Senior_AP

Does anybody on here buy there meat from the Supermarket??



If so, why?!??!?!?!?!?!?!?!!??!?!!?

OllyK

Sometimes - for convenience, local butcher is not open at times when we can get to him easily.

Patt@firstime

Price, availability, convenience.........

but not TASTE

minor_threat

Nope! I buy it from Makro or get it from a butchers. Comparing the meat from supermarkets, it seems to be full of water and shrinks to half its size or is very chewy. Supermarket steaks can be improved by bashing them to a pulp with one of those meat hammers though!

scoob_babe

I am guilty of buying the odd thing cos I've run out of it. Don't know why really as the quality, even of the supposedly 'Finest' or 'Taste the Difference' etc does not compare. I do a monthly run to the butcher and fill the freezer up.

davegtt

have u seen the price in the butchers? I have to worry about asking for weight of steaks rather than just pick up 2 plump looking fillets of the shelf... plus its winter and its cold outside, I can park near the door at asda

scoob_babe

the butcher I go to here (and I'm talking in Herts so things generally aren't cheap) is much better and weight for weight is cheaper than the supermarket!

Senior_AP

You don't know what you're missing!!

TelBoy

Depends which supermarket you're talking about. Not *all* of them sell water-injected imported trash. Assuming butchers are always better is an opinion *i'd* avoid...

David Lock

Not if I can help it. Problem is a lot of people, when buying steak for example, think that it should be bright red, fresh looking and so this is what supermarkets offer complete with bright lights! In reality the steak will be so much tastier if it is darker and been hung for a decent period; it's just that it doesn't look so "nice". Same with some fruit - the glossy apple from NZ that looks the biz but taste is non existent compared with a British grown ***.
Just my kilo's worth

PS. Just spend £40 on a huge bit of scotch boned and rolled sirloin (from butchers) for New Years Eve and I am already looking forward to it!!

scoob_babe

True, there are some skanky butchers. I tend to go on reputation plus I've also been known to ask where the good local restaurants get their meat from.......funnily enough its from the same place although I was using that butcher before I found out.

prodriva

I never buy meat from the Supermarkets and havent done for over a year now. I have two excellent butchers near me (Sandhurst and Yateley) and the prices are acceptable to me when you compare the difference in taste. I dont understand th epeople who moan about the price differences between the supermarket and a good butchers, just looking at the meat for sale should sway you to stop buying it from the supermarket. If people keep buying the cheap anaemic meat from supermarkets they will keep buying/selling the intensively farmed ****e they insist on selling. If you do find a butchers expensive just buy meat less often because I will guarantee you that you will notice a huge difference.

I urge anyone reading this to hunt down a good quality butchers and stop buying their meat from the supermarket. My missus said she wasnt prepared to do the seperate shop so I go to the butchers and she does the supermarket shop. I also tend to buy in bulk and spend about £20-£30 on meat which lasts us a good 2-3 weeks. This usually comprises minced-beef, lamb chops, pork chops, sirloin steaks, a couple of roasting joints and a ton of chicken breasts/thighs/legs.

If your still sceptical get some minced beef and try that. You should pay around £1 for 1lb/500g of minced beef from a butchers (your looking at £2-£3 for the same at a supermarket). I guarantee you'll notice the difference in taste.

davegtt

When was the last time you went shopping then? taking it you live at home with your mum from the earlier comment about if your mum served it up???? to alot of people you have to go out of your way to get to a butchers.....

and anyhow you dont have to worry about where to get your steaks from when its take outs most nights lol

scoob_babe

Our guy does home delivery, which I might just take him up on. I phone through the order on a Weds / Thurs to pick it up at my convenience on a Saturday......usually spend about £80-90 but that lasts us about a month, maybe a bit more if we have fish / veggie stuff too. In my opinion, its worth going out of the way for, the service is excellent too (even if he's a Liverpool fan )

Bakerman

Agree with the sentiments but why not buy organic supermarket meat if you are bothered about additives ?

