Prairie Meats - Beef Cutting Instructions

Our goal in doing online cutting instructions is to make it convenient for you and to take away some of the apprehensions many people tend to have. We hope you find this tool not only easy, but informative as we break down each of the primal cuts.

The percentages that we are using on our website are taken from a large cross section of beef cattle and therefore are intended solely as an approximation of what your particular yield might be. Cattle, just as humans, are individuals and there are several factors which will play a role in the yield and tenderness of an animal. These different factors include the breed, genetics, age, fat content, the hang time, and sometimes the disposition of an animal.

* Note: All percentages given will refer to finish yields taken from original hot dressed weight (this is the carcass weight taken immediately following slaughter and at the start of the cooler age process). It is also important to understand that weight can change during the Dry Ageing Process.
This means your trim and cut percentages can change if hang time is longer or shorter than 14 days. Read More...

We are well aware that even though we have given a lot of different options for the following cuts, it is by no means everything that is available, and many times different regions use different names. If there are any specific cuts you are looking for but do not see listed please do not hesitate to give us a call.

Personalized Cut Options...

Brisket

Approximate Yields 3% Full Brisket Plate or 1.5% Brisket Point.
The Brisket comes from the breast or lower chest and is comprised of layered muscles. These muscles support about 60% of the body weight Read More...

Please select how you would like your Brisket:

Your Selected Cut:

Please select your cut for Side-B of your Brisket:

Side B Selected Cut:

Chuck

Approximate Yields 6% Bone-in or 4.5% Boneless.
Referred to as Chuck or Blade, this cut comes from the front quarter or forequarter of a beef, more specifically the shoulder. Read More...

Please select how you would like your Chuck:

Your Selected Cut:

Please select your cut for Side-B of your Chuck:

Side B Selected Cut:

Cross Rib

Approximate Yields 3% Bone in or 2% Boneless.
The Cross Rib is also a portion of the front quarter or forequarter. On some meat charts you will see the Cross Rib lumped together with the Chuck. However, this portion of the Chuck offers Read More...

Please select how you would like your Cross Rib:

Your Selected Cut:

Please select your cut for Side-B of your Cross Rib:

Side B Selected Cut:

Prime Rib

Approximate Yields 4% Bone in, 2% Boneless Roast/Steak, 1% Beef Back Ribs.
The Prime Rib is also a portion of the front quarter or forequarter, however it is much more sought after than the Chuck or Cross Rib. Cuts from the rib portion of a beef are a great combination of both flavor and tenderness. Read More...

Please select how you would like your Prime Rib:

Your Selected Cut:

Please select your cut for Side-B of your Prime Rib:

Your Selected Cut:

Short Rib

Approximate Yields 2% Bone in or 1% Boneless.
A full slab or plate of short ribs is typically about 10 inches square, it ranges from 3-5 inches thick and contains five rib bones and is thick on one end of the slab and thinner on the other. Read More...

Please select how you would like your Short Rib:

Your Selected Cut:

Please select your cut for Side-B of your Short Rib:

Side B Selected Cut:

Short Loin

Approximate Yields 4.2% Bone in or 2.2% Boneless.
The Short Loin comes from the Hind Quarter and it contains some of the most sought after, most expensive and sometimes very confusing cuts of meat. Read More...

Please select how you would like your Short Loin:

Please select how you would like the remaining
Tenderloin Portion of your Short Loin:

NOTE: Kansas City and Striploin/New York steaks
have the tenderloin portion removed,
resulting in a seperate tenderloin.

How thick would you like your steaks?

How many per pack?

Your Selected Cut:

Please select your cut for Side-B of your Short Loin:

How thick would you like your steaks?

How many per pack?

Side B Selected Cut:

Sirloin Butt

Approximate Yields 2.5%
The word butt has nothing to do with the anatomical location. The Sirloin Butt is located Read More...

