An Illustrated Guide to Tender Steaks
There are a lot of steaks to choose from, which can make things very confusing.
Here’s exactly what you get for your money when you buy each particular steak.
BY DAWN YANAGIHARA WITH JOHN WILLOUGHBY
It’s not easy to select a steak from the explain what section of the steer each particular type of steak but a method on the part of the meat packer. If it is
supermarket meat case. Steaks come in comes from, and advise you about its of cooking and cutting the meat. If graded, the meat should bear a USDA
all different shapes and sizes, are sold qualities and most common aliases. We you see steak in the supermarket that stamp indicating the grade, but it may
at varying prices, and are often slapped also rate the steak cuts for tenderness is labeled “London Broil,” it may be not be visible. Ask the butcher when
with bold, bright “Great for Grilling” and flavor (★★★★ being best) and anything from a shoulder steak to a top in doubt.
stickers that vie for your attention. To cost ($$$$ being most expensive). round steak. In our blind tasting of rib-eye steaks
further confuse matters, steak cuts The term steak refers to any thin cut from all three grades, Prime ranked
often go by different regional names. of meat, but not all steaks are suitable Making the Grade first for its tender, buttery texture
Consequently, turning to cookbooks for quick high-heat grilling, searing, or There are eight USDA (U.S. and rich beefy flavor; it was discernibly
is sometimes of no help, and asking pan-frying. Here we limit ourselves to Department of Agriculture) beef fattier. Choice came in second, with
a supermarket butcher for a steak those steaks that are best suited for a grades, but most everything available solid flavor and a little more chew. The
by name can result in frustration. quick sear in a hot pan or a sizzling stint to consumers falls into the top three: Select steak was tough and stringy, with
Marketers have also invented fanci- on a grill. We have not included hanger Prime, Choice, and Select. The grades flavor that was only “acceptable.” The
ful names for different steaks, further and skirt steaks, both of which we like, classify the meat according to fat lesson here is this: when you’re willing
muddying the water. because they are almost impossible marbling and age, which are relatively to splurge, a Prime steak is worth the
Here we try to make sense of it all. to find in grocery stores. London broil accurate predictors of palatability; money, but a Choice steak that exhibits
We identify the most common ten- is often gone missing, too, but for a they have nothing to do with freshness a moderate amount of marbling is a fine
der steaks found in the supermarket, different reason: London broil is not a or purity. Grading is strictly voluntary and more affordable option.
CONSUMER BEEF GRADES CHARACTERISTICS OF PRIMAL CUT STEAKS
CH U CK / S H O U L D E R S H O RT L O I N RO U N D
RIB SIRLOIN
• • • • •
Prime
Prime meat is heavily marbled with intramuscular fat,
which makes for a tender, flavorful steak. A very small
percentage (about 2 percent) of graded beef is graded
Prime. Prime meats are most often served in restaurants
• • •
or sold in high-end grocery stores and butcher shops.
BRISKET/SHANK P L AT E FLANK
Chuck Steaks The chuck section, or shoulder area, tenderloin, renowned for its buttery texture, extends
includes ribs 1 through 5 as well as the shoulder blade through the short loin and is found in the T-bone and
Choice
bone. Most steaks cut from the chuck area are not porterhouse steaks that are cut from this section.
The majority of graded beef is graded Choice. Choice
suitable for grilling or quick high-heat cooking—some
beef is moderately marbled with intramuscular fat, but
chuck steaks are downright tough and others may Sirloin Steaks The sirloin section is just behind the
within the category there are varying levels of marbling.
contain unpleasant amounts of gristle and fat. short loin section and is sometimes referred to as the
hip area. Sirloin steaks are fairly large but thin, and the
Rib Steaks The rib section is located just behind the meat is only moderately tender with decent flavor.
chuck, or shoulder area, and contains ribs 6 through The meat tends to be lean and rather dry, but it is a
12. Its claim to fame is the prime rib roast. The steaks good value.
from the rib section are of high quality, with a rich,
smooth texture and pockets of fat in the meat. Flank Steak The flank is located on the underside
Select belly area, directly below the short loin and sirloin.
Select beef has little marbling. The small amount Short Loin Steaks The short loin section is located Steaks from this section have a rich, beefy flavor but
of intramuscular fat can make Select meats drier, behind the rib section, in the middle area of the back. must be sliced thinly and on the bias to counteract
tougher, and less flavorful than the two higher grades. Steaks cut from the short loin are of very high quality. The their chewy texture and long grain.
