Table of Contents
The Animals 9
Beef
The best beef cattle breeds 10
Wagyu 15
A brief history of beef 18
The cow family 19
Nutrition and meat quality 20
Beef cuts 21
Choice beef cuts 22
Rib roast: extraordinary or average? 24
T-bone and porterhouse, two steaks in one 26
Rib roast versus rib-eye steak 27
Ground or diced? 28
The marrowbone, in slices or lengthwise? 29
Beef ham and dried beef 30
Veal
The best calves 32
A brief history of veal 34
Which veal to choose? 35
The color of veal 36
Veal cuts 37
Choice veal cuts 38
Pork
The best pig breeds 40
The Mangalitsa 44
A brief history of pork 46
The pig family 47
Nutrition and meat quality 48
Pork cuts 49
Choice pork cuts 50
Pork chops or purebred pork chops? 52
Cured ham and cooked ham 53
The best cured hams 54
Pata negra or Bellota 100% Ibérico? 56
Bring home the bacon! 58
Extraordinary lard! 60
The world of blood sausage 62
Lamb
The best lamb and sheep breeds 64
Which lamb to choose? 67
A brief history of lamb and mutton 68
The sheep family 69
Nutrition and meat quality 70
Lamb cuts 71
Choice lamb cuts 72
Poultry
The best chicken breeds 74
A brief history of chicken 79
Other poultry birds 80
The chicken family 82
Nutrition and meat quality 83
The anatomy of the chicken 84
Preparing a chicken 86
Goose foie gras or duck foie gras? 87
Choice poultry cuts 88
Offal and giblets 90
Game
The game that roams our lands 92
Secrets of the Butcher 99
The Equipment
The anatomy of a knife 100
Chef's knife vs. bread knife 102
Good equipment for a good cut 104
Which cookware for my beautiful piece of meat? 106
The size of the cookware 108
Temperatures and cooking thermometers 110
The Ingredients
How to season your meat with salt 112
The different salts to use 116
How to season your meat with pepper 118
The different peppers to use 120
Which butter for cooking? 122
Which oil for cooking? 124
The Preparation
Meat maturation 126
Maturation: a user's manual 128
The importance of correctly cutting the meat 130
Adapting the size of the meat to the cooking method 132
Brining and salting 134
Marinades 136
Tips for successful marinades 138
The Cooking
Cooking on the grill 140
Sautéing 142
Roasting 144
Low-temperature cooking 147
Sous vide cooking 148
Boiling 150
Boiling: a user's manual 152
Braising 154
Ragout 157
The cooking of a steak seen from the inside 158
Should you flip meat during the cooking process? 160
Basting meat 162
Resting meat 164
Making meat juicier 166
How to create more juices 168
A Little Bit Extra
All about thermal shock 170
Dry heat and humid heat 171
Tell me where you cook and I'll tell you how to do it 172
Bones or no bones in a stock? 173
Maillard reactions 174
Fat isn't just fat! 178
What is collagen? 180
Tender meat, tough meat-what's the difference? 181
A matter of taste 182
Let's talk meat 184
The Recipes 187
Beef Stew 188
Rib roast for 4 friends 190
Beef bourguignon 192
Pastrami 194
Breaded cutlet with a rocket, tomato, lemon, and Parmesan salad 196
Simply browned veal chop 198
Blanquette of veal 200
Milanese osso buco and gremolata 202
Porchetta 204
Pulled pork 206
Sublime pork chop 208
Slowly braised pork cheek 210
Herby rack of lamb en croûte 212
5-hour lamb shoulder 214
Rolled leg of lamb 216
Navarin of lamb 218
Roast chicken with the crispiest skin in the world 220
Duck breasts 222
Fried chicken for little rascals 224
Stuffed goose 226
Beef stock 228
Veal stock 230
Pork stock 230
Lamb stock 230
Poultry stock 230
The Appendices 233
Scientific bibliography 234
Acknowledgments 237
