expand your summer repertoire and give these alternative cuts a chance on the grill
Each year, when the weather shifts from cold and cozy to hot and outdoorsy, we experience a shift in demand away from some of the winter's most popular slow cooking cuts, like beef short ribs, lamb shoulder, and pork butt. As whole animal butchers who strive to utilize all the possible cuts we can, it would be a shame to see these unwanted parts and pieces become ground meat, so instead, we switch up our style for the season.
New to these cuts? Check out the recipes and articles we've collected below:
LAMB SHOULDER CHOPS are juicy and flavorful, and unlike cooking a whole lamb shoulder, they don't take very long to cook! This super informative article from CraftBeering.com includes an easy recipe with a Mediterranean inspired marinade - and while it suggests skillet cooking, we'd also recommend cooking over an open flame, or simply heat your cast iron skillet on the grill!
COUNTRY-STYLE PORK RIBS aren't actually ribs at all! They are cross-cut from the pork butt section of the shoulder, and because of that, they have an intensely meaty flavor and loads of fat that melt in your mouth like butter. This article from TastingTable.com will de-mystify the cut and point you to lots of recipes to try. But we do love these "ribs" slow-cooked on the grill and recommend this recipe from SimplyRecipes.com as a solid foundation.
BEEF KALBI is possibly our favorite way to cook and eat beef short ribs. Of course we love the tender fall-off the bone experience of slow-cooked English-style short ribs, Korean-style Kalbi short ribs - which are thinly cut across multiple ribs so each strip of meat has three little bones along one edge - are perfect for marinating and quickly grilling for tender meat that’s sweet, salty, and well-caramelized all over. This recipe from BonAppetit.com will guide you from the marinade to the grill!