Some may say it’s impossible, but Matthew Noakes and the team behind the Smokin’ Yak restaurant are confident they can dispel the prejudice against the meat quality of Brahman cattle.
With customers lining up well in advance of typical meal times, Mr Noakes said the Texas barbecuing of Brahman humps was effectively an appeal to the consumer.
“There is a misconception among the general public that Brahman is a second grade product and you’d never get a processor to brand anything Brahman,” he said.
“If we can produce something that’s better than first grade we believe hump meat could be the next lamb shank.”
A Teys Australia cattle buyer, ABBA councillor and Brahman breeder based at Marlborough, Mr Noakes said he was looking for a breed promotion with the knowledge Brahman cattle held great potential.
“By virtue of geography Brahmans have a pretty bad run- MSA has proven through ossification and growth plains that it’s hard to get cattle off very hard country to be a consistently good eating product,” he said.
“On the same token, our work with the Brahman Beef Information Nucleus (BIN) project proved high eating quality is possible if cattle are raised the right way in the right country.
“The industry’s work with Brahman breeders on their MSA pathways has been very successful but the message is not getting through to people.”
Mr Noakes said he had eaten hump meat before and built small Texas barbeques to enjoy the product at home.
“The negative perception of Brahman meat continued despite the industry’s work so I thought we’d do something with a deadset Brahman product that couldn’t be anything else and let it speak for itself,” he said.
“Hump meat has a similar consistency to the good end of a brisket and this method of cooking it for 12 hours at 130 degrees celsius over rosewood timber really suits it.
“The fat is rendered out and the connective tissues are softened leaving a really tender, juicy product. I haven’t had many people eat it and not tell me it’s the best meat they’ve ever eaten.”
To take the product from something that usually ends up as 70 per cent chemically lean trim to one commanding the attention of urban food connoisseurs is no mean feat.
Mr Noakes said there would always be a discount on Brahman cattle but breeders of good quality Brahmans should be able to negotiate with feedlots to get close to flat back money.
“Brahman is a very broad term that covers cattle from the Central Highlands to the peninsular so we can’t generalise it the way we do,” he said.
“High meat quality is hard for any breed to attain in hard country with high ossification and staggered growth plains so it shouldn’t be as breed specific as it has become.
“Let’s work it out in the chillers with MSA and let the breed become a secondary selection tool- this is our little stamp of defiance.”