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With spring quickly approaching (ok, I know it is officially spring but until I see some leaves budding, I’m reserving judgement…), lamb is the protein on a lot of people’s minds. And with Easter dinner on the agenda, many people look towards lamb as the celebratory meal. Lamb rack is a special cut, usually reserved for dinner parties with friends you want to impress. The rack is basically the “prime rib” of lamb; it has very tender meat, a lovely bit of fat, and is an all-around excellent cut. It can be cut into individual chops and grilled, or roasted whole, as in the following recipe. Serves four Ingredients 2 lamb racks, 1.5-2 lbs each, bones frenched 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar 2 tbsp molasses 4 pc garlic cloves, peeled and crushed with the side of a knife 4 pc fresh rosemary branches ½ cup shelled pistachios, toasted 3 tbsp mint, leaves picked and chopped 2 tbsp Italian parsley, leaves picked, washed, and chopped 1 tsp lemon zest, minced 2 small anchovies 4 tbsp olive oil to taste salt and pepper Method In a small bowl, mix together the balsamic and molasses, then season with salt and pepper. Brush the marinade all over the loin of the lamb rack, and then place the rack in a bowl with the garlic and rosemary to marinate. Cover and refrigerate for six hours. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Pour 1 tbsp of olive oil in a large pan over a high heat. Take one lamb rack out of the marinade, then place it in the pan, fat side down. Sear for 4 minutes, or until golden brown on one side. Turn the rack over and repeat the sear on the other side, before transferring to a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Wipe the pan clean, then repeat with the second rack of lamb. Take a sheet of tin foil, and fold it around the lamb rib bones. This will prevent them from scorching while being cooked. Place the lamb racks bone side down on the baking sheet. Take the rosemary and garlic out of the marinade, then chop them finely. You’ll have to pick the leaves off the rosemary first. Add back to the marinade bowl. Mix together, then spoon the mixture over the lamb loin. Place the racks in the oven and roast for about 30 minutes, or an internal thermometer plunged into the thickest part of the lamb loin reads the desired temperature. Take out of the oven, rest for ten minutes, then remove the foil. Carve in between each bone and serve. To make the pesto, place the pistachios, parsley, mint, lemon zest, anchovies, and 2 tbsp of olive oil into a blender. Pureed the mixture until smooth, adding more olive oil if needed. Season with salt and pepper and serve on the side of the lamb rack.

Everyone reading this newsletter knows that Peter Sanagan runs two butcher shops in Toronto. But, like any other reasonable, well-rounded person, he had a life before the meat business and continues to have a life in spite of it — a very busy ambitious life. Here are some excerpts from an interview I conducted with the boss regarding the latest installment in the life of Peter.

Graham: So Peter, how would you describe this new project.

Peter: laughs I think you can only describe it as a musical.

Graham: I think it’s safe to say that most people didn’t see that coming.

Peter: Oh, for sure but that’s what’s so fun, and frankly, therapeutic about it; it’s so far away from running two butcher shops.

Graham: So, is it like a traditional singing and dancing musical?

Peter: Yeah, I’m a big fan of the genre: Rodgers and Hammerstein, Andrew Lloyd Weber, Rent — all the greats.

Graham: Is this something you have a background in?

Peter: Well, before I got into food, I was a bit of a stage brat. As a kid I was in the touring version of the Polka Dot Door. I did a few commercials. Google https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tz2ARTdaqE0 I was on my way to gaining admittance to the National Theatre School when I got a summer job at Licks, and then that was that. From there it was food all the way. But now I really need something other than work and family.

Graham: What’s it about?

Peter: It’s totally based around my experiences starting up a butcher shop in the market. In a lots of ways it’s about Kensington Market and so therefore about the city itself.

Graham: Wow. So what are some of the numbers?

Peter: Right off the top of my head? Long pause I Can See Myself In That Shop Window; Cows and Pigs and Chickens and Me; Help Wanted - Apply Within; Sing-agan’s…

Graham: That sounds like fun. Are you pitching this to any producers or theatre companies?

Peter: Oh it’s early days for that but The Ontario Cattle Breeders Association is on board.

Graham: Where do you envision staging it?

Peter: Well the truth of the matter is, we’ve got so many talented performers working here at Sanagan’s, that I think I might try doing it in-house. I mean, it’s like the shop is already a stage.

