which cut of the beef make the best steak?

Soldato
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Looks like we disagree on the marbling...

Use the U.S. Department of Agriculture's grades as a basic guide to quality. Prime beef has the most marbling, or fat within the meat, but is found mainly in restaurants, rarely in grocery stores. Choice, with good levels of marbling, is juicy and tender, and the most widely available. Select tends to be leaner and less flavorful, and dries out more easily.

The more marbling, or flecks of fat, the more flavorful the steak. Be sure that the marbling is evenly distributed.

http://www.ehow.com/how_8754_pick-steak.html

;)
 
Soldato
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Magic_x_uk said:
And Dr Who:
You said "when its cooked, this fat melts and is what makes the meat tender"

Think you may be wrong there

Ahem, or you may be...

See above

:p

Most beef has little flecks of fat within the muscles. The term for this is marbling. Marbling is sometimes referred to as the taste fat. When the steak is cooked, marbling melts at that high temperature. This helps to make the beef juicy. Beef with very little marbling is often dry after it is cooked. This is especially true if the steak is cooked a long time. Marbling also gives beef its unique flavor. A good steak has a lot of marbling.

http://www.ext.vt.edu/resources/4h/virtualfarm/beef/beef_steak_marbling.html

:D
 
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Man of Honour
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Discounting gristle and fat, technically it's the protein or carbohydrate links breaking down that makes it tender isn't it? Which happens at about 180 degrees C, above which you get charring which to a point adds flavour but hardens the surface and dries it out. Isn't this why you leave meat to rest so that the moisture can flow into the dry parts and the heat can reach the middle and soften the centre?

Just my two-penneth, I may be wrong.
 
Caporegime
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Usually for me its Fillet steak, then sirloin then perhaps rump but really depends on the cut.

TBH your better off going to an independant butchers and getting something from them as they will have much better cuts of beef than Sainsbury/Tesco rubbish.

If you do get a nice cut of Fillet steak then it will literally melt in your mouth, well the fillet steaks that i have had tended to melt in my mouth.
 
Associate
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Fillet is best in terms of texture in my opinion

but Ribeye is superior in terms of flavour, more gristly tho.

I know sirloin is supposed to be better than rump but i'd happily eat rump instead and you get more beef for the £.

Anyone tried newyork cut? not sure where it comes from in the cow although i think it is part of a trimmed porterhouse. don't seem to get it in the UK but when ive had it in the states its always been good i.e. better than all but fillet.
 
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Raymond Lin said:
Saw in Sainsbury today

Rump Steak - about £3.50 for 2 massive pieces
Sirloin - £4 for half the size of the Rump
Fillet Steak - About 2 inches thick but only 3 inches diameter, £5 ish
Ribeye 21 days mature - £7 for the same size as the Sirloin.

Is it the more expensive the better? I usually just get Rump Steak, a balance between price and the size of the beef you get.

What do you prefer?

You missed braizing - AKA blade/chuck/shoulder. Useless for grilling unless you beat that meat furiously beforehand ;) . I personally say go for chuck and throw it in a hearty pasty...
..mmmm stomach growlage... :p
 
Associate
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There is no question, if you've eaten good fillet then you'd never want to eat anything else again!

But having said that, if you get GOOD rump (i.e. not from a supermarket) you can get some very tasty meat. Sirloin tends to be leaner but doesn't quite have the flavour.

Good fillet is unbeatable though!
 
Soldato
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The butchers where i go to is one of the last in the country to slaughter its meat on the premises.

Superb place, you know exactly what you are getting, you can even look it in the eye the day before you eat it :) All local, all superb quality.
 
Soldato
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Stolly said:
you can even look it in the eye the day before you eat it :) All local, all superb quality.

Strange, Beef is best after it has been hung for a while. Aging or hanging beef allows flavor to develop and gives enzymes a chance to break down tougher flesh creating a superior ,firmer meat. A minimum of ten days aging is recommended for beef with 30 days being optimum.

perhaps you didn't mean Beef ? or you just like looking at eyeballs on tables ? :p
 
Associate
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Surprised nobody has asked about cooking; I got this tip from a chef.

Don't fry it ;)
Pre-heat a hot oven - perhaps 220C (without looking at the dial on my oven).
It can be sealed (ie. put it in a smoking hot pan, a few seconds each side)
Put the steak in on a baking tray in the hot oven and cook it for "minutes = 2 x weight in ounces". Example, a 9oz would be cooked for 18 minutes.
Take it out to rest (ie. all the fibres will be taught and this will relax them) in a warm place for; "minutes = weight in ounces / 2". Example, a 9oz would rest for up to 5 minutes.

Try it, I was pleasantly surprised :)
 
Wise Guy
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Magic_x_uk said:
Im a chef, Head Chef at that. Been in catering 16 years so unless someone out there is a super butcher or has more experiance than me, I am perhaps the most experianced nut case here to give advice.
Now fillet is the best cut of beef there is. But as for quality, well you get good and bad fillets like you do everything else in life.

Just make sure it looks a nice red bloody colour, not dark red though. No signs of fat within the steak and you should be fine.

When you cook it, if you are going to cook it medium - well done, then dont buy a fillet, just buy some cheap crap beef and use that as most of the flavour will be gone through all the cooking process.

Fillet is best served rare - medium rare. The blood adds to the taste. Granted not everyone likes blood, but im not meaning that it is dripping with blood.



And Dr Who:
You said "when its cooked, this fat melts and is what makes the meat tender"

Think you may be wrong there
I agree with much of what you say, but before dismissing fat in beef too much, go to Japan and try Kobe beef. I don't mean the imitations you get elsewhere (which can still be pretty good), but proper Kobe beef.

Kobe beef is, in my view, sufficient reason for a trip to Japan all on it's own. Admittedly, teppan-yaki is not a steak, but for beef with flavour, my opinion is that Kobe beef simply has no peer.
 
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