Hawaii Butcher
Hawaii Butchers of the Good old Days
Butcher is a very old occupation that has been around as long as their was a need for meat. A butcher is someone who "slaughters animals", dresses their flesh, suggests and sells their meat at retail, and more. It may seem simple, but their work is being in charge of handling multiple steps of treatment of the animal and its meat. They deal with: animal-incapacitation, offal-removal, skinning, draining, and meat-separation.
The way the Hawaii Butchery had started was from peoples homes where people had to do all the work of a butcher without the title. Eating animals brought up in a pen or yard was essential to be a way of eating meat by feeding pigs slop. They were primarily raised for home consumption and were treated as important entities or special from their important meaning of being the greatest gift of sacrifice.
In Ancient Hawaii
After the Polynesian Voyagers had a strong settlement of starting out their homes they would rely on the canoe plants and a few animals that would help them survive. Those who settled in Hawaii would later be the Hawaiians who would continue relying on produce and freshwater fish. Occasionally they ate ocean fish or meat as it was apart of their diet. Pig would be the meat of choice and was eaten during times of celebration.
These initial ingredients would shape Hawaii's food systems and none would become more important than Taro (Kalo). It was a big part of their diet as they would pound taro corns into "Kalo Paiai" and add water for "Kalo Poi". In the later years of the they would store taro corms in a barrel. Foods were separated by classes, genders, and symbolic meanings.They made no distinctions among the times of day that they would eat with no categories of breakfast, lunch or dinner. Continuous work came with continuous eating.
This was the time that a chicken or a pig would be cooked often times with coconut milk, leaves, and the underground oven (imu). Many meets would be placed into the underground oven whole without much dismantling or cutting if any. They would use their hands, teeth, and upperbody strength to tear apart some foods like pork after it was cooked and eat it.
The Hawaiians would eat meals called 'Aha'aina. Aha meant a meeting or gathering of sort and even party. The word 'Aina is a meal or to eat. In short it would be a gathering meal that was eaten. These meals would be eaten off of lauhala mats that were woven together and set on the floor with flowers lining the middle by the foods.
Meats on the Island
In the 19th century, the meats they did eat were chickens (1), dogs (2), and pigs (3) as settlement food sources from their initial voyage. Ranches would have Free-Roaming Cattle (4) who ate grass and "Taro Peelings Feed" along with the pigs. Other animals back then were Muscovy Ducks (3) and Pigeons (4) owned by the Chinese landowners who married into Hawaiian families.
The Chinese would bring in their Meat Market stalls with their meat-hooks, meat cleavers, smoke-roasting techniques, and roasting marinades. Many who came over from ship had previous experience in cooking, so when they had made Hawaii their home they could use that experience to build upon their businesses. This would begin the structure that would be the starting point for Hawaii's meats.
Various wild game would be introduced by wealthy land owners for even more meats including: (5) wild turkey, (6) lamb, (7) quails, (😎 axis deer, (9) goats, and (10) pheasants. Meat was for those with lots of money and were stretched very far with starches and cabbages back in the day.
Paniolo Meat Standardized Systems
Ranches eventually had employed butchers of their own to become self sufficient, but the techniques were still shared. This added some basic standardized western cuts of meat on top of Chinese cutting techniques as parts of becoming a butcher or to learn the skills of one. Most families would beable to butcher an animal and work part time at ranches for some extra pay if they needed the extra money.
As time went on multiple waves of immigrants would bring their skills of cutting meats to the butcher block. Each leaving their mark on the the meat-scene of what we see as Hawaii cuts that are standard in groceries. These started with the demand for particular meat cuts that were used for Hawaii's various residents from other parts of the world.
From Home to the Neighborhood Butchery
Home butchers had taken their skills from the home to start helping other residents cut their meat. If they were lucky sometimes Paniolo would trade some meat for produce and deliver the meat to peoples ice box. Some would take their home butchering techniques and would start small markets to make a living. An assortment of sausages would be made by various ethnic butchers in different neighborhoods.
Okinawan and Japanese meat cuts would be introduced by families as early as the 1900s when many families opened their own Grocery Markets to get away from the plantations and become entrepreneurs. They would sell snacks, toys, drinks, food, and some fruits and vegetables. Later on they would add in limited meat selections that started with western style meat standardized selection to compete in the ever growing market. This selection of local favorites would change as meat became more regularly available to the typical family house hold.
