It Takes Four Families

One approach that many home cooks are taking is partnering with several other families to purchase and butcher a whole animal or, in the case of a steer, half an animal. Because of the way animals are structured, I find that a division into four portions makes sense, as each family ends up with a more manageable amount of meat to eat and store. Once you find three other like-minded families, buy your animal and begin the process: Make sure that you have adequate freezer and refrigerator space, plenty of butcher paper, markers for labeling, a scale, and plenty of clean cutting boards and sharp knives. For a steer, each family will take home between 150 and 200 pounds/68 and 90 kilograms of meat. Well managed, this amount of meat can feed a family for a long time!