Buy butcher equipment for the products and volumes you actually process. A grinder of the right head size covers most kitchens; add a band saw only if you cut bone-in or frozen product, a piston stuffer for sausage, and a patty maker when burgers are a staple.
Key takeaways
- Grinders are sized by a number such as 12, 22 or 32; it sets the head, plate and knife size, and parts only fit the matching size.
- Keep meat and grinder parts very cold, and sharpen or replace the knife and plate together, to avoid smeared, pasty ground meat.
- A band saw is for bone-in and frozen product. It is one of the most hazardous machines in a kitchen, so guarding and training come first.
- A piston sausage stuffer is faster and gentler than stuffing through a grinder, and a meat mixer blends seasoning evenly before grinding or stuffing.
- Grinding, curing and sausage-making raise food safety expectations; check with your public health unit before you start.
Match the equipment to what you process
A restaurant grinding its own burger blend needs very different equipment from a retail butcher breaking down sides or a sausage maker producing in volume. List the products you make, the weight you process on a busy day, and whether any of it is bone-in or frozen. That list decides which machines you need and how large they should be.
- Grinding burger, sausage meat or other ground product: a meat grinder and a set of plates.
- Cutting bone-in chops, steaks and ribs, or frozen blocks: a meat band saw.
- Making sausage: a sausage stuffer, plus a meat mixer at volume.
- Forming burger patties consistently: a patty maker.
- Tenderizing cutlets and schnitzel: a meat tenderizer.
- Portioning cooked or cured meats: a slicer, covered in the meat slicer guide.
Meat grinders and grinder plates
Commercial grinders are sized by a number, commonly 12, 22 or 32, which refers to the size of the grinding head, plate and knife. Higher numbers mean a larger head and more throughput. Plates and knives are made to fit a specific size, so a plate for one size will not fit a grinder of another, and hub styles can differ within a size; confirm the size and style before ordering spares.
Small countertop grinders suit restaurants that grind a few batches a day. Larger countertop and floor models with bigger motors and heads suit butcher shops and production kitchens. Compare the motor's continuous rating rather than a peak figure, the construction of the head and auger, and whether the grinder has a reverse function to clear sinew that wraps around the knife.
Plates come with different hole sizes. A coarse plate is used for a first grind or a chili-style texture, and a finer plate for a second grind, burgers or finer products. Many operators grind twice, coarse then fine, for a better texture. Stainless steel plates resist corrosion; carbon steel plates hold a sharp edge well but must be dried and lightly oiled after washing to prevent rust.
Keep everything cold. Warm meat and a warm head smear fat instead of cutting it cleanly, which gives a pasty texture. Chill the head, auger, knife and plate before grinding, keep the meat as cold as you can without it being frozen solid, and work in batches. A dull knife or a worn plate also smears, and because the two wear against each other, they should be resharpened or replaced as a set.
- Head size number, with matching plates and knives available.
- Motor continuous rating and throughput for your batch size.
- Stainless steel or tinned cast iron head and auger, and how each must be cleaned.
- Reverse function for clearing jams.
- Feed pan size and a stomper that keeps hands out of the feed throat.
Meat band saws
A meat band saw cuts with a continuous blade running around two wheels. It is the tool for bone-in cuts such as chops, T-bones and ribs, and for cutting frozen blocks. Kitchens that buy boneless cuts rarely need one; knives and a cutting board do the job.
Compare the cutting height and throat depth, which limit the size of product, along with table size, blade length and frame construction. Stainless steel frames are easier to keep clean. A sliding table or carriage and a pusher plate let the operator feed product without bringing hands near the blade.
Band saws are among the most hazardous machines in food service. Use every guard, lower the blade guide to just above the product, use the pusher plate for the last pieces, and never reach across the blade. Unplug the saw and let the blade stop completely before cleaning. Your provincial workplace safety authority may have training and guarding requirements that apply.
Bone dust and meat particles build up on the wheels, blade, guides and scrapers. Clean the saw fully after each use, following the manual on removing the blade and wheels, check blade tension, and replace blades that are dull or cracked. Blades differ by tooth pattern for fresh and frozen product, so use what the manufacturer specifies.
