For basic, you may remember that we went on the Market Tour.
For Intermediate, an MOF butcher came to class and butchered a whole lamb!
An MOF is a Meilleurs Ouvriers de France or an artisan/craftsman who has been awarded the title of one of the best in his/her field. There are competitions and the different competitors have different tasks to complete, but the most perfect of the highly skilled group wins the title. Only a few are given out at each competition and it is an honor that one holds for life. For a full list of MOF categories, check out here.
Well, you may remember from the Market Tour, that one of the butchers we met was an MOF. The guy who showed up to our class- same guy! I was excited to see that mustache once more.
(The red, white, and blue collar distinguishes the MOF award)
To try and recount how he exactly broke down the lamb, would be an impossible task by blog and without pictures, so instead, I will tell you some interesting things that we learned about the man himself. (I asked this question about his life story while he was breaking down the lamb because obviously he is too much of a character to not hear about.)
He came from a poor family in country, so they ate little meat while he was growing up. However, his uncle was a big hunter, so when they saw him, he would help his uncle break down the meat starting his interest in being a butcher. When he was 14 years old, he decided to pursue being a butcher instead of going to college. The principal of his school tried very hard to discourage him, but apparently that same principal walked into his shop not too long ago and it turns out that he is one of the only people still employed/always been employed out of his high school classmates.
After high school, he learned "country-style" butchering and traditional charcuterie close to home while earning his technical degree by correspondence. After earning that degree, he moved to Tours for 2 years, then joined the army for a year. Three days after getting out of the army, he moved to Paris for the first time. He has never left. He spent his first thirteen years in Paris with the same butcher, who had a MOF distinction. Working with this butcher, he first started going to competitions.
It was later that he decided to have his own "big adventure" and try to become an MOF. The competition is held once every four years. So, he started at the regional level, made it to the finals which consists of 17 butchers. Only the top 2 earn the title. He decided that if he didn't win, that would be it as it is too much work to keep trying for the title. Plus, he was giving his best- there was no point in trying to better than he could ever do. Luckily for him, he won an MOF.
He emphasized his background in country styles as well as Parisian style as credit for his success. Despite his title, he is firm that he will not/has not rest on his laurels and continues to work, passing on his knowledge and the French butchering traditions. Plus, he was in a movie, Un Long Dimanche de Tiancailles. (I haven't seen it)
He was a pretty great guy. And watching him work was amazing. The knife cuts were incredibly smooth, accurate, and graceful. It was really captivating to watch. Especially when I think about our butchering skills in the kitchen when we get the chance.
It also made me think about butchering in general. As in France, it is a dying field in America. Yes, there are small pockets where a renewed interest is growing, but the art that this man displayed is not something you can see everyday or even somedays.
He really cares about his produce. All meat in France is tracked- where it is from, how it was killed, what other pieces of meat were killed at the slaughterhouse and even where those pieces of meat were sold. I wish that same attitude could make its way to the US. To care that much about the meat we are eating and to see the beauty that can be in a product before we eat it really changes the experience.
Anyways, enough preaching. Below is the final product of our demonstration!
(A lamb once it has been cut into eatable pieces)
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