Tag: butcher

Robbie Burns Day

Every year during the month of January (on the 25th specifically) we celebrate what is known as Robbie Burns Day. For those of you who may not be familiar with who Robert Burns was, let us provide you with a little education:

Robert Burns (born on January 25th, 1759) was a renowned Scottish poet and lyricist who is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland and a pioneer of what is known as the ‘romantic movement’ during the 18th century. One of his most popular poems (and songs) is ‘Auld Lang Syne’ which has become an anthem to help ring in the new year annually. After a career filled with many incredible artistic endeavours, the ‘Burns Supper’ or ‘Burns Night’ tradition was created in his honour and first celebrated five years after his passing, and has been celebrated annually ever since.

The cuisine that is usually associated with celebrating Robbie Burns day includes: cock-a-leekie soup, scotch eggs and haggis. The soup which is highly regarded as ‘Scotland’s National Soup’ consists of leeks, prunes, peppered chicken stock and either rice or barley to thicken it. Scotch eggs consist of a soft-boiled egg wrapped in sausage, coated in bread crumbs and then cooked to perfection. Finally, probably the most widely known dish would be haggis which is a savoury mix between sausage and pudding made from the heart, liver and lungs of a sheep minced with onion, oatmeal, spices, suet and stock. Traditionally all of those items would be encased within the sheep’s stomach, but we use beef sausage casing as sheep’s stomach can be challenging to source.

At The Piggy Market we’ll proudly be serving all of these traditional dishes so you can celebrate Robbie Burns Day the right way. Make sure to stop by soon to reserve your ceremonial haggis!

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Ottawa local beef

Why Butchered Meat is Best

 

By now you should know why it’s important to choose fresh ingredients over anything else. When you choose a craft butcher over the traditional option, you’ve made the decision to put quality items and freshness over everything else.

One of the reasons why someone may choose a traditional butcher over a craft butcher is fear of stepping outside of their comfort zone. Being comfortable with the choices you make is very important. Here are some of the best ways to become more comfortable with a craft craft butcher.:

‘Better Quality and Selection

Walk into a butcher shop and I guarantee you’ll see a cut or type of meat you can’t find at the average grocery store. Not only that, it will have been humanely slaughtered, properly cut and stored. You won’t find chicken breasts plumped with saline water or vibrantly red steaks gassed with carbon monoxide. And you definitely won’t find pink slime, ever.

Knowing What You’re Getting

A proper butcher can tell you the farm the animal was raised on and what part of the animal that particular cut came from. More often than you’ll even see your butcher grind or cut pieces of meat right in front of your eyes.

They Love Animals As Much as You (If not more)

If you talk to a butcher you’ll realize they have a deep respect for animals, which is precisely why they buy from farms where animals have happy lives. Their animals are fed natural diets, not pumped full of steroids or antibiotics and are slaughtered as humanely as possible. On top of that, hardly any of their animals go to waste which, to them, is honoring the life of the animal. Animals are a butcher’s livelihood and they nourish the people who support their business.’

At The Piggy Market, your Westboro Village community craft butcher and artisan deli, you’ll be greeted with a smile by Dave or one of the other very knowledgeable staff members and will encounter a memorable experience you won’t soon forget.

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Roasting the Perfect Holiday Turkey

 

The holiday season is here, which means creating wonderful memories with friends and family over delicious food and drinks. We love getting to be a part of different festive celebrations in various communities throughout the city through the fresh and local offerings we provide. Our ready to eat (or simple reheat and eat) options are great, but it’s the things like cooking a turkey to perfection from start to finish which can sometimes be tricky…which is why we want to be as helpful as possible!

Here are some steps to ensure you cook the perfect turkey this holiday:

  • Tuck wing tips underneath body of turkey.
  • With fingers, separate skin from turkey breast. Stuff softened butter under skin.
  • Season the inside cavity of the turkey with salt.
  • Using kitchen twine, cross the legs together and tie them securely.
  • Season turkey all over with freshly ground black pepper.
  • Put turkey into roasting pan. It’s ready to roast.