A famous grocer butchery was Toyo's Superette on Oahu run by the Toyokazu and Toshio of the Okamura Family in 1918 and started its market in 1968. Where the relationship and service had help define the Hawaii local-style Butchery expectation of talking story with many customers and treating them all as their neighbors. Groceries would be taken to the car or help finding an item was no problem with produce individually wrapped and the butcher paper. At the end of its days Toshio Okamura would run the store with Glenn Okamura, Grant Okamura, Wendy Okamura, and the rest of the staff.
After the War with Processed Meats
In the 1950s, After the war meat became a lot more available and that brought more demand in Hawaii. This would bring processed meats like Sausages, Spam, Luncheon Meat, Ham, and Corned Beef as some of the most popular consumed meats at that time and still today. Meats use to be a traded as luxury food or it took a long time to raise near the homes or on owned land. But after the war it was much easier to buy meat instead of raising it, slaughtering it, and preparing it, or even saving up to buy some. You could just walk down to a market and buy it at a moderate price.
Many immigrants had children that were grown up adults who were children in the plantation. In Hawaii they were raised with plantation local values based on Hawaiian values and had a mixture of tastes growing up with their intermingling camps. This is when multiple groups would start bringing their influence of meat, since they could afford it. They started getting more money and they were able to buy more better equipment and so butchery continued to be a elevated family business.
Cuts from Many Places to serve Many Faces
Some Japanese knives that were brought over for Butchers was specialized for certain meats. Equipment they would bring over would be the: kawahagi-skinning knife, honesuki-pultry boning knife, and atamatori-curved boning knife. This would add on to the standard usage of: the all purpose chinese cleaver, chinese hanging hooks, hook display cases, western boning hooks, wooden butcher blocks, sauce brushes, and meat grinders.
The Koreans brought certain meat cuts that would be standardized in Hawaii's meat sections like Shortribs, marinated Shortribs, and seasoned Shortribs. They would also contribute to the vast amount of sliced cuts of Porkbelly, Thin Sliced Beef, Thin Sliced Pork, Thin Sliced Beef Brisket, Thin Sliced Beef Tongue, and Thick Sliced Black line Pork (aka Korean Bacon). These would be later seen in Hawaii-Korean style Plate Lunch.
The portuguese would solidify sausage as a main part of identifying a place selling artisan meat. They would continue their legacy in making numerous sorts of sausage inspired from their home, their friends nations, and the inspiration that came from those visiting ships coming for overseas trade. Many who helped develop the trade of the modern day butchery would be working at or working for companies creating sausages.
Locals in general started to purchase cuts like: Oxtail (for Oxtail Stew), Beef Tripe (for Tripe Stew), Chicken Feet, Pigs Feet (for Pigs Feet Soup), Pigs Ear, Hammhocks (for Portuguese Bean Soup), Pork Skin (for Chicharon). They would also still make use of bones as they already had in the past to make stocks using: Pork Bones, Beef Bones, Duck Carcass, Chicken Carcass. There was a growing market of people buying pre-cooked and pre-packaged meats as well.
The End of Sustainably Raised & Locally Sourced
Until one day in the 70s, it all suddenly disappeared. Island meat that was raised, butchered, and sold locally was no more with many meat producers being displaced with politicians marking those areas as residential building zones. It pushed out prime farming ahupuaa on all the different islands where poulty, piggery, and dairies were located as a strategic move. The landscape of prime farming self-sufficiency would change to prime real estate for whoever would pay the price.
Those who survived couldn't survive all the immediately placed restrictions and political changes which made it extremely hard to run a family business back then. Taxes were really increased for businesses so people were buying lower-quality lower cost imported meats, new handling regulations from PETA also made raising meet very different for newcomers, and increased shipping costs, feed costs, and business taxes. Many of the known piggeries, ranches, and butcheries had closed down or made drastic changes.
Many Hawaiian families that had their own ways of running dairy farms, meat processing, and chicken farms would fight in a event known as the "Kalama Valley Protests" with Kalani Ohelo of the "Hawaiian Renaissance". It was a protest of resistance by the residents and activists not only for the valley of Kalama but also for meat and poultry sustainability of the main producers on all Hawaiian islands. The government at the time did not listen and built the residential subdivisions and many of the farms owned by multiple ethnic groups all started one by one to disappear into the sunset.
The great thing about butchers is that they specialize in understanding as much as they can about the animal from start to finish. Every part of the cow, pig, chicken, lamb, goat, and turkey can be made into a multitude of delights of molded meats, sausages, marinated cuts, stock bones, fried pork skins and more. There are chefs coming back to this specialty of meat and slaughter today making it easier to find small butcher shops in a neighborhood that is thinking about a no waste ideal of treating the animal more as a means to feed many people than simply as food.
