Fatted Calf turns another page and enters a fresh chapter in the Meat Tomb (as of today, still unfinished). Look above my pitiful words here and you’ll see Fatted Calf’s first Knockwurst. Both Mama and I enjoyed the thick, highly seasoned wiener. OoOoO, and how did I prepare it? The proper way, in boiling water for 5 minutes. Serve with fine German mustard and that, is that. Turns out Taylor is quite interested in making German meat products and this is our first taste. It’s also one of the first products where he used his new smoker. And since it is a new smoker, I had to try the bacon.

This bacon is a solid performer, nice thick slices and an even high quality smoke. The cure tended to be tad on the salty side, but just a bit. I think I’d like to taste a little more smoky smoke. I’m a huge fan of smoke flavors, just in case you hadn’t noticed. We had this package of bacon just as a snack before dinner, the chillins had piece after piece. And that’s saying something because Tiny E rarely likes anything more than buttered toast.
This week’s menu is quite a line-up and starts with Hoffman farm Quail stuffed with Basque Sausage. Grill, roast or smoke until internal temp is about 140 or so, pull and let rest. Be careful, they’re dainty! And order now cause there ain’t many. Hey, that almost rhymes. They’re dainty and they ain’t many, neat.
Second up is the fancy Berkshire Pork Brochettes with Thyme, Rosemary, Lavender and Fleur de Sel. Uh, I ain’t never had these, but I can tell you this, they rock. Just check out the ingredients, that’s how we know. These just simply must be grilled over a real wood fire. Any other way would be a crime against meat nature.
The crepinettes this week are the lamb ones with red wine and nicoise olives. Oh man, I just love those salty little olives in sausage meat. It’s such a nice bright surprise. These really should be grilled outside or use a high sided dutch oven rig to fry them in, they splatter like heck. Good though, real good. And the lamb isn’t all gamey either, it’s more than quite fresh and absolutely perfect for the crepinette way of life.
Well, I believe you should read their newsletter and see what you like on the menu. If you have any questions don’t hesitate to axe. I hope to see you this coming Saturday morning first thing at the Berkeley Farmer’s Market.
Biggles

Continue reading →

Ya know those friends that always show up when you’re feeling down? The pals that know just what to say and when to say it? Yeah well, our fridge has been down for 10 days and it looks as though it’ll be down for another 10 before the compressor is replaced. I’ve been awfully depressed about it, mostly because Amana/Maytag are assfucks and don’t have the staff to repair my 3 year old 1200 dollar fridge in any less time than 3 weeks. Chilebrown has kept his ear piqued and knew it was time for a meat adventure, he has the week off. So off to Bud’s Custom Meats he and his wife Ms. Goofy flew.
Wanna see what they found today?

Continue reading →

Above image is Fatted Calf’s Organic Beef Links with Aleppo Pepper from last week, homerun. These were smoked with hickory for a little over an hour and a half. This is about half the time I gave Taylor’s last beef links. Why? Because they’re about half the size! They’re about as round as your thumb, give or take. Tons of wonderful flavor in such a small package, nicely done.

Hey everyone. Sorry for the lack of posting this week, I’ve been nasty busy. Our fridge died last Saturday and I’ve been on ice and cooler detail since then. No time, no stremfs.
That being said, this week’s menu at Fatted Calf is fricken amazing. And it looks as though Taylor not only got his new smoker, but he got it working well enough to pull off an amazing feat. Big Fat Brined and Cold Smoked Pork Chops! If you know of Cafe Rouge and their brined pork chops, that’s Taylor’s recipe & technique. These fancy beasts are a must have.
Next up are the Harissa (North African spice mixture) marinated Lamb Brochettes (meat on skewers). I’m just sitting here, not writing. I’ve got a vision of the pork chops, I love pork chops, and meat on skewers in my mind and can’t get past. Then I check the calendar and realize Saturday is a few days out. What do I do until then? I just don’t know, this isn’t fair and I don’t like it. I’ll bet FC has some of these things ready for me, I’ll betcha. Sometimes I wish that Star Trek transporter thing was real (it’s not though) so I could get myself over there and sneak me a treat.
And then …
The crepinettes are rabbit with roasted shallots and thyme, man oh man. I haven’t had a rabbit crep yet, mebbe it’s time. I spy a fennel sausage and a savory pork rig with greens, helloooo. Then of course we have the beef links with Aleppo pepper, the list continues. OoOoOoO, look who’s baaack. BACON !!! Why was it missing? Because Taylor gave me his oldsmoker.
And then …
I’ve read over the menu several times already and can’t get over it. Just when you think you get to know Fatted Calf, it makes a turn and comes at you head on. Cheers to you for making your newsletter such a delight each week. I hope to see you first thing this coming Saturday at the Berkeley farmer’s market, I can hardly wait. Please read on to Fatted Calf’s Newsletter not written by me.
Biggles

Continue reading →

Here is Rory’s favorite beef roast that he’s never had. This one was marinated in a teriyaki blend for about 4 or 5 days. Then take a full strip of bacon, dangle it over the roast and slowly lower it while spinning the bacon in a twisty circle. And now we have a roasted teriyaki beef roast with bacon twizzles. So good, so good.