Important Note: If you’ve brined your turkey cook it for 15 minutes/lb at 350 degrees. Non-brined turkeys should be cooked for 20 minutes/lb at the same temperature. It’s also suggested to cook the turkey breast side down for the first hour and then flip it breast side up for the remainder of the cooking time. Also, if you’re going to make stuffing, cook it on the side; refrain from stuffing your bird before cooking it as raw juices will drop into the stuffing, and you will need to cook the turkey to an internal temperature of 165 degrees, which will overcook the turkey.

Make sure you stop by The Piggy Market this week to get a fresh Scotch Line turkey and our famous stuffing to help make your holiday feast a memorably delicious one!

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#SupportLocal: Scotch Line Turkey Farms

When you support local, it goes beyond just getting something freshly made at your favourite artisan deli and craft butcher shop food market. The locally sourced items that we use here at The Piggy Market are not only special because they help us create wonderful culinary creations, but they have their own unique story.

This is the first entry in a monthly series that we’re calling #SupportLocal where we will be showcasing the people behind some of the locally sourced items that we use in our store. First up is Scotch Line Turkey Farms where we get our fresh (never frozen) birds for the holidays.

Colin and AmyBeth Brubacher along with their three children are the people behind Scotch Line Turkey Farms; they are the third generation of Brubachers to run the farm. “Colin and AmyBeth took over the farm management from Colin’s parents nine years ago, but actually started building a succession plan over 16 years ago. To help things run smoothly, the couple work alongside Colin’s dad, Landis, and employ local part-time students to help them on evenings and weekends. ‘We love working with animals and the satisfaction you get from raising healthy turkeys,’ says Colin. “It’s very rewarding being able to produce healthy, great tasting food and just being a part of the agricultural community.’” The turkeys they raise and sell are 100% Ontario grown, with no antibiotics, and are free run (outside in a fenced area).

What’s truly special about the Brubacher family and their farm is that they take the time and care to provide a quality product, which also helps to stimulate the Ontario economy. Make sure to pre-order your own fresh Scotch Line Turkey (sized between 14-24 pounds) for the holidays from our store. They will be in between Dec 22nd-24th, while supplies last!

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Perfect Pairings

Peanut butter and jelly, french fries and ketchup, and your home with anything from The Piggy Market are some examples of perfect pairings. Some food items are able to thrive quite well on their own, however sometimes the addition of another item will serve to heighten certain flavours and improve the overall culinary experience that one will have.

Take for example seasoning; all of our finely cut artisan butchered meats are fantastic and provide their own unique flavour profiles on their own, but without the basics of salt and pepper to properly season them to help to bring out those flavours, the meat can’t truly be appreciated. We proudly carry the Vancouver Island Salt Co product line of flavoured seasoning salts that will help elevate any type of meat to another level of flavour!

When you take some of our freshly baked bread and add some of our amazing jam and jelly options (such as the Moss Berry Farm Jams, Ashton Naturals and Top Shelf Preserves product lines) you transcend that already delicious and flavourful bread into something new and exciting for your taste buds to enjoy.

Visit The Piggy Market today to create your own perfect flavour pairings with our many tasty options!

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Pork Fit for any Fork

We may be so much more than a craft butcher and artisan deli, but what type of place would we be if prime cuts of pork weren’t available? We are called ‘The Piggy Market’ after all!

We feature pork exclusively from Haanover View farms, located in Marysville, Ontario (between Kingston and Belleville). They raise a Tarmorth/Duroc Blend breed pig, which creates an excellent old world flavour with the fat composition of a newer breed, which makes for truly delicious pork all around.

A really simple way to cook a Coppa (boneless shoulder roast) is to season with salt, barbecue spice, and roast in a 350 degree oven until done to an internal temperature of 151 degrees. It is then ready to be sliced for dinner, or also great for sandwiches. Make sure to stop by for the best pork that is perfectly suited for any and all forks (and mouths!).

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