Cutting the Curd

Episode 175: The Meat Hook Meat Book

Episode Summary

Tom Mylan knows his meat. The cult-hero, Executive Butcher and co-owner of The Meat Hook, a butcher shop in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, where he cuts, smokes and cures meat that is sourced from small, family-owned farms, is just about to release his first book, The Meat Hook Meat Book: Buy, Butcher, and Cook Your Way to Better Meat. On this weeks book review edition of Cutting the Curd, host Diane Stemple chats with Tom Mylan about the bookwriting process, his career as a butcher and his previous life as a cheesemonger. This program was brought to you by The Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board. Ive never written a book. When you get the first manuscript back and there are squiggles all over the place - its a little daunting. The designing part was the most exciting. We got the chance to actually design it. [05:00] It was great we werent the first people to do a new wave butchering cookbook - because we got to look at all the other ones. We wanted to think of a way to show how animals come apart where you could just look at it [07:00] Anyone can do anything - its just a matter of how its explained to them. [10:00] --Tom Mylan on Cutting the Curd

Episode Notes

Tom Mylan knows his meat. The cult-hero, Executive Butcher and co-owner of The Meat Hook, a butcher shop in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, where he cuts, smokes and cures meat that is sourced from small, family-owned farms, is just about to release his first book, The Meat Hook Meat Book: Buy, Butcher, and Cook Your Way to Better Meat. On this week’s book review edition of Cutting the Curd, host Diane Stemple chats with Tom Mylan about the bookwriting process, his career as a butcher and his previous life as a cheesemonger. This program was brought to you by The Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board.


“I’ve never written a book. When you get the first manuscript back and there are squiggles all over the place – it’s a little daunting. The designing part was the most exciting. We got the chance to actually design it.” [05:00]

“It was great we weren’t the first people to do a new wave butchering cookbook – because we got to look at all the other ones. We wanted to think of a way to show how animals come apart where you could just look at it” [07:00]

“Anyone can do anything – it’s just a matter of how it’s explained to them.” [10:00]

–Tom Mylan on Cutting the Curd