A month or so ago I posted a question about the English translation for
"girello di spalla", an Italian cut from somewhere in the shoulder of a
cow. Having investigated widely I am ever more confused than before.
So far I have discovered the following shoulder cuts of meet that I had
never come across before.

a) Top blade (I had at least heard of this)
b) Ram blade
c) Feather blade
d) Roller blade (?!)
e) Leg of mutton cut (LMC)

Does anyone have a diagram that shows where these cuts are from exactly
or any information about them? I don't expect they exist in US english
at all and google doesn't appear to have heard of most of them. However,
you can walk into a butcher's in London and buy one with 100 percent
success it seems.

Kind regards,
Raphael
P.S. LMC is the best apparently

lesshaste wrote:

> A month or so ago I posted a question about the English translation for
> "girello di spalla", an Italian cut from somewhere in the shoulder of a
> cow. Having investigated widely I am ever more confused than before. So
> far I have discovered the following shoulder cuts of meat that I had
> never come across before.

Here's what you really discovered. That animals are butchered
differently in different places. And that because the pieces of meat
look different and the local languages have their own idiosyncrasies,
they have different names.

And the more you press on with this investigation, the more new names
you'll turn up. From all over the world. Some of them won't be in
English. Imagine.

> a) Top blade (I had at least heard of this)
> b) Ram blade
> c) Feather blade
> d) Roller blade (?!)
> e) Leg of mutton cut (LMC)
>
> Does anyone have a diagram that shows where these cuts are from exactly
> or any information about them? I don't expect they exist in US english
> at all and google doesn't appear to have heard of most of them. However,
> you can walk into a butcher's in London and buy one with 100 percent
> success it seems.

Perhaps ask a London butcher or forget it since you won't be able to
get those exact cuts anywhere else. Your prior question was answered
in the same way all questions requiring translation are. Approximately.

Blade cuts will generally include a chunk of bone. The muscles that
comprise the shoulder aren't large and discrete like the ones that
show up in back and hindquarter sections. Because of that, They're
usually cut into "convenience" cuts rather than whole muscle cuts like
rounds or tenderloins. Fire up the bandsaw and cut straight through
the whole thing. Repeat until bits are retail size.

> Kind regards,
> Raphael
> P.S. LMC is the best apparently

Pastorio

Bob Pastorio wrote:
> lesshaste wrote:
>
>> A month or so ago I posted a question about the English translation
>> for "girello di spalla", an Italian cut from somewhere in the shoulder
>> of a cow. Having investigated widely I am ever more confused than
>> before. So far I have discovered the following shoulder cuts of meat
>> that I had never come across before.
>
>
> Here's what you really discovered. That animals are butchered
> differently in different places. And that because the pieces of meat
> look different and the local languages have their own idiosyncrasies,
> they have different names.
>
> And the more you press on with this investigation, the more new names
> you'll turn up. From all over the world. Some of them won't be in
> English. Imagine.
>
>> a) Top blade (I had at least heard of this)
>> b) Ram blade
>> c) Feather blade
>> d) Roller blade (?!)
>> e) Leg of mutton cut (LMC)
>>
>> Does anyone have a diagram that shows where these cuts are from
>> exactly or any information about them? I don't expect they exist in
>> US english at all and google doesn't appear to have heard of most of
>> them. However, you can walk into a butcher's in London and buy one
>> with 100 percent success it seems.
>
>
> Perhaps ask a London butcher or forget it since you won't be able to get
> those exact cuts anywhere else. Your prior question was answered in the
> same way all questions requiring translation are. Approximately.
>
> Blade cuts will generally include a chunk of bone. The muscles that
> comprise the shoulder aren't large and discrete like the ones that show
> up in back and hindquarter sections. Because of that, They're usually
> cut into "convenience" cuts rather than whole muscle cuts like rounds or
> tenderloins. Fire up the bandsaw and cut straight through the whole
> thing. Repeat until bits are retail size.
>
>> Kind regards,
>> Raphael
>> P.S. LMC is the best apparently
>
>
> Pastorio
>
Hi,

The one thing I know for certain is that neither ram, feather blade nor
LMC have a bone in them. I know this as I have seen them now.
Kind regards,
Raphael

lesshaste > wrote:

> A month or so ago I posted a question about the English translation for
> "girello di spalla", an Italian cut from somewhere in the shoulder of a
> cow. Having investigated widely I am ever more confused than before.
> So far I have discovered the following shoulder cuts of meet that I had
> never come across before.
>
> a) Top blade (I had at least heard of this)

See
<http://www.inspection.gc.ca/english/bureau/mcmancv/bbbe.shtml#4111>.

> b) Ram blade
> c) Feather blade

According to
<http://www.waitrose.com/food_drink/wfi/foodpeople/chefs/9904028.asp>,
"Feather blade, a cut between the neck and fore rib, has a seam of
gristle running through its centre, which gives this dish its unique
texture and flavour."

> d) Roller blade (?!)

Probably "rolled blade", i.e. boned and rolled blade.

> e) Leg of mutton cut (LMC)

According to <http://www.angelfire.com/vt/VALENTINES/beef.htm>,
"THIN RIBS & THICK RIBS- Usually boned and rolled, or sliced for
braising and pot roasting, also known as Leg of Mutton Cut.(8,10)". See
the diagram.

It looks like it's the same as the French "macreuse". See the diagram
at <http://francis.demange1.free.fr/choix_boeuf.htm>.

Victor