Please select how you would like your Sirloint Butt:

Your Selected Cut:

Please select your cut for Side-B of your Sirloin Butt:

Side B Selected Cut:

Butt Tender

Approximate Yields 0.5%.
The Tenderloin is a portion of the Short Loin and the Butt Tender is a continuation of the Tenderloin past the Short Loin into the Sirloin Butt area. The Butt Tender is separated from the Tenderloin when the Short Loin is removed.
These cuts are without a doubt the most tender cuts from a beef. Read More...

Please select how you would like your Butt Tender:

Your Selected Cut:

Please select your cut for Side-B of your Butt Tender:

Side B Selected Cut:

Sirloin Tip

Approximate Yields 3%.
Sirloin Tip and Top Sirloin often get confused. The Sirloin Tip lies at the top of the Round or hip and below the Sirloin Butt. Read More...

Please select how you would like your Sirloin Tip:

Your Selected Cut:

Please select your cut for Side-B of your Sirloin Tip:

Side B Selected Cut:

Flank Steak

Approximate Yields 0.2%.
The Flank Steak comes from the greater area known as the Primal Flank located in the abdomen of the animal. It is a very well worked muscle which means that it could be tough if not shown a little extra care. There is only one flank steak on each side of an animal Read More...

Please select how you would like your Flank Steak:

Your Selected Cut:

Please select your cut for Side-B of your Flank Steak:

Side B Selected Cut:

Inside Round

Approximate Yields 4-4.5%.
The Inside Round comes from the hip and inside leg of a beef and it contains the largest single muscle of the animal. Read More...

Please select how you would like your Inside Round:

Your Selected Cut:

Please select your cut for Side-B of your Inside Round:

Side B Selected Cut:

Outside Round

Approximate Yields 3%.
The Outside Round comes from the outside of the hip, and is a frequently used muscle which makes it very lean. It is a little smaller and Read More...

Please select how you would like your Outside Round:

Your Selected Cut:

Please select your cut for Side-B of your Outside Round:

Side B Selected Cut:

Eye of Round

Approximate Yields 1.3%.
The Eye of Round is a portion of the Outside Round. It is smaller and tubular in shape. The Eye of Round is the smallest and least tender of all the rounds. Typically it is used for roasts, but as with the other rounds it works very well for stew, stir fry, minute steaks and jerky.

Please select how you would like your Eye of Round:

Your Selected Cut:

Please select your cut for Side-B of your Eye of Round:

Side B Selected Cut:

Front Shank

Approximate Yields 1-1.3%
Shank is a portion of the leg from both the front and back legs of an animal. Because of the constant use, this meat can be very tough. It is recommend for meaty soup bones or even Osso Buco. Read More...

Please select how you would like your Front Shank:

Your Selected Cut:

Please select your cut for Side-B of your Front Shank:

Side B Selected Cut:

Hind Shank

Approximate Yields 1-1.5%.
Shank is a portion of the leg from both the front and back legs of an animal. Because of the constant use, this meat can be very tough. It is recommend for meaty soup bones or even Osso Buco. Read More...

Please select how you would like your Hind Shank:

Your Selected Cut:

Please select your cut for Side-B of your Hind Shank:

Side B Selected Cut:

Phew! Glad to see you've made it this far...
Just a few things left to decide!

What is "Trim"?
The reason we use the term “Trim” is because as we are taking large primals of meat and cutting them into discernable cuts;
We “trim” meat away to make a steak or roast. The “trim” is still very good meat, but it just does not make the (pardon the pun) cut.
We use this “trim” for ground beef, hamburger patties, pepperoni, or sausage, in the following selections.

Because your trim totals are dependent on your selected cuts,
if you need to go back and change any cut selections in STEP TWO,
your Prepared Meat selections in STEP THREE will be Cleared and Reset to recalculate your available trim.

* Please Note: Because your prepared meat and trim percentages are directly related to your cut selections,
going back to STEP TWO to edit your cut selections will reset any prepared meat selections in STEP THREE.
This allows us to maintain as accurately as possible the trim available for your prepared meats.

Great, Thank you!
Just a note about our Prepared Meats...

Beef Jerky uses muscle meat, NOT Trim, and must be indicated in the cut selections above.