Graham: Does it have a name?

Peter: Oh that was easy. April Fools.

"So, I think I'm buying a butcher shop."

The summer of 2009 was a very different time in our lives, but I still remember the bar we were sitting in (each with our then-girlfriends/now-wives) when Peter told me his next move. He was moving away from restaurants and teaching at George Brown and heading into business for himself at the site of the old 'Max and Sons' butcher shop in Kensington Market. From the beginning Peter saw the opportunity to connect smaller Ontario farmers with consumers in Toronto. It was a risk then, but like the store on Gerrard St. (I'm bringing this all together here...) it pretty quickly became a fixture within the neighbourhood.

Though the move to Gerrard St. had a few parallels (smaller store, window display, more blending of front of house and butchery work), our 'new' space on Gerrard St. couldn't be more different than the original. With the experience we have running the Kensington Market stores, the opening and transition into being a two-location business has been (as far as these things go) pretty smooth. Sure, there were some construction delays and tense moments right before opening, and it's been a lot of work as we get off the ground in a new part of the city, and I probably shouldn't have ordered so much lamb for Easter last year while so few people knew we were even open...but I digress.

We want to use this anniversary as an opportunity to say thank you. Thank you to the tireless efforts of our staff (big shout outs to Cole, Scott, Sophie, Lester and Steven, all of whom were there from day one right through the first Christmas), the support of our neighbours (seriously, go check out Lazy Daisy's, Swag Sisters, The Pantry, Godspeed Brewery, Pizzeria via Mercanti, The Flying Pony, Glory Hole Doughnuts and all the other great neighbourhood shops!) and our incredible and loyal customers (both the group that has shopped with us in Kensington for years, and the group that is discovering us for the first time).

The Gerrard St. store has been a great opportunity for us in a number of ways. The greatest of these opportunities is that this store provides us the means to connect a new neighbourhood with the spectacular Ontario producers we work with. We truly believe that supporting local producers is not only better for our community as a whole, but that Ontario producers have some really kick-ass products, and that should be celebrated.

Please come down to the Gerrard St. store on Sunday, March 17th for some samples and anniversary specials. Thanks for a great first year Gerrard St!

There are many slow-cooking recipes that call for wine or beer to be used in the braising liquid. In this recipe I use Guinness. Its richness and sweetness pairs well with the spices and coffee in this recipe. It truly is a great choice for stews and braises but if you have your own favourite local stout, by all means go with that. Added benefit – you get to drink a couple of pints while the braise is in the oven. Wins all over!

Serves 8-10

Ingredients

4-5 lbs beef brisket, preferably from the flat end

Spice Rub
½ tsp celery seed
¼ tsp coriander seed
pinch ground cinnamon
pinch ground clove
1 tbsp salt
½ tbsp ground pepper
2 tbsp vegetable oil

1 onion, large, peeled and roughly diced
1 tbsp butter
3 carrots, peeled and roughly diced
3 stalks celery, washed and roughly chopped
3 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped
2 tsp instant coffee powder (or 1 shot of espresso)
1 can Guinness
1 L beef stock
2 tbsp tomato paste
4 branches parsley
4 branches thyme
1 branch rosemary
3 bay leaves
to taste salt and pepper

½ tbsp flour
½ tbsp butter
1 tbsp English mustard (or Dijon)

Method

Preheat the oven to 450°F.

Mix the spices together for the dry rub, then apply them all over the brisket. Rub the brisket with the oil, then put it on a rack in a roasting pan. Place in the oven and cook until brown all over, about thirty minutes. When browned, remove from oven, and turn the oven down to 325°F.

Meanwhile, in a large pot over a medium heat, sweat the onions in the butter until softened. Add the celery, carrots, and garlic, and season with salt and pepper. Continue sweating until fragrant and slightly caramelized. Stir in the tomato paste.

Add the instant coffee and Guinness, and bring to a simmer. Reduce the Guinness by half, then add the beef stock. Tie the herbs together in a bundle and drop into the pot. Add the brisket back to the pot and bring to a simmer. Cover the pot and place in the oven. Cook for three hours, or until the brisket is fork tender.

