January 13, unlucky for some. You might well expect me to discuss yesterday’s unluckee but I won’t. No siree. Something entirely different. But if you’re into symbols, mantras and cusps you may discern a faint link between yesterday’s news and today’s post. Perhaps an “appropriate” link since that adjective just recently got an unexpected work-out and I like to be fashionable.
Vegetarians and especially vegans look away now. This post is unashamedly about meat. My favourite, most flavoursome meat is brisket, hot or cold. But brisket is not appropriate to these piping times. It’s origins – for me – go way back to post-war when it was far cheaper and the days were quieter. These piping times demand something redder and rawer which cannot be simulated with tofu or minced cabbage.
Beef rib. Or in our case beef rib for two. We love it but eat it rarely. For one thing it’s fiendishly expensive. For another it’s so red, so raw is comes close to being uncivilised. Great big boomerang-shaped bones give it bulk.
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| Searing. Nine's as far as the hob goes |
First we sear it since that seals in the flavour. Then it’s roasted infernally at 15 minutes per pound and – Lordy – we’d got over 5 lb. You may infer that this leaves it far from “well done” and you’d be right. I know this shocks some people but for them there’s always Spam.
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| VR invokes Dick III's last moments |
When it comes to cutting beef rib forget the concept of slicing. It gets hacked and not in a computereque way; the chopping board looks like the Somme. Chewing tends to be noisy. Some new potatoes dolloped in butter and that’s about it.
You expect me to apologise? As I said, we eat it rarely.
Only when it seems to fit the occasion.
Redneck definition: Residence: southern states of USA. Neck size: 18 in. Vehicle: Ford Ranger 3.2TD pickup (Visible features: Foxtail attached to top of whip antenna; gun-rack to rear of cab). Occupation: General farmwork (full time); alligator skinning (part-time). Preferred music: posthumous Hank Williams. Preferred reading matter: classified ads, Guns and Ammo. Preferred sexual activity: self-abuse. Electoral tendency: spoils vote with write-in for late Gov. George Wallace, Alabama (died 1998). Imprisonment: three terms (total 24 months) at Limestone Correctional Facility, two for bar fighting, one for animal abuse.
ReplyDeleteThere is a primal joy in celebrating with such a red cut of meat. (Chinese brides wear red to ward off evil, and luck, joy, and happiness are symbolized by red in the far east.) It wasn't until coming to the States and meeting the American grandparents that my mother and I learned that beef wasn't dry aged as a rule here (there were butchers on the German side, and I visited their cold rooms with hanging carcasses). I remember the Schlachtfeste in the autumn, so it's not as though I am squeamish. But my first experience with a piece of bloody Prime Rib put me off to this sort of dish forever.
ReplyDeleteI do raise a glass of quality ale tonight to you both, though! Cheers!!
Zu Schwer: This seems to suggest black pudding (boudin (Fr.), Blutwurst (Ger.)) isn't going to be a starter with you.
DeleteOMG, your reply to Sir Hugh is priceless...not unrelated though to Northern Wisconsin...lol, which we left after 7 years in 'hey der' land. Too funny!
ReplyDeleteI agree regarding Deliverance even though I had read the book before seeing the film. The book was even more scary than the film. It is strange that twenty minutes before reading your comment I was talking about Deliverance with W(my son.)
ReplyDeleteSir Hugh: I read the novel while I was still in the USA. It gave a great boost to the career of the author, James Dickey. He was, in fact, a fairly well-known poet, earning his living by working in an advertising agency. He explained his job this way: writing poetry made writing ad copy very easy.
DeleteI'm hearing Banjo Music...
ReplyDeleteBohemian: Happily there's 3000 miles between me and Georgia, and they're mostly sea.
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