Long horn butchering.

[Travlr]

I plan on cutting steaks and roasts and burger

I've been watching the thread and I'm sensing that you think the steer will be better than most people here are thinking. Most good beef is from specific breeds known for meat, and animals that are under or close to two years old, although some people will feed something older and there are stories that they are satisfied. So you have an animal that is a breed that is leaner than most, older than most, and hasn't been fed like most.
In an auction with professional buyers of cattle going to slaughter the steer would be considered a "canner", and be diced up or ground for canned soup or stew, or burger.
But you can, and I'd encourage you to, have it processed like good beef and see what you get. I would not sell it until you tried several different cuts yourself first.

 

[sgreear]

Horns on the one mounting look different than the "steer" original picture for butchering might be the angle. Can we get a picture of the angus bull? Want to be helpful. Steers or even cows mounting other cows shouldn't hinder your bull, it's just something they do. A bull will get his shot in. Heck even have 100lb calves try to mount cows not that they will get anywhere. Have you found a niche market for lean beef?

I will get an angus pic

I've been watching the thread and I'm sensing that you think the steer will be better than most people here are thinking. Most good beef is from specific breeds known for meat, and animals that are under or close to two years old, although some people will feed something older and there are stories that they are satisfied. So you have an animal that is a breed that is leaner than most, older than most, and hasn't been fed like most.
In an auction with professional buyers of cattle going to slaughter the steer would be considered a "canner", and be diced up or ground for canned soup or stew, or burger.
But you can, and I'd encourage you to, have it processed like good beef and see what you get. I would not sell it until you tried several different cuts yourself first.

i have to agree with you on everything except I know it's not commercial beef and going to be lacking fat. I can so if it's not good it will be a canner. I suspect burger will be 95% lean. I plan on asking the butcher to add fat to make it 80-85 %. I don't have much money in it so I can afford to eat it if it is not steak quality. I can make the roast good no matter what without canning

 

[sgreear]

Not sure if there is a win commenting on this one, troll post? Would agree that this doesn't look like longhorn. Might butcher this for myself but wouldn't want to present this as a product to a customer if that makes sense. Everyone has their own thing going and I make plenty of mistakes so who am I to say anything bad against this deal.

Why do u think this is a troll post ?

 

[ClinchValley86]

I've got some friends... all they sell is grass fed longhorn beef by the cut. they do have a following.

I get a lot of business from people that try theirs and are looking firnsomething sifferent. Lean isn't the word. Looks like deer meat.

They keep on keeping on though. been doing it for years. Good people though.

 

[Warren Allison]

The big bases may mean an out cross in the genetics somewhere but they are fairly common now.

Yes, for years people have been crossing LH and Watusi. Make for some impressive horns. From that pic, it looks like his steer has Watusi in it. I don't know if I have ever eaten Watusi or Watusi x LH, but I would just assume their meat would be similar to LH.

 

[Ky hills]

I've got some friends... all they sell is grass fed longhorn beef by the cut. they do have a following.

I get a lot of business from people that try theirs and are looking firnsomething sifferent. Lean isn't the word. Looks like deer meat.

They keep on keeping on though. been doing it for years. Good people though.

There’s some folks in another county not far from us that raises and sells grass fed longhorn beef. No idea how they do with it as I don’t know them.
When my wife and I were dating she got a roast from some friends that sold grass fed beef. It was actually pretty good beef.but it was probably from Angus or another beef breed.
My personal opinion on grass fed is it’s probably ok as long as the folks raising it know what they are doing.
I would think it would take improved pastures and low stocking rates as well as the right kind of genetics to finish in forage.
I know of a lot folks that think they can pull a random animal out of an over stocked fescue or whatever pasture around and sell beef. They might buy once, but like you say they not likely to get repeat customers.
We like to grain finish, I can pretty well be confident in our beef quality, if they are fed out good but there is always some concern.
I believe most people are expecting equal to or better than grocery store choice beef.
A lot of people say they want lean beef, I’m not always sure they understand what that is vs what it it’s not.

 

[ClinchValley86]

There's some folks in another county not far from us that raises and sells grass fed longhorn beef. No idea how they do with it as I don't know them.
When my wife and I were dating she got a roast from some friends that sold grass fed beef. It was actually pretty good beef.but it was probably from Angus or another beef breed.
My personal opinion on grass fed is it's probably ok as long as the folks raising it know what they are doing.
I would think it would take improved pastures and low stocking rates as well as the right kind of genetics to finish in forage.
I know of a lot folks that think they can pull a random animal out of an over stocked fescue or whatever pasture around and sell beef. They might buy once, but like you say they not likely to get repeat customers.
We like to grain finish, I can pretty well be confident in our beef quality, if they are fed out good but there is always some concern.
I believe most people are expecting equal to or better than grocery store choice beef.
A lot of people say they want lean beef, I'm not always sure they understand what that is vs what it it's not.