Sausage stuffers and meat mixers
A dedicated sausage stuffer is faster and gentler than stuffing through a grinder with a stuffing tube. Stuffing through a grinder pushes the meat through the auger a second time, which warms and smears it. A piston stuffer pushes the whole charge with a plate, keeping the texture intact and letting you control the speed.
Vertical piston stuffers are the common commercial type. Manual models use a hand crank, often with a two-speed gearbox; hydraulic and electric models free both hands to manage the casing, which matters at volume. Capacity is given in litres or pounds of meat per fill. Buy stuffing tubes that match the casings you use, whether natural hog or sheep casings or collagen.
A meat mixer blends ground meat with seasoning, cure, water or other ingredients before grinding or stuffing. It distributes seasoning far more evenly than mixing by hand and saves strain on large batches. Hand-crank mixers suit small batches; electric models with tilting tubs suit production, and some grinders are built as mixer-grinders that do both jobs.
Patty makers, tenderizers and smaller tools
A patty maker forms ground meat into patties of consistent weight and thickness, which makes cooking times and portion costs predictable. Manual presses form one patty per stroke, with interchangeable moulds and paper interleaving; automatic formers produce patties continuously for high-volume and production kitchens.
A meat tenderizer, often called a cuber, passes a cut between rows of rotating blades that cut through connective tissue. Needle-type tenderizers push blades or needles into the meat. Either way, tenderizing can carry surface bacteria into the centre of the cut.
Canadian food safety guidance treats mechanically tenderized beef differently from intact cuts for that reason. Check current Health Canada and Canadian Food Inspection Agency guidance on cooking and labelling before serving or selling it, and ask your public health unit how it fits your food safety plan.
Smaller tools round out a butchery station: spare grinder plates and knives in several hole sizes, meat netting and a netting tube for roasts, brine injectors, boning and breaking knives, cleavers and cut-resistant gloves.
Food safety, space and cleaning
Grinding, curing and sausage-making carry more risk than cooking intact cuts, because they spread surface bacteria through the product. Health units commonly look for clear procedures for temperature control, cleaning and allergens in a kitchen doing this, and some expect a written food safety plan before you cure or ferment meat. Check with your local public health unit first.
If you plan to sell meat wholesale or to other businesses, provincial or federal licensing may apply as well as health unit approval. Ask your provincial agriculture ministry or the Canadian Food Inspection Agency which rules cover your operation.
Plan the space around cold. Grinders, stuffers and mixers work best close to the walk-in cooler, on sturdy stainless tables, with a hand sink and a compartment sink nearby for cleaning parts. Band saws and floor grinders need a solid, level floor and clearance around the machine for safe use and cleaning.
Every machine here needs full disassembly and cleaning after use. Take the head, auger, knife and plate off the grinder, then wash, rinse, sanitize and dry them, drying carbon steel parts immediately. Check the manual before putting any part in a dishwasher, since some heads and augers are not dishwasher safe.
Floor grinders, band saws and hydraulic stuffers usually ship by freight, and a liftgate, a delivery appointment or inside delivery needs to be arranged with Norpex before paying. Freight equipment is not returnable once delivered in good condition, so confirm voltage and size before ordering.
Common questions
What grinder size do I need for a restaurant?
- A countertop grinder in a 12 or 22 size covers most restaurants that grind their own blend a few times a day. Butcher shops and production kitchens grinding for hours need larger heads and motors.
What grinder plate should I use for burgers?
- Many kitchens grind burger meat twice, first through a coarse plate and then through a finer one. The exact hole size depends on the texture you want, so test a couple of plates with your own blend.
Can I use my mixer's attachment hub to grind meat?
- Yes, for small batches, if the grinder attachment matches your mixer's hub size. For daily or large-volume grinding, a dedicated grinder is faster and saves wear on the mixer.
Do I need a band saw if I buy boneless meat?
- Usually not. A band saw earns its place when you cut bone-in product or frozen blocks. For boneless cuts, good knives, a cutting board and a slicer cover most portioning.
Why does my ground meat look smeared or pasty?
- Usually because the meat or the grinder parts are too warm, the knife is dull, or the knife and plate are worn. Chill everything, work in smaller batches, and sharpen or replace the knife and plate together.