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Steaks can be described as an indispensable presence in Western staple foods. Before working in the steakhouse, I was also stupid and couldn't tell what the steaks were, only that they were all steaks, and it was right to eat them. How familiar are you? Fully cooked. Can you chew it? Not bad.
However, after working in the steakhouse for 3 years, I slowly understood that there were so many differences between the original steaks, and the chef would take out the meat every once in a while to tell everyone that the original cow was really not simple. Here's a picture of my homework from the chef during my first week on the job.
There are 4 steak sections on it, Rib Eye, Filet, Sirlon (New Yorker), Buttocks, please indicate which piece of meat is which part? Will your smart readers recognize it? Xiaobian will not say it first, you look back.
1. Classification of steaks
In ancient China, there was a cattle slaughterer named Cu Ding, who could follow the texture structure of the cow's body with his eyes closed, split the large gap between the muscles and bones, and perfectly dissolve the cow. There are also this traditional occupation called butcher abroad, butcher, high-paying profession, but it is not an easy task.
First of all, invite The Big Brother Cow out, and then we will try to get it again.
Rib eye/ Scotch fillet
This part is taken from the rib part of the cow near the muscle part of the dorsal spine. Because the muscles of the big brother of the cow in this area do not move much, the fat content is relatively high. Usually there is a distinct oil in the middle of the meat, which adds flavor to the steak and is the origin of the "eye" in the "rib eye". Usually the price is second only to the Filet below.
Taste attributes: juicy, flavorful
Note: The taste is relatively thick
Recommended maturity: 5 minutes or more to allow the oil to melt and the muscle fibers to melt into one
Fillet/Tