Range to Plate happens this weekend, (October 17, 2009, 6-8pm, SRJC’s Shone Farm) where top-notch local chefs will showcase local meats (from lamb and beef to chicken. More details.
Meat and I are having some serious relationship issues lately.
I used to be one of those people who pretty much threw themselves at whatever burger or chunk of flesh you threw at me. Dress it up with a little char, some fancy sauce and let the sordid mess play out. No one got hurt.
But when you taste a chicken that actually tastes like a chicken, you start wondering exactly what else you’ve never actually tasted. Like beef, or lamb or pork or goat. Not that processed stuff, but a locally raised animal that hasn’t been beefed up with a bunch of stuff that isn’t, well, meat.
The Sonoma County Meat Buying Club is trying, really hard I might add, to help us meat neophytes see what we’re actually missing. Run by the UC Cooperative Extension and local meat producers, it’s a sort of meat CSA that provides members with between 7 and 25 pounds of meat each month at various pick up locations. Beef, pork, chicken and lamb are the main commodities, although there are opportunities for buying goat, veal and duck as well.
The upside to you: Knowing where you meat comes from and who’s raising it. The upside to the producer: Reaching consumers and supporting themselves. The upside to SoCo: Keeping money local, reducing carbon footprints and maintaining agricultural diversity in the county.
In these tough times, shelling out $195 for a 3-month membership can seem daunting, but the club also frequently sells individual portions of meat at local farm markets.
Still not sure? Check out this weekend’s Range to Plate (October 17, 2009) where top-notch local chefs will showcase local meats (from lamb and beef to chicken, ham, goat and bbq pork) along with local wineries. The lineup includes Mark Dierkising (Dierk’s Parkside), Jeff Mall of Zin, Mark Stark of Stark’s Steakhouse, Doug Nicosia of Sensuous Farms, Roger Praplan of La Gare, Patrick Tafoya (p/30), and Brandon Gunther of Rocker Oysterfellers, among others.
Tickets are $40 in advance and the event takes place at SRJC’s Shone Farm, 6225 Eastside Road in Forestville. More details here.
Learn more about the Meat Buying Club: http://groups.ucanr.org/LocalMeatProd/
Haha!!! Excellent work! Those dudes at your competition (you know who) don’t even have a clue! Keep it up!
UPDATE: We attended and, again, low turnout, and, again, great food (and wine.)
Our party had some that said, ” I don’t eat goat.” (or duck or whatever.) But they ate it here and loved it. The chefs poured their hearts into the food and it showed.
Next year, for your own sake, please attend. You will not be disappointed.
Heather, don’t let the price scare anyone. We went to the first one of these, last year, and were totally blown away. The quality of the meat and the preparations by the top chefs was really outstanding. If this year is anything like last year, it is well worth attending. Sadly, last year was not well promoted and the attendance was low, but that made for easy, long chats with the chefs and the wineries.
And you are right about the taste of “real” meat. We can’t always afford it, but it is so good.
I suggest that anyone who is able, attend the event for all of the right reasons. Support our local food producers.
We have a few videos posted on exactly this subject– local meat– on our website http://www.russianriver.tv
Would you mind writing an article or two for people who cannot afford “top notch local chefs” at $40 a pop? I would love to attend an event but unfortunately am retired on a fixed income. Gimme a break, ok?