Sausage, Pepperoni, Beef Patties, and Ground Beef all use meat from your total Trimmings.
This means you have many options on how you wish to allocate your Trim depending on your household needs.

For a complete list of prices for our Prepared Meat options, please click here.

Please go through each section Carefully and select which options are right for you!

Prepared Meats and Trim...

Beef Jerky

We make what is called Muscle Jerky. This means that we take extra lean cuts and slice into strips which we season and marinate for a couple days.
After the meat has had a chance to marinate, we hang each individual strip on a hook and cook it in the smoke house.
Once the cooking is finished, we then package the jerky into 1lb cyrovac bags.

To view the complete list of Ingredients for our Beef Jerky options, please click here.

* PLEASE NOTE: You will typically have about a 50% loss in weight from the starting raw weight to the finished cooked product.

** Because making jerky is labour intensive, to make a batch of jerky we need to start with a minimum of 10lbs of raw weight for each flavour desired.

Based on your selected cuts, you have a total of 29lbs of RAW meat
to be used for Jerky:

Inside Round: 17lbs
Outside Round: 12lbs

	Please enter how much available Jerky meat you would like as Regular Flavour Jerky:	lbs
	Please enter how much available Jerky meat you would like as Teriyaki Flavour Jerky:	lbs
	Please enter how much available Jerky meat you would like as Honey Garlic Flavour Jerky:	lbs
	Please enter how much available Jerky meat you would like as Peppered Flavour Jerky:	lbs
	Please enter how much available Jerky meat you would like as BBQ Flavoured Jerky:	lbs
	Please enter how much available Jerky meat you would like as Sweet Chili Flavoured Jerky:	lbs
	Total Raw Meat for Jerky: * You will typically have about a 50% loss in weight.	0lbs

Based on your selected cuts, you have a total of 29lbs of available raw Trim meat
you could use for Pepperoni, Sausage, Beef Patties, or Ground Beef in the following sections:

Pepperoni and Sausage

Since each order is processed individually, we can easily adhere to special requests such as custom trim ratio’s, spice or salt ratio’s and smoking requirements. This also means allergy and dietary concerns can be easily addressed.

Natural flavours will vary between each animal and each species, yielding various levels of tastes, flavours, textures, and product weights. Our products are geared to satisfy the broadest number of taste thresholds as we can without excessively altering the products natural characteristics.

All products are vaccum packaged in 1 - 1 ½ lb packages unless alternate packaging is requested.

* PLEASE NOTE: Because making Sausage is labour intensive, we need to start with a minimum of 20lbs of raw weight for each flavour desired.

Smoked Sausage Our sausages are Cold Smoked, which means there is little loss in weight at approximately 10% from the raw starting weight. If you prefer a Hot Smoked Sausage, please make a note in the Additional Request section at the end of the form, or don't hesitate to give us a call to discuss your options. To view the complete list of Ingredients for our Smoked Sausage options, please click here. * NOTE: Cold Smoked Sausages require cooking before consumption.		You have 20lbs of Ground Beef/Trim left to allocate
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Regular Menno Smoked Sausage:	lbs
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Garlic Smoked Sausage:	lbs
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Spicy Smoked Sausage:	lbs
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Polish Smoked Sausage:	lbs
Total Trimmings for Smoked Sausage: * You will typically have about a 10% loss in weight.	0 lbs

Fresh Sausage Our Fresh Sausage is not cooked or smoked in any way, so there is a 0% weight loss from raw starting weight. To view the complete list of Ingredients for our Fresh Sausage options, please click here. * NOTE: Fresh Sausage has not been smoked and requires cooking before consumption.		You have 20lbs of Ground Beef/Trim left to allocate
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Onion/Garlic Fresh Sausage:	lbs
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Brats Fresh Sausage:	lbs
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Chorizo Fresh Sausage:	lbs
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Italian Fresh Sausage:	lbs
Maple and Breakfast Sausage Our Maple and Breakfast Sausage are smaller sausages, and come in a collagen casing. * NOTE: Fresh Sausage has not been smoked and requires cooking before consumption.
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Maple Fresh Sausage:	lbs
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Breakfast Fresh Sausage:	lbs
Total Trimmings for Fresh Sausage:	0 lbs