As the usual Kitchen they are divided into departments, stations, and titles based on the sorts of food that are produced from the kitchen. Old fashion butcheries would simply just sell meat, but it has grown to have a restaurant inside for prepared dishes, along with take-out to compete with convenience in the market place. What was once old is new again as staff treat customers as if they were neighbors and talk to them for bit before assisting them in what might be best for what they are making or craving.
Retail Butcheries include a Meat case as well as a butcher counter in the back and can be quite creative in its opportunities in the flavor profile involving meat. It can be as simple as sorting cuts of the meat to making gourmet sausages that could go great with breakfast with control of the meat mixtures and spices.
Responsibilities and Learning Butchery
Responsibilities of those working in the kitchen of a Butchery is just as long as any other food business. A few notable responsibilities to list would include: Knife Sharpening, Receiving and Meat Inspection, Slaughtering and Processing, Cutting and Deboning, Meat Grinding and Meat Cutting, Meat Storing and Curing, Line Cooks, Equipment cleaning and Dish washing.
It can be pretty hard for a formal education in the art of butchery, so many just try to apply to butcheries to see if they will be taken in. Work ethic is very important, due to the large amount of work it takes to be in the culinary industry, so having that and an open mind is usually what establishments are looking for in a apprentice. Many start from the bottom with dishes, because it gives the kitchen staff time to explain recipes, processes, and when everything is cleaned it gives time for training.
Across the world old school Butchers would serve the public with their service. But there is always something special about the particular butcher that resides at the specialized establishment of meat that is nearby and apart of the neighborhood. It is good to think about what value the local butcher brings to the area as it marks as a community meeting place for others buying their meat.
Connecting with A Meat Specialist
Connecting with the local Butchery is special, because it makes it feel like you know who your buying your meat from. They are able to explain where it is bought and what cuts are best for what dishes of their knowledge and even make some suggestions to items a customer might like involving new experiences of meat products. The head butcher will be in charge of the staff and it can range from a few butchers who all take part in the tasks or a full-staff of culinary experts that specialize by stations.
Working at a Butchery is full about love for the customers and informing them about the animals that are being processed. It is a responsibility of making sure the animal had a good life from the farm-to-table, make aware how to eat many cuts of meat for no waste. The butcher takes their time to educate the customers and broadens their horizons about the food they are eating. Knowing this lets people know what is different, what and why its better, or simply what is delicious.
It also helps that they feel comfortable and safe asking their neighborhood butcher questions. They can simply ask for a few suggestions from the butcher or questions of what they would like to know. It helps connect the customer to the butcher themselves for a much more closer experience than going into a market thinking about what meat is used for what.
Eating Local to Support the Community
The Butchers in Hawaii are in local areas with the local kama'aina (residents) and meet their meaty demands with minimum additives and artificial hormones and antibiotics. This is possible as they become the voice of their customers to the farms who are in competition with one another to make the best product they can for the best meat they can deliver. The cuts that are made are for the regional cooked recipes of the people who live in the area, which makes the skill sets different from a Hawaii butcher to a butcher from another area.
You know your meat and you know where your buying from when its all made-local, sourced local, and eaten-local. The community can feel a connection to the area knowing the money is going back into the community and helps fuel local cooks in the area to have what is regional. Seeing meat being processed also helps with the process being transparent and it ensures the customer sees for themselves the quality of their meat and can even go on an adventure to trace it to its supply-chain.
Working with Meat of the Whole Animal
A Butchers work can be a bit smelly, a bit demanding, and a bit repetitive within processing the meats, especially if the butchery specializes in only meat cuts. Some places only do certain cuts or work with certain animals, so experiences can vary depending on the job. However when a butcher goes off to make their own butchery and restaurant there is so much more they can do.
Working with the whole animal will make knowing where the bones are on the animal easier to locate by eye as its done more. By training the hand to feel around for the meat cut locations helps the butcher recognize the correct places to cut to get as close to the bone as possible. And repetitive training hastens the process of actual cutting of the meat as it becomes more familiar.
As they work with being a: Meat Cutter they will start learning about heavy equipment and meat selection, when being a Sausage Maker they will understand meat blends and spices for more complex meats, when they deal with Charcuterie it can get really fancy. There is minimal to no waste with Butchers trying to think of as many ways as they can to use all parts of a whole anima
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