The Fatted Calf Newsletter just rolled in. Since the special is right at the top, I was happy to see the Little Lamb Leg Roasts stuffed with Olive Tapenade. It’s one of my favorites and my smoker is just itching for something lamby. But low and behold, just a few lines down? What’s this!?! Organic Beef Links with Aleppo Pepper, that’s what. And what the heck is Aleppo pepper? Eh? A little googlin’ and it turns out it’s from the Aleppo region of Syria, der. What was I thinking. What does it taste like? Rumor has it the little beast is a sweet & sharp chile with a moderate amount of heat with some fruity. You can use it alone in dishes and it’ll do fine on its own, it’s that complex and that good. I ordered a package of these fine links.
Check out what’s in the Salumi department, Sicilian al’ arancia. This is hands down my favorite salami of all time. It’s a Sicillian salami with a bit of orange zest in there. It isn’t much, but just enough to make you smile from ear to ear. The meat to fat ratio brings the bright flavors even to the most remote taste bud with speedy ease. And you know what? My research shows they haven’t had it since March of 2005. That’s why I put one of these on my reserved order form as well. They don’t usually have an entire cooler full, just a bin. Order yours now.
OoOooOo, look. Guanciale, hog jowl bacon. It’s got a richer flavor than regular bacon and can result in a far tastier and succulent dish. I attempted to stuff a beef roast with it a while back. That was kinda silly, fun though.
All in all this looks like a great time to hit the market this weekend. And if you can plan far enough in advance, I would use Fatted Calf’s Order Form to make sure you get yours. I hope everyone is doing well and see you at the market this coming Saturday.
Biggles

Continue reading →

The image you see above is last week’s special, Lomo en Adobo. A double rib pork loin roast with garlic, sherry, paprika and fresh herbs

Well, this is an absolutely amazing menu for Fatted Calf. My usual spew would be to talk about the food and how tasty they be. This week I think I’m going to talk about cooking the little dears instead. Why? Because they have two specials listed, Hoffman Farm Quail stuffed with lemon & herb sausage. And “Porchetta” style Heritage Pork Loin Roast with rosemary, fennel, pepper and garlic.
The way I figure it, because these roasts & stuffed quails are so unique and so perfect just the way they are, I don’t blend them with other ingredients. What I mean by this, I don’t use vegetables and roots in the pan while roasting. If you’re ah choosin’ the Porchetta roast? Smile. Remove your pork roast from the fridge 45 minutes or so before you plan to pop it in to the oven. Don’t wash it. Drizzle a little extra virgin over and set in a roasting pan with a trivet or rack. Try to use something with low sides, want heat all over. I suggest the rack because it’ll keep the roast out of the fat and allow more of the roast to brown and be highly edible. Preheat the oven to 375 or 350, it’s up to you. Install the roast in and on the lower rack. At 40 minutes check the internal temperature with an instant read thermometer, pull roast at 138. This may take an hour and a half, keep watch! Remove roast from pan and let rest for 10 minutes on cutting board, slice and serve. Or do what I do, just stand over the cutting board and eat.
The quails, while similar in roasting, one wants to take a lot of care with the little dears. They’re very tender and when done, can be torn to pieces very easily. In fact, it would pay to oil the rack before laying the quail down. Yeah, just follow the instructions for the roast, it’ll result in a wonderful quail. But it’ll be done in 40 to 50 minutes. When testing the temperature of the quail, please insert your instant read thermometer in to the sausage stuffed cavity, when 138 to 140, pull and let rest a few minutes. One per person, even for my appetite it’s plenty.
Of course these two can be smoked and/or grilled. If you’re going to grill them, set your fire up for indirect cooking. Oil your grill for the quail, for sure. For the roast, sear it over high heat until a little caramelly, then cook indirect with plenty of smoky wood chips. Remember, don’t adjust your fire with the exhaust vents, just the intake. Full open exhaust, this way you won’t get creosote build-up on your meat. Nasty ol’ bitter stuff. Keep an eye on your fire so it doesn’t get out of control or go out. If you think the fire is too darned hot? Pull the meat and let the fire burn down for 10 to 20 minutes. In fact, that’s true for anything in the grill or smoker. If things are getting out of control, if the fire is too hot, it’s okay to pull the meat or whatever you’re cooking. This way you can manage the fire and get yourself back in shape to continue.
Next up are the Rabbit Crepinettes! As most of us know, the crepinettes are a sausage patty wrapped in caul fat (fatty webbing). What this tells us right off is that they are going to create a mess no matter how you cook them. So, my first choice is always the grill. If this isn’t possible, use a heavy pan with high sides. A dutch oven would be a perfect candidate, with a splatter shield. Use a medium to medium low heat and don’t overcook the little pillows of meat love. I use my instant read thermometer here too or just cut in to them a little. These are exceptionally good with scrambled eggs for dinner or breakfast. mMmMMMMM, Mama love.
If you are going to be cooking any of their sausages this coming weekend, I would most certainly plan on doing them grill/smoker side. Fatted Calf’s cased sausages are exquisite little bundles of juicy. You’d want to build your fire to a medium heat, nothing crazy. Set a few on and see how they do. If they start to spazzle and split, pull to side and cook indirectly or wait a bit. Do not go and do household chores or get too loaded while grilling. Stay ready with tongs in hand. These sausages cook pretty darned quickly and they must NOT be overcooked.
Lastly I’d like to say that you should most certainly order your goodies ahead of time. This is Mother’s Day weekend and it’s going to be a sell out for SURE. Please place your order HERE.
Well, that pretty much lays that down for that. If you have any questions, even on the weekend, don’t hesitate to contact me at drbiggles at cyberbilly dot com. I’m here to help!
I most certainly will be attending Saturday’s market in Berkeley and hope to see you there. Remember, FC is also at the Ferry Building on Saturday too. Share the love.
xo

Continue reading →