Remove the brisket from the pot and let it rest on a plate, covered with tin foil. Strain the solids out of the sauce, then place the sauce back on a medium heat and bring to a simmer. Mix the butter and flour together, and whisk the mixture into the sauce to thicken. Whisk in the mustard, then taste for seasoning, adjusting if necessary.

Slice the brisket and serve with the sauce on the side.

Pancake Day a.k.a. Shrove Tuesday was one of the highlights of our heathen/Christian childhood calendar. You understood there was some vague religious thing about it but what really mattered was — pancakes for dinner! And pancakes means maple syrup.

Sanagan’s maple and birch syrups are produced by Shady Grove Maple in Woolwich Ontario, just outside of Guelph. There, Heather and Dan Goetz tap their woodlots and undertake the labour intensive process of turning sap into syrup. Now, lest you have visions of maples trees festooned with old metal buckets and a rustic sugar shack out by the beaver pond, understand that Shady Grove is serious operation. Across 15 local woodlots, they have over 30,000 taps operating on a vacuum system. They can process 4000 gallons of sap per hour. This is what allows them to reliably supply us with GRADE A AMBER maple syrup. Out of the four maple syrup grades; golden, amber, dark and very dark, amber is your classic table syrup; the lustrous pour that provides the definitive Canadian breakfast. And if some of that syrup spills over into the bacon pile? Smoke, sweet, salt, fat; it’s like making love to a lumberjack.

Maple syrup is the king but birch syrup is its lesser-known and surprising sibling. The birch sap season is later and shorter and you need almost twice as much sap to make the syrup. The result of this painstaking process is a thick and dark syrup with a revelatory flavour featuring notes of molasses, licorice and a long tangy fruity finish. Its vibrant flavour will enliven your vinaigrettes, marinades and glazes.

Shady Grove syrups are just one of the many Ontario-made sauces, pickles and condiments that make us so much more than just a butcher shop.

You might think that it’s a bit of a stretch for a Toronto butcher to be writing about Mardi Gras but here’s two reasons why March 5th is being celebrated in our newsletter.

1. Sanagan’s makes some of the best andouille sausage in town. So when you shop for your Mardi Gras feast, whether it features a gumbo, jambalaya or an étoufée, make a stop at Sanagan’s Gerrard or Kensington and get your andouille.

2. The establishment of New Orleans and the term Mardi Gras, as it applies Louisiana, are both attributable to the French Canadian and really long-named, Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville. Yup, it was a Montrealer who made this stuff up while he was representing the Colonial French in what is now the Gulf Coast region of the United States. Ergo, we should claim Mardi Gras as being partially Canadian, like General Motors and The Mamas and the Papas. And the direct link between Nova Scotia’s displaced Acadians and Louisiana’s Cajuns only strengthens our claim on Mardi Gras being as Canadian as broomball.

Old World French and New World Louisiana-style andouille sausage are now only distant cousins but what they still have in common is pork and smoke.

Ours fall into the Louisiana grilling style, featuring ground pork in a natural hog casing, flavoured with the typical Cajun mix of garlic, onion, thyme, black pepper and paprika. Then we kick it up a notch (where is Emeril these days?) with cayenne, marjoram, clove and nutmeg. These additions help it to shine in those classic New Orleans dishes.

If you want to keep things simple for Mardis Gras or you’re just looking a zippy prepared sausage, our Andouille are hot smoked over apple wood and are ready to go. Just throw them on the grill, in the pan or in the oven and heat them through.

Laissez les bons temps rouler, eh.

