# Butchering a Dexter steer



## General Brown (Jan 10, 2008)

July 11 is the butcher date for a 1 year old Dexter steer I will be eating. He is grass fed along with access to a creep feeder with Cattle Charge from MFA. Last year we had one and the meat was delicious, it being a 2 year old steer. Shoud I supplement with grain or anything?
Thanks in advance.


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## tinknal (May 21, 2004)

I read the analysis of Cattle Charge. It appears you already are feeding grain. You might want to supplement some protein though.


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## genebo (Sep 12, 2004)

I butchered a 13 month old steer one time. The meat at that age will not compare to the meat of a two year old. Lots of difference in marbling, fat content and taste.

I hold mine to 27 months, now.


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## AnthonyF (Mar 21, 2011)

genebo said:


> I butchered a 13 month old steer one time. The meat at that age will not compare to the meat of a two year old. Lots of difference in marbling, fat content and taste.
> 
> I hold mine to 27 months, now.


Is the taste, marbelling, ect better or worse at 13 months of age versus 24 months?


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## genebo (Sep 12, 2004)

I've eaten 3 Dexter steers that were harvested at 27 months, and they were great in every way.

The 13 month old steer was too lean. It was hard to cook without drying it out. I ruined steaks a couple of times before I learned to use an instant thermometer.

The young steer tasted OK, but it wasn't until I tasted the older steer that I realized just how great Dexter beef can be. The extra time adds flavor. Lots of it. Think of the difference between veal and beef. Mild versus full-flavored.

This is a 13 month old rib-eye, given a little grain in the last 30 days. Most of the white you see on the lean portion is dust from the saw. The butcher didn't clean it well before packaging.










These are 27 month old T-bones. All grass fed. All the white on these steaks is fat marbling. Tender as chicken and lots of rich beef flavor. Juicy, too.










I cooked and served the T-bones to a man who was visiting. He claimed it was the best beef he'd ever tasted. He bought two steers and a freezer to put them in. He really, really liked his steak.


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## MO_cows (Aug 14, 2010)

If the butcher date is July 11, what you do starting now isn't going to make much of a difference.


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## G. Seddon (May 16, 2005)

On the hoof comparison! Here's a Dexter steer pictured at 14 months of age:










and here's another pictured at about 26-27 months of age (same dam, BTW):


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