DIY fever + quality meat mania = old-school butchery revival! Artisan cooks who are familiar with their farmers’ market are now buying small farm–raised meat in butcher-sized portions. Dubbed a “rock star” butcher by the New York Times, San Francisco chef and self-taught meat expert Ryan Farr demystifies the butchery process with 500 step-by-step photographs, master recipes for key cuts, and a primer on tools, techniques, and meat handling. This visual manual is the first to teach by showing exactly what butchers know, whether cooks want to learn how to turn a primal into familiar and special cuts or to simply identify everything in the case at the market.

Ryan Farr is the owner and founder of 4505 Meats, where he makes artisanal sausages and his patented chicharrones, and teaches sell-out butchery classes for home and professional cooks. He lives in San Francisco. Brigit Binns is the author or co-author of 23 cookbooks. Ed Anderson is a photographer specializing in food and the people who make it. He lives in Petaluma, California.