Beef
Cuts 101
A
Simple Primer to Understanding Steak
Kobe,
Angus or Piedmontese beef? Porterhouse, shell or flatiron steak?
These days, going to a steakhouse is much more complicated than
in the days when you chose from a New York strip, rib eye or
filet mignon.
We'll
leave it to the cattlemen and women to sort out which is the
best cut of steak. Meanwhile, we'll take the bull by the horns
and sort out all the terminology.
STEAK
CUTS
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Picture
the side of the steer. Starting at the neck and working down
the backbone, you have the chuck, then the rib, followed by
the short loin and sirloin and ending with the rump. The side
section is the flank. Those areas produce the following steaks:
Chateaubriand:
A piece of the tenderloin (the pointed end of the short loin),
sized to feed two or more people and traditionally roasted.
Delmonico:
A boneless cut from the rib section, named after the 19th century
New York restaurant that popularized this dish.
 |
Filet
mignon |
Filet
mignon: Think French! The name of this cut translates as
tenderloin and it is the tapered, fork-tender end of the short
loin.
Flank
steak: A lean cut of meat taken from the underbelly that
grills quickly. This cut often is used for fajitas.
Flatiron
steak: Cut from the top blade, so named because it resembles
a flatiron.
Hanger
steak: Also called the hanging tenderloin, this cut is part
of the diaphragm that hangs between the ribs and the loin.
London
Broil: A large cut from the flank, often marinated to tenderize
it, then broiled and served thinly sliced.
 |
T-bone |
New
York strip: A steak by many other names…(such as shell
steak, Kansas City strip or sirloin club steak): The marbled,
larger end of the short loin.
Porterhouse:
Essentially the T-bone's big brother, combining two steaks in
one, the New York and the filet.
Prime
rib: The bone-in rib steak, cut from ribs six through twelve,
that often contains a bit of gristle but is full of flavor.
Rib-eye:
A rib steak without the bone; prized among steak lovers for
its marbling and flavor.
 |
| Tri-tip |
Sirloin
steak: Sitting between the short loin and the rump steak
is the sirloin, less tender than the short loin but still full-flavored.
T-bone:
Similar cut as the Porterhouse, only the filet side is usually
a bit smaller. Named for the t-shaped bone running down the
center of the steak.
Tri-tip:
Also known as a culotte steak or triangle steak, the tri-tip
is a triangular-shaped portion of top sirloin.
BEEF
GRADES
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The
United States Department of Agriculture, or USDA, separates
beef into eight different grades: Prime, Choice, Select, Standard,
Commercial, Utility, Cutter and Canner. Most restaurants serve
Prime or Choice beef and only about two percent of all beef
graded by the USDA qualifies for Prime distinction.
Another
grading program is Certified Angus Beef®, a
designation awarded by Wooster, Ohio-based Certified Angus Beef
LLC. The mark applies to approximately eight percent of all
USDA-graded beef that derives from Angus stock and meets certain
quality criteria.
Warning:
Do not confuse Prime beef with the prime rib—the prime
rib refers to the location from where the meat is cut, not the
graded quality of the beef. The grades refer primarily to the
amount of fat marbling in the muscle; Prime beef must contain
no less than 8 percent intramuscular fat. And you wondered why
it tasted so good?
CATTLE
TYPES
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 |
 |
 |
Gelbvieh |
Piedmontese |
Wagyu |
Angu—Of Scottish origin, Angus cattle are prized worldwide
for their well-marbled, meat-heavy carcasses.
Beefalo—A cross between a buffalo and any breed
of cattle.
Brahman—A native of India, this breed has a distinctive
back hump and can handle hot weather.
Braunvieh—A Swiss breed—how now, Brown Cow?
Braunvieh means "brown cattle."
Charolais—A French breed from Charolles, grown
for meat, not dairy.
Chianina—A product of central Italy.
Gelbvieh—Originated in Bavaria, in southern Germany
in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century.
Hereford—Natives of England, this is a common
breed in the U.S., Argentina and Australian for meat production.
Wagyu—The famed cattle that produce Japan's prized
Kobe beef, named for the city that launched the breed.
Piedmontese—A crossbreed from Italy's Piedmont
region; their breeders promote their meat as being naturally
low in fat but still tender and flavorful.
Santa Gertrudis—A cross between a Brahman and
a shorthorn, this breed is believed to be the first created
in the U.S.
Senepol—A breed developed in the Caribbean, this
one is heat-tolerant and meaty.
Simmental—A Swiss breed grown for both dairy and
meat production.
Shorthorn—Originally from England, shorthorns
are a popular American breed because they grow rapidly.
Image
sources: steak dish from www.bigtexan.com;
beef cut diagram from www.certifiedangusbeef.com; cattle types from cattletoday.com;
steak cuts from www.procutlery.com;
smaller steak shot from www.beef.org.
For more information, see also www.wagyu.org and www.kobe-beef.com.
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