Also, be aware that some less quality butchers buy meat of the back of a wagon which is normally much worse nick than supermarket bought meat, referring to that TV program a few weeks ago highlighting the incredibly poor quality of meat some butchers were selling.

ChrisB

Same could be said for sausages. I sampled loads of varieties at the Good Food Show at the NEC a couple of weeks ago. Plenty of small producers with some excellent combinations.

http://www.supremesausages.co.uk/ is one I bought some from - lush

Also beef burgers - I make my own these days. Beef, onion, fresh herbs straight from my garden. So different to frozen efforts.

My Dad worked for a large meat and food wholesaler for years, so has some insider knowledge. Our meat used to come from a butchers that was a friend of the family. Like David Lock says, beef joints would get hung for a few weeks and taste superb.

Damn, I'm hungry now!

Senior_AP

you've found a supermarket who's meat is good?? Tell me tell me telboy.

TelBoy

Waitrose are generally excellent, as with most of their fresh produce. M&S are also usually very acceptable too.

Karl 227

Waitrose always have a good fresh fish counter

Senior_AP

'ardcore. I'll have to give it a go.

....I did buy a Chicken Pie from M&S, only 2 bits of chicken in it though All mushrooms and slop.

Jap2Scrap

I was a supermarket butcher for nearly 8 years (christ I've done a lot in my life so far!) and I can tell you that none of the red meat was water plumped. The difference is that supermarkets are subject to the most rigorous H&S practices. All the bleeding has to be done before packaging (airtight in artificial atmosphere), the meat can only be hung for 3 days (10 is preferred), only a certain amount of contamination per gram, only a certain amount of fat per gram. All this makes a difference to the 'traditional' taste you get buying from a butchers. Their meat meat can hang for days on end, is dirty (subjective statement but compared to supermarket meat it is!) and nearer the end of it's life when on display. When was the last time a butcher gave you a sell by or use by date? These practices are supposed to apply to all.. do they ****.. Their stuff isn't wrapped when on display, gets covered in flies etc., all this adds to the taste...

Mmmmmmm yummy.

alcazar

iTrader: (2)

If I want quality stuff, there are 3 butchers on the local market, all worth a visit, but the market is 15 minute's walk from nearest parking, so not somewhere I bother with too often.

I do like to go on a saturday afternoon when it's near closing time, surprising what they ask for, for a tray full of steaks, chops, etc: £5 for about 5lbs of meat!!!!

Alcazar

Senior_AP

If you want REALLY good meat - go to Continental Europe.

ChrisB

Why is it any better over there AP?

Senior_AP

I see what you're trying to do here......

Well, yes it is. Meats in France are of a substantially higher quality. Food there on the whole is considerably better. Food there is a way of life, here it's a means to keep you alive and/or stuff your face.

Jap2Scrap

And they don't conform to EU environmental health policies either. Seriously, it makes all the difference. Meat tastes so much better when it's allowed to hang properly and breathe properly.

the moose

A somewhat idealised view.

Many French towns have truly awful food shops, with butchers you'd run away from as fast as possible. A very large proportion of French shopping is now done, as in the UK, at hypermarkets, which are not discernably better than the UK equivalents.

Leslie

Our local butcher is very long established and his meat is top quality at reasonable prices. We are also lucky that we have a farm which rears venison and sells it evry friday on the market. Their venison filet is outstanding and amzingly cheap.

Les

Chip

No dont buy it from supermarkets at all. Due to travelling all over with my job I know where to get decent meat from decent butchers and farms.

S/market meat is never mature nough and doesnt keep well in clingfilm type wrappings.

As for pricing I find supermarket are well expensive compared to local butchers etc.

Be nice to see every village have a bakery, butcher and greengrocer again but dobt that will happen. All French villages must have a bakery by law which is good.

I put most of it down to laziness.People just cant be bothered these days to go a little out of their way to get decent produce. They'll put up with an inferior product just becuase it easier to get it. Crazy.

Chip

Senior_AP

Idealised perhaps, but true nonetheless.

....I'm sure there are crappy shops in France, would never suggest otherwise. It's just that there are alot of better ones.