Beef has many primal sections. The chuck, ribs, short loin, sirloin, round, flank, short plate, brisket, shank, and beef is graded by the USDA. Prime has the most marbling followed by Choice then Select which has the least.
Prime also costs the most because only four percent of the animal’s meat qualifies as prime. These are the steak house or butcher shop quality meats, rib-eye, porterhouse, T-bone, sirloin and fillet. These prime cuts are the best for grilling because the marbling melts as it cooks, and infuses the meat with flavor while keeping it moist.
High quality prime steaks come from the top of the animal. The rib section here has the rib-eye also called the delmonico. It’s cut into steaks of at least three quarters to an inch thick from the rib roast. This is a favorite of serious steak lovers. The texture is soft and tender, and you can grill this on or off the bone.
The rib-eye is cut from the small end of the rib roast. It has a higher fat content, so it’s best to grill this steak to medium or medium rare rather than rare. And if you like your stick on the well done side the rib-eye is a great choice because it’s so beautifully marbled with fat.
The next section going towards the tail is called the short loin. Here is the porterhouse which is a steak made of two cuts, the tender loin or fillet, and the top loin often referred to as the strip or New York strip steaks. The porterhouse steak is the king cut for grilling because this cut can be quite generous. It is usually one to two inches thick and it can serve two or more people.
The T-bone is next to the porterhouse. It’s similarly shaped. Also, made up of fillet and top loin but smaller than the porterhouse and usually cut thinner. The tender loin or fillet is often cut into thick round sticks two to three inches high and trimmed of all fat. Loin means lean and the tender loin is the leanest of all beef. Lean cuts should generally be cook to medium rare or rare as the meat dries out the more it’s cooked.
The sirloin is the next section towards the tail. The sirloin is one of most flavorful cuts of beef, and these cuts are readily available on or off the bone. Bone in adds flavor to the meat. It infuses the juices and renders the meat even more succulent either way sirloin is leaner than other prime cuts, and it’s a firmer texture. Sirloin is cut into both individual steaks as well as larger steaks perfect for several people. A thick cut sirloin can take up the half an hour to grill.
Select meat with good deep red color. Look for even marbling. The fat should be milky white. When beef is aged the flavor is deepened and the texture is improved. Grocery stores generally don’t aged their beef for very long but butcher shops will age prime cuts for up to six weeks. It’s more expensive but we think it’s worth every delicious bite.
Rib-eye, porterhouse, T-bone, sirloin and fillet, music to your guest eirs, eyes and stomachs.
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