Old timer told me I was boning lamb wrong for 10 years

Guy who's been cutting since the 70s watched me break down a lamb shoulder last Tuesday. He pointed out I was going against the natural seam and leaving way too much silverskin. Showed me a different angle to follow the muscle groups and I got 3 extra pounds of clean meat off the next one. Anybody else get a basic technique corrected way later than they should have?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_sarah15d ago

And I had a similar thing happen with a steak rub I'd been making for YEARS. An old line cook told me I was oversalting everything because I wasn't letting the meat rest long enough to absorb it.

chen.james8d ago

Yeah that oversalting thing really hits home... @the_sarah that's exactly what happened to a buddy of mine. He used to work at this diner and the head cook watched him season burgers for like a year before finally saying "you're putting too much salt on because the patties are cold." Turns out the salt just sits on top and tastes harsh instead of soaking in. He had to retrain his whole hand after that. Funny how the simplest stuff can go wrong for so long if nobody calls you out.

park.tara14d ago

Disagree completely, oversalting is making bad meat taste okay and @the_sarah's old line cook was just covering for lazy prep.