COOK’S ILLUSTRATED
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CHUCK STEAK rib section, contain large pockets of fat T-Bone to the rear of the steer, they are pin- or
and have a rich, smooth texture. Rib eye TENDERNESS ★★★ hip-bone steak, flat-bone steak, round-
Top Blade is often known as Spencer steak in the FLAVOR ★★★ bone steak, and wedge-bone steak.
TENDERNESS ★★★ West and Delmonico steak in New York. COST $$$ Of these, the round bone is best; the
FLAVOR ★★★ others are rarely found in supermarkets.
COST $ SHORT LOIN STEAKS Shell sirloin steak is simply a round-bone
sirloin steak that has had the small
Top Loin piece of tenderloin removed. It is most
TENDERNESS ★★★ commonly found in the Northeast and
FLAVOR ★★★ is sometimes called New York sirloin.
COST $$$ Do not confuse sirloin steaks with the
superior top loin steak, which is some-
times called sirloin strip steak.
( These small steaks are cut from
the shoulder area of the cow. Top Top Sirloin
blade steaks are tender, but each has ( The T-shaped bone in this steak sep- TENDERNESS ★★
a line of gristle running down the center. arates the long, narrow strip of top loin FLAVOR ★★
They are inexpensive and perfectly suited and a small piece of tenderloin. Since it COST $
to grilling or sautéing. Top blade steak is contains top loin and tenderloin meat,
often called flatiron steak or blade steak.
( This long, narrow, triangular steak the T-bone is well balanced for
may be sold bone-in or boneless. Its
texture and flavor.
most common bone-in alias is shell
RIB STEAKS
steak. Boneless top loin is also known
Porterhouse
as strip steak, hotel steak, sirloin strip
Rib TENDERNESS ★★★
steak (don’t be confused—it’s not cut
TENDERNESS ★★★ FLAVOR ★★★
from the sirloin, see below), Kansas City
FLAVOR ★★★ COST $$$
strip, and New York strip. The top loin
COST $$$
steak is a bit chewy, with a noticeable ( This steak is merely a boneless shell
grain, and is slightly less fatty than the rib sirloin steak. It is sometimes sold as
or rib-eye steak. boneless sirloin butt steak or top sirloin
butt center cut steak. Again, do not con-
Tenderloin fuse this steak with top loin steak, which
TENDERNESS ★★★★ is sometimes called sirloin strip steak.
FLAVOR ★
COST $$$$ FL ANK STEAK
Flank
TENDERNESS ★★
( Imagine a prime rib roast at a hotel FLAVOR ★★★★
buffet or banquet. A rib steak is a steak
( The porterhouse is really just a huge COST $$
T-bone steak with a larger tenderloin sec-
cut from that rib roast, with the curved
tion. It is cut farther back in the animal
rib bone attached. Rib steaks are less
than the T-bone steak. Like the T-bone,
prevalent than the boneless version, ( The tenderloin, a long, cylindrical the porterhouse, with both top
the rib eye. muscle that is the most tender meat
loin and tenderloin sections, has
on the cow, may be cut into a number
well-balanced flavor and texture.
Rib Eye of different steaks, each of which has
TENDERNESS ★★★ its own name but all of which are very
SIRLOIN STEAKS
FLAVOR ★★★ expensive, since Americans prize ten-
COST $$$ derness above all else in their steaks.
Round-Bone or Shell Sirloin
Chateaubriand is a 3-inch-thick steak
TENDERNESS ★★ (Flank steak is a large, thin, flat cut
cut from the thickest part of the with a distinct longitudinal grain. To
FLAVOR ★★
tenderloin, usually large enough to minimize the stringy, chewy nature of
COST $
serve two. Filet, filet mignon, or flank steak, it should not be cooked
tenderloin steak is typically past medium and should always be sliced
1 to 2 inches thick, cut thinly across the grain. It is usually sold
from the narrow end of the whole, athough some grocery
tenderloin. Tournedos are stores package flank steaks cut
the smallest tenderloin steaks, into smaller portions. Flank
( A rib-eye steak is a rib steak with about an inch thick, cut toward steak is sometimes called
the bone removed. Sans bone, the steak
the tip end. Tenderloin steaks are jiffy steak.
has an oval shape with a narrow strip of
extremely tender but are not known
meat that curves around one end. Rib-
for having much beefy flavor.
( Several steaks are cut from the sirloin,
eye steaks, like other steaks from the or hip, section; moving from the front Illustration: John Burgoyne
MAY & JUNE 2000
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