Smokies The Smokie making process will yield an approximate 30% weight loss from raw starting weight. * NOTE: Smokies require no additional preperation before consumption and is a 'ready to eat' product.		You have Million of Ground Beef/Trim left to allocate
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Regular Smokies:	lbs
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Jalapeno Cheddar Smokies:	lbs
Total Trimmings for Smokies: * You will typically have about a 30% loss in weight.	0 lbs

Salami The Salami making process will yield an approximate 30% weight loss from raw starting weight. * NOTE: Salami requires no additional preperation before consumption and is a 'ready to eat' product.		You have 20lbs of Ground Beef/Trim left to allocate
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Salami:	lbs
Total Trimmings for Salami: * You will typically have about a 30% loss in weight.	0 lbs

Pepperoni The Pepperoni making process will yield an approximate 30% weight loss from raw starting weight. To view the complete list of Ingredients for our Pepperoni options, please click here. * NOTE: Pepperoni requires no additional preperation before consumption and is a 'ready to eat' product. * PLEASE NOTE: Because making Pepperoni is labour intensive, we need to start with a minimum of 20lbs of raw weight for each flavour desired.		You have 20lbs of Ground Beef/Trim left to allocate
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Regular Pepperoni :	lbs
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Hot Pepperoni:	lbs
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Suicide Pepperoni:	lbs
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Honey Garlic Pepperoni:	lbs
Total Trimmings for Pepperoni: * You will typically have about a 30% loss in weight.	0 lbs

Snack Stix Our Snack Stix are made from any one of our Sausage recipes and prepared in pepperoni casings for a quick snack! * NOTE: Snack Stix require no additional preperation before consumption and is a 'ready to eat' product. * PLEASE NOTE: Because making Snack Stix is labour intensive, we need to start with a minimum of 20lbs of raw weight for each flavour desired.		You have 20lbs of Ground Beef/Trim left to allocate
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Garlic Snack Stix:	lbs
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Polish Snack Stix:	lbs
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Jalapeno Snack Stix:	lbs
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Honey Garlic Snack Stix:	lbs
Total Trimmings for Snack Stix: * You will typically have about a 30% loss in weight.	0 lbs

Ground Beef

and Beef Patties

The reason we use the term “Trim” is because as we are taking large primals of meat and cutting them into discernable cuts; we “trim” meat away to make a steak or roast. The “trim” is still very good meat, but it just does not make the (pardon the pun) cut. We use this “trim” for ground beef, hamburger patties, pepperoni, or sausage.

Beef Patties Our Beef Patties come packaged in 6lb bags, which works out to 24x4oz patties, or 16x6oz patties depending on your selections. To view the complete list of Ingredients for our Beef Patty options, please click here. * PLEASE NOTE: Because making Beef Patties is labour intensive, we need to start with a minimum of 25lbs of raw weight for each flavour desired.		You have 20lbs of Ground Beef/Trim left to allocate
Plain Unseasoned Flavour
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Regular Flavour 4oz Patties:	lbs
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Regular Flavour 6oz Patties:	lbs
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Regular Flavour 6oz Bacon Patties:	lbs
Seasoned Flavour
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Spiced Flavour 4oz Patties:	lbs
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Spiced Flavour 6oz Patties:	lbs
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Spiced Flavour 6oz Bacon Patties:	lbs
Total Trimmings for Beef Patties: .	0lbs

Ground Beef Our Ground Beef comes in standard One(1) and Two(2) pound bags.
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as One (1) pound bags of Ground Beef:	lbs
Please enter how much available Trim you would like as Two (2) pound bags of Ground Beef:	lbs
Total Trimmings for Ground Beef: .	0lbs

Offals

This is a term used for the internal organs of an animal.
We are allowed to harvest the Heart, Liver, Kidney, Tongue, and Tail as long as they pass governenment inspection. Read More...

