Just a few months ago we decided to purchase a quarter of a cow from a local farmer. While I knew the upfront cost would be expensive, we decided it would work great for us to make the purchase. We are a family of 5, 2 adults, 2 preteens and one 6 year old. Let me tell you, our preteens are definitely growing and it shows in how much they eat. So we went with the quarter of a cow in hopes that would be enough beef to last us through the year.
The cow we purchased weighted in at 791 pounds. We received ¼ of the cow and had to pay for the cow itself, the mobile slaughter company as well as the meat processor. We ended up getting about 120 pounds of meat in all different cuts. (The meat processors were awesome about talking us through what cuts we could get from the cow)
Typically, you’ll get about:
- 40 lbs Ground Beef
- 3 lbs NY Strip Steak (about 4 steaks)
- 3 lbs Top Sirloin Steak (about 4-5 steaks)
- 4 lbs Rump Roast (2 roasts)
- 4 lbs Sirloin Tip Roast (1 roast)
- 2 lbs Flat Iron Steak (about 2-3 steaks)
- 5 lbs Filet (about 4-5 steaks)
- 4 lbs Stew Meat
- 5 lbs Short Ribs
- 4 lbs brisket
- 5 lbs Ribeye Steak (about 6 steaks)
- 4 lbs Kabob Meat
- 5 lbs Chuck Roast (2 roasts)
If you’re looking for a great explanation of these different cuts checkout Ivy Croft Butcher Cut Explained where they give you the low down on all the different cuts and what you can use them from in your cooking.
So how much room does ¼ of a cow take up in your freezer? We were able to fit all 120 pounds of meat in our 7.2 cubic feet chest freezer and it took up close to half the freezer. The month leading up to the slaughter date we made sure we ate up what we had in our freezer so we would have enough room for the beef.
Was it worth it? For us, yes but we learned some things along the way especially since we bought ours during the inflation. By the time we were able to slaughter the cow the price had gone up so we paid more than was expected. Also, always shop around. If you’re fortunate enough to have multiple butchers near you, make sure you get some price quotes before you choose one. Hopefully this gives you an idea if buying your meat in bulk would work for you.
