Keeping it local in Lismore

ALL Slow Food events have an educational element as well as a hedonistic one. So when we gathered in Lismore recently we started our evening at Michael McGrath butcher’s shop on Main Street. We were all anxious to learn from this man whose skills have come down through four generations – his father, grandfather and great-grandfather.

Michael and his wife Mary are one of only a handful of Irish butchers who still finish animals on their own farm, have their own abattoir and consequently are in charge of the process from beginning to end. The skill of butchery is not merely cutting up meat; it starts by being able to judge good pasture and then being able to judge a fine animal in the field.

Good meat is not just about the breed and the feed, although both are crucial. The slaughtering process must be stress-free and humane and then there’s the skill of hanging, butchering and the ability to use every scrap.