BUTCHER AND CHARCUTERIS

Butcher is an ancient trade, whose duties may date back to the domestication of livestock. He slaughters certain animals, or who dresses the flesh of animals, fish, or poultry, for food or market.

Pareed and Mohammed, both hailed from Panangad Island, had their butcher’s stall near our church area at Kumbalam. During Sundays, after the Holy Mass, people religiously queue up at their stall to buy some beef to feast at lunch in the accompaniment of toddy or country liquor. Now the Hindu community also has started eating beef and therefore there is great demand and the price of beef has hiked up to 250 rupees per k.g.

The health department and the vetenary doctors of the local authority will have to keep a vigil on butchers to see that they cut and distribute healthy and unadulterated food stuff.

The Fremch people are big pork eaters. Here, those who crave for pork will have to go to a charcutier at Thevara or Ernakulam market. Charcutier is one who carries on the business of killing and sale of porks. Pork and mutton are slaughtered and sold in separate stalls and it is sold by Christians generally.

A butcher may be employed by supermarkets, grocery stores. They may prepare standard cuts of meat, poultry, fish, and shellfish for sale in retail or wholesale food establishments. Even in big markets the charcuterie, a French word which meant a store where pork products, as hams, and sausages are sold. Now beef bacon, braised burgers, chop, cutlet, fried haggis, ham, nuggets, salami and marinated kabaab, liver, meatball, pepperoni are also available in hyper markets in the big shopping malls. 

Excerpts from

MEMOIRS

An autobiography

by

Joseph J. Thayamkeril

Lawyer, Kochi, Kerala, India.

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