Please select what you would like to keep from the Offals:

Heart
Liver*
Kidney
Tongue
Tail

* Additional processing fee for Liver slicing

** Please Note: Sometimes there are multiple cut instructions per animal, and offals are considered first come first served. Additionally, the owner of the animal will have final say since the offals are not counted in the hot weight of the animal. If you have selected your offals and they are not available, Prairie Meats will contact you to discuss your options.

Beef Bone Broth

Beef Bone Broth
Our very own bone broth made in house. We roast the bones with onion and garlic to a deep golden brown. We then put everything in our kettle with carrots, celery, cracked peppercorn, a smidgen of salt and a bit of apple cider vinegar.

We let is steep for a full 24 hours to let it become semi-gelatinous before we pour it into containers.

This is wonderful for soups, sauces & gravy base or just to drink!
We hope you enjoy this delicious concoction which is rich in collagen, minerals and flavour!

To view the complete list of Ingredients for our Beef Bone Broth, please click here.

Please enter how many Containers (32oz) of Bone Broth you would like to purchase:

** LARGE-BATCH OPTION **
Because making Beef Bone Broth is labour intensive, we need to start with a minimum of 50lbs of beef bones for each batch of broth.
Depending on your cut selections above (ex: boneless vs. bone-in) there can be a wide range of available beef bones from your particular animal.
Generally a half-order would not be enough, and some smaller animals may also yield less than 50lbs of bones.
If your order has enough bones (min 50lbs) to make a whole batch of Beef Bone Broth, Prairie Meats can use your specific beef bones at a reduced rate, for a minimum yield of 50x32oz Containers (average 1x32oz Container per pound of bones).

Would you like to LARGE-BATCH ORDER (min 50x32oz Containers)
Beef Bone Broth if your order yields the required minimum 50lbs of Beef Bones?

YES * Will yield a minimum 50x32oz Containers of Beef Bone Broth

NO

Review and Submit... That's it! You did it!

Now we know sometimes there are some things you just cant seem to find the right options for, so,
if you find you have any additional comments or requests, please be as specific as possible to
help us provide you with the best possible solutions:

* Please note, special cutting requests beyond the options we offer may incur extra fees depending on the complexity of the requests.

* You will be shown your selections and asked to confirm before submitting.

Let's get started!
*Note: To help order accuracy, some fields may be pre-populated for you by Prairie Meats.
First Name: Last Name:
Phone Number:
Email Address:
Beef Number:	* Read Only
Your Hot Weight (lbs) as given to you by Prairie Meats:		lbs. * Read Only
Would you like to extend you Beef Hang Time? What does this mean? NOTE: Whole Beef - $ per day, Half Beef - $ per day
* Has your beef been identified as SRM?		Yes No * Read Only
* IMPORTANT - Specified Risk Material (SRM) Every animal must undergo a dentition inspection to help determine the age of the animal if the animal was not transported with age verification from the CCIA website. Read More... The inspector is looking for the eruption of the second set of incisors. If these are noted, the carcass will be deemed over 30 months of age and it is mandatory that we paint the spine from the neck to the tail. The spinal column is removed and held for further inspection by Alberta Agriculture to ensure that the spinal column was indeed removed, and that an adequate amount was taken. --> What this means to you is that you are unable to get T-Bone steaks. Remember! The meat is not condemned, *only the spinal column*, so we are still able to cut Kansas City Strip or New York Strip. For more information on Specified Risk Materials please visit the Government of Canada’s website. Read Less...

Your total starting Hot Weight: *N/A
Approximate total Ground Beef/Trim based on selected cuts:
SIDE A: *N/A	SIDE B: *N/A

Please CAREFULLY review your order:

Brisket

Chuck

Cross Rib

Prime Rib

Short Rib

Short Loin

Sirloin Butt

Butt Tender

Sirloin Tip

Flank Steak

Inside Round

Outside Round

Eye of Round

Front Shank

Hind Shank

Beef Jerky

Pepperoni and Sausage

Ground Beef

and Beef Patties

Offals

Beef Bone Broth