No food screams Superbowl to me like chili. Admittedly, I’m not the biggest football fan, but I love watching any sports game when there are high stakes. Speaking of stakes, I would gamble that this chili, created by Chef Anne and her team, will be your new go to recipe for game day. Hut, hut, hike y’all! Make about two liters, or enough for six healthy servings Ingredients 800 gr ground beef, preferably from the blade 2 tbsp vegetable oil 1 medium onion, peeled and finely diced 1 celery stalk, washed and finely diced ½ pc red bell pepper 2 tbsp garlic, peeled and minced 2 tbsp chili powder 1 tbsp Spanish paprika 2 tsp ground coriander 2 tsp ground cumin 1 tsp dried oregano 1/3 cup tomato paste 1/3 cup water 500 ml plum tomatoes, canned 1 tbsp chipotle, canned 1 heaping cup red kidney beans, canned, drained 1 heaping cup black beans, canned, drained 1 cup beef stock 3 tbsp fresh cilantro, leaves picked, washed, and chopped 1 tsp brown sugar 1 tbsp lime juice to taste salt and pepper Method In a large pot over a medium heat, brown the beef in 2 tbsp of vegetable oil. Once brown, drain off excess oil and set the beef aside. In the same pot, warm up 1 tbsp of vegetable oil and add the onions and sweat for five minutes, or until translucent. Add the garlic and sweat for two minutes, or until fragrant. Add the bell peppers and celery and continue cooking and stirring for another few minutes. Turn the heat down to low and add all of the dried spices. Stir well and cook for five minutes, or until fragrant. Add the tomato paste and water to the pot, and stir well, creating a loose paste. Simmer for ten minutes to create your chili base. Season with salt and pepper. Pass the tomatoes and the chipotle peppers through a food mill or food ricer. If you don’t have a food mill, use a food processor, but bear in mind that the tomato seeds may leave a bit of a bitter taste in your chili. Not the end of the world, but a decent reason to get a food mill. Add the tomato/chipotle mix and the cooked beef back to the pot, as well as the drained kidney beans. Add the beef stock, and stir to mix everything together. Bring the chili to a simmer on a low heat, cover, and simmer for about 2 hours, or until the beef is tender. Stir every once and a while to prevent the meat from sticking to the bottom. For the last 15 minutes or so of cooking, add the black beans and the cilantro. This will help retain the structure of the beans. Add the sugar and lime juice, and adjust seasoning. The chili should be tangy and spicy with a hint of sweetness.

2019 = Pig. Yay!

According to the Chinese astrological calendar, 2019 is the Year of the Pig. Now that’s a chronological event Sanagan’s can really get on board with. Our domestic and heritage breeds of pork, as well as wild boar will enhance any dishes you may be considering for your Chinese New Year feast.

Gwenyn Huang has only recently hung up her meat hawker apron at our Kensington store so she can dedicate more time to her studies in Literature at University of Toronto. We asked Gwenyn what pork the Huang family likes to prepare for Chinese New Year. Here, in her own literate words, Gwenyn outlines the preparation of pork belly fried in red wine dregs.

One of the many dishes we make in our family is pork belly fried in wine dregs. The wine dregs, which is the sediment left over from making Foochow red wine, is fermented and has a very strong flavour and is bright red. It dyes the pork bright red as well, which is why it's so appropriate for the new years. In China, red has always been a festive colour that symbolises fortune and prosperity.

Only a little is needed for any recipe since it's so pungent, which is good because it's hard to come by. (The real stuff is.) My family has a jar that we guard very jealously! But for special occasions as important as the New Year, possibly the biggest holiday in China, we bring it out for sure. But first, we heat a lot of oil and deep fry cubes of pork belly. Then we strain the lot and while the excess oil drips away from the pork, we heat a little bit of oil in a pan. We throw slices of ginger into the hot oil and let it crackle and then a heaping tablespoon (no skimping on New Years) of the wine dregs. We fry the wine dregs for a few seconds, carefully since it burns easily, and then toss in the pork belly. Once all the pork belly is coated and bright red, it's ready to go!

Thanks Gwenyn. When should we come over for dinner?

With Valentine's Day fast approaching, the former cook in me screams "No! Don't do it! Why put yourself through the madness of going out to eat on one of the busiest nights of the year!" As I've matured in life and career, I still feel the same way! Don't get me wrong, any night can be a great night to go out and experience one of the hundreds of excellent restaurants that Toronto has to offer, but during the mad rush of Valentine’s, why not let Sanagan’s transform your dining room into a romantic restaurant table for two. This year, we're offering the following menu for two, with only the beef requiring actual cooking on your end: House Made Duck Liver Parfait with Blackbird Demi-Baguette Winter Greens Salad with Vinaigrette 2 Beef Tenderloin Steaks, with Potato Gratin, Green Beans Amandine, and Brandy Peppercorn Sauce Cochinitos Cookies with Cinnamon Sugar All you need to do is pick up a beverage or two and settle in for the night. The entire package will cost $80 and quantities will be limited, so order yours today by emailing info@sanagansmeatlocker.com (for Kensington Market pickups) or gerrard@sanagansmeatlocker.com (for Gerrard St. pickups), or calling in at 416-593-9747