"Whole cuts" refers to a single, intact piece of meat that has been cooked and sliced, while "cold cuts" is a broader term encompassing all types of sliced, pre-cooked meats, including both whole cuts and processed, formed meats that may be made from smaller pieces of meat combined together; essentially, "whole cuts" are considered a higher quality option within the category of cold cuts
This is really the way to go, the less processing the better. You can find an endless amount of recipes to get the style and flavor you are looking for in your sandwich. Endless
Sectioned and formed meat products are restructured meat products – such as multi part turkey breasts or cooked hams. They are prepared from chunks or pieces of meat and are bonded together to form a single piece. The substances that bind these together are non meat additives, meat emulsions and extracted myofibrillar proteins. Typically they are produced by extracting the meat proteins (by adding salt and massaging or tumbling the meat which brings these "sticky" proteins to the surface) or by adding non meat proteins. Myosin is the major protein that is extracted. The meat becomes soft and pliable and is then shaped through the application of force using different molds or casings. It is then cooked to coagulate the proteins which bind the chunks of meat together in its new shape. Supermarket Guru
Processed meats (sausages) are the majority of what we call cold cuts. About 15% of all meat produced in the U.S. is used to make these which number at over 200 varieties. Sausage manufacturing includes any type of meat that is chopped, seasoned and formed into a symmetrical shape – for example, bologna. There are two methods for preparing the ingredients: emulsion prepared where the meat is finely chopped and the hydrophobic proteins react with fat, the opposite protein, and the hydrophilic will react with water to hold fat in the solution (bologna, Vienna sausages, hot dogs) ... and non emulsion which typically are coarser grinds. The same basic technology is used as for sectioned and formed meat products but with no tumbling and massaging required. There are several meat sources for sausages including beef, pork, mutton, veal, and poultry; meat by-products are also used some times like lips, tripe, pork stomachs and heart.
So the image above reminded me of Argentine, specifically Buenos Aires. I was lucky enough to visit in '04 and '06, and seeing that meat smoking triggers my taste for the world famous Argentine Parrilla. Do you ever wonder why they are so well know for their meat?
The city of Buenos Aires was founded twice. The first founding occurred in 1536, when Spanish explorer Pedro de Mendoza established a settlement named Nuestra Señora Santa María del Buen Aire (“Our Lady St. Mary of the Good Air”). Mendoza was appointed the first governor-general of the Río de la Plata region. However, the settlement was soon abandoned due to attacks by Indigenous groups and a lack of supplies, forcing the survivors to retreat to the fortified town of Asunción. Nearly 50 years later, in 1580, Juan de Garay led a second, more successful expedition and re-founded the city at the mouth of the Riachuelo River, naming it Ciudad de Trinidad (“City of Trinidad”). Large tracts of land around the city were granted to members of the expedition, who began harvesting the livestock that had proliferated since being left behind by the original settlers.
The Buenos Aires Cabildo Building
The gaucho was a nomadic and colorful horseman and cowhand of the Argentine and Uruguayan Pampas, who thrived from the mid-18th to the mid-19th century and has remained a folk hero, much like the cowboy of the American West. The term has also been used to describe cowhands and rural workers in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul.
In the late 18th and 19th centuries, Argentina's slaughterhouses, or mataderos, were grim centers of the meat industry. Located on town outskirts near the pampas, these open-air facilities relied on laborers—often poor or recent immigrants—who endured brutal conditions. Armed with basic tools, they performed exhausting, dangerous work: slaughtering, skinning, and butchering cattle. Every part of the animal was used, but at great cost to the workers’ health, with long hours, injuries, and unsanitary environments rife with disease.
Despite the hardship, slaughterhouses were vital to Argentina’s economy, fueling exports of beef and leather. Culturally, they became powerful symbols of violence and inequality, most famously in Esteban Echeverría’s El Matadero, an allegory of political oppression under Rosas. For workers, the matadero represented more than labor—it was a harsh reflection of social marginalization and physical toll.
The Slaughter Yard (El matadero in Spanish, often inaccurately translated as The Slaughterhouse), is a short story by Argentine poet and essayist Esteban Echeverría (1805–1851). Recognized as the first Argentine work of prose fiction, it remains one of the most studied texts in Latin American literature. Written during Echeverría's exile and published posthumously in 1871, the story is a scathing critique of the brutality of Juan Manuel de Rosas's Federalist regime and its parapolice force, the Mazorca.
Giuseppe Garibaldi. During his exile, Garibaldi participated in military actions in Uruguay. In 1843, he used red shirts originally intended for slaughterhouse workers in Buenos Aires.
Garibaldi organized a volunteer force in Uruguay, mastered guerrilla warfare, and opposed the Emperor of Brazil and Argentina’s perceived imperialist ambitions. His victories at the Battles of Cerro and Sant'Antonio in 1846 secured Uruguay's independence, earning him and his followers heroic status in Italy and Europe. He was later celebrated as the "Gran Chico Fornido" for these accomplishments.
An Italian general, patriot, revolutionary and republican. He contributed to Italianunification and the creation of the Kingdom of Italy. He is considered one of the greatest generals of modern times and one of Italy's "fathers of the fatherland", along with Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour, Victor Emmanuel II of Italy and Giuseppe Mazzini. Garibaldi is also known as the "Hero of the Two Worlds" because of his military enterprises in South America and Europe.
Here is a list of some great book about: General Garibaldi
The Garibaldi, known historically also as the Catalina Goldfish and marine goldfish and now commonly as the Garibaldi Damselfish is a species of bright orange fish in the Damselfish family. It occurs in the subtropical northeastern part of the Pacific Ocean.
The English name Garibaldi comes from an Italian surname, referencing the Italian general and political figure Giuseppe Garibaldi, whose followers famously wore red shirts. Like all damselfish, male Garibaldis aggressively guard the nest after the female lays her eggs."
Catalina Island isn't just home to Garibaldi, it's also home to the world famous Lobster Trap. Drift into the harbor and make your way up Catalina Street. Pop into the Trap, and get yourself a sandwich. You can get just about any fish in between two slices of bread, except for the Garibaldi of course.
Feeling Nostalgic? Pick up some Catalina Island Swag: HERE
Sandwich and Art