No offense intended to anyone, but when all I hear is grass "fed" I expect exactly what you described. Pulled off of a constantly grazed pasture that's definitely overstocked.

These particular folks, I heard they telling someone "with longhorns, you really wanna see their ribs to know they're ready to harvest." Maybe not an exact quote, but something along those lines. It works for them though so power to them!

I'll only harvest forage "finiahed" in summer and Fall because that's when they really get fat for me.

If done right, based on what I've eaten from what I've raised, I prefer the grass finished. The flavor was unreal. Almost a nut like flavor instead of the corn flavor. But i do rely heavily on legumes of all kinds.

diversity is key. Either an understocked pasture where they can selectively graze or intense managed grazing with high density and nonselective grazing. Nowhere in between will it work properly with a desired outcome. Just my 2 cents.

 

[crossbreed]

For ourselves we butcher only longhorn cross with char or brangus. We make burger and brisket only as steaks just never match what we can buy. Burger meat however is the best we've raised as it has good taste, lean enough to pull the same size off the grill as you put on. We will always keep a couple longhorns around for this reason

 

[RockingV]

I agree wit that. I'm going to butcher it first then see if I can sell it.

Definitely recommend testing the product yourself. We typically sample some cuts out of each batch to verify the quality. Grass finish will have a stronger flavor, some like it, some don't. To each his own.

If you have the time, pen him up and finish with your choice of feed to add carcass weight and keep him out of the way.

Adding fat to the burger can be beneficial if you are going to sell it. A properly fed LH will certainly have fat to use for tallow or adding back to burger. It will also have marbling, just not as much as other breeds. Don’t forget about the oxtail, tongue and organ meat, all can be processed and sold.

 

[Travlr]

Don't forget about the oxtail, tongue and organ meat, all can be processed and sold.

It kills me how so many processed steers have most of that thrown away. And you can't get a processor to sell it to you if it's not your animal.

 

[sgreear]

I've got some friends... all they sell is grass fed longhorn beef by the cut. they do have a following. but I don't know how. It's like chewing on a belt.

I get a lot of business from people that try theirs and are bmvery unhappy. Lean isn't the word. Looks like deer must IMO.

They keep on keeping on though. been doing it for years.

I'm going to Butcher before I sell and see what I have

Yes, for years people have been crossing LH and Watusi. Make for some impressive horns. From that pic, it looks like his steer has Watusi in it. I don't know if I have ever eaten Watusi or Watusi x LH, but I would just assume their meat would be similar to LH.

Warren the guy that I got him from said he was full blooded LH. That doesn't really mean much though. He also told me his dob which he has wrong number and then said he was 9 mo older than his full blooded sister than I have an accurate dob on. I have not tasted LH unless LH stark house in 80s sold LH. I have not heard of Watusi. I do know he was a rodeo steer for a few mo and thy almost killed him. Stunted his growth. One of the horns has some damage on it. I talked to the slaughter house and his date of slaughter is Monday.
Roast steak and burger with fat added. If he sucks as a beef eater I know how to put him in a jar. As I have 4 canners 2 of which are double stack pints. He will not be a loss. I have 20 lb of boloni and 10 lb of summer sausage in his future.

 

[sgreear]

It kills me how so many processed steers have most of that thrown away. And you can't get a processor to sell it to you if it's not your animal.

Oxtail and tongue taco work for me. What else are u eating ? Not much on the liver heart never tried it

 

[sgreear]

For ourselves we butcher only longhorn cross with char or brangus. We make burger and brisket only as steaks just never match what we can buy. Burger meat however is the best we've raised as it has good taste, lean enough to pull the same size off the grill as you put on. We will always keep a couple longhorns around for this reason

I have a smoker and smoke brisket. I fig this would be worst brisket ever for fat content. I told him to burger it. Are u suggesting other wise? I have no idea on this

 

[sgreear]

For ourselves we butcher only longhorn cross with char or brangus. We make burger and brisket only as steaks just never match what we can buy. Burger meat however is the best we've raised as it has good taste, lean enough to pull the same size off the grill as you put on. We will always keep a couple longhorns around for this reason

I have a smoker and smoke brisket. I fig this would be worst brisket ever for fat content. I told him to burger it. Are u suggesting other wise? I have no idea on this. I can fix it as not butchered yet.

 

[Travlr]

Oxtail and tongue taco work for me. What else are u eating ? Not much on the liver heart never tried it

The trick to cook liver is to not over-cook it. And it's an acquired taste. I'm not much on the heart. It's okay taste-wise but it's tougher and not a lot of flavor like a good steak. My wife loves to make oxtail soup, and I like the tongue as cold sandwiches (with horseradish, or mayo and catsup) if it ever gets that far. Usually it gets eaten before it cools off.

 

[sgreear]

No offense intended to anyone, but when all I hear is grass "fed" I expect exactly what you described. Pulled off of a constantly grazed pasture that's definitely overstocked.

These particular folks, I heard they telling someone "with longhorns, you really wanna see their ribs to know they're ready to harvest." Maybe not an exact quote, but something along those lines. It works for them though so power to them!

I'll only harvest forage "finiahed" in summer and Fall because that's when they really get fat for me.

If done right, based on what I've eaten from what I've raised, I prefer the grass finished. The flavor was unreal. Almost a nut like flavor instead of the corn flavor. But i do rely heavily on legumes of all kinds.

diversity is key. Either an understocked pasture where they can selectively graze or intense managed grazing with high density and nonselective grazing. Nowhere in between will it work properly with a desired outcome. Just my 2 cents.

I'm at most 1 animal per acre. Grass is what they typically would eat. They eat more like a goat then a cow. Sage and trees and grass of course but weeds around creek. They were not skinny but hay seemed to put fat on them more than grass

 

[RockingV]

It kills me how so many processed steers have most of that thrown away. And you can't get a processor to sell it to you if it's not your animal.

Yep. If the customer doesn’t ask, they go in the trash or in the processors sale case around here. Bones as well. We ask for all of it back, packaged as specified on the cut sheet. I raised it, I want it back. Some folks don’t care and thats fine but I think many just don’t ask.

Organs get either packaged individually but lately they are ground and mixed @ 20% with burger for a ‘health blend’. It is pretty popular that way for us.

We also process scraps as pet food whenever possible. My dogs absolutely love it and we no longer buy bagged food

 

[Warren Allison]

I'm going to Butcher before I sell and see what I have

Warren the guy that I got him from said he was full blooded LH. That doesn't really mean much though. He also told me his dob which he has wrong number and then said he was 9 mo older than his full blooded sister than I have an accurate dob on. I have not tasted LH unless LH stark house in 80s sold LH. I have not heard of Watusi. I do know he was a rodeo steer for a few mo and thy almost killed him. Stunted his growth. One of the horns has some damage on it. I talked to the slaughter house and his date of slaughter is Monday.
Roast steak and burger with fat added. If he sucks as a beef eater I know how to put him in a jar. As I have 4 canners 2 of which are double stack pints. He will not be a loss. I have 20 lb of boloni and 10 lb of summer sausage in his future.

If his momma calved 9 mos after that steer was born, that was a hell of a cow! Or was that steer a 2 month preemie?

 

[sgreear]

There's some folks in another county not far from us that raises and sells grass fed longhorn beef. No idea how they do with it as I don't know them.
When my wife and I were dating she got a roast from some friends that sold grass fed beef. It was actually pretty good beef.but it was probably from Angus or another beef breed.
My personal opinion on grass fed is it's probably ok as long as the folks raising it know what they are doing.
I would think it would take improved pastures and low stocking rates as well as the right kind of genetics to finish in forage.
I know of a lot folks that think they can pull a random animal out of an over stocked fescue or whatever pasture around and sell beef. They might buy once, but like you say they not likely to get repeat customers.
We like to grain finish, I can pretty well be confident in our beef quality, if they are fed out good but there is always some concern.
I believe most people are expecting equal to or better than grocery store choice beef.
A lot of people say they want lean beef, I'm not always sure they understand what that is vs what it it's not.

Agree

 

[sgreear]

Horns on the one mounting look different than the "steer" original picture for butchering might be the angle. Can we get a picture of the angus bull? Want to be helpful. Steers or even cows mounting other cows shouldn't hinder your bull, it's just something they do. A bull will get his shot in. Heck even have 100lb calves try to mount cows not that they will get anywhere. Have you found a niche market for lean beef?

Horns are different. He was a rodeo steer for a while before I got him. Had a real bad life. I'm not sure how much it stunted his growth but he is friendly. I don't know if rodeo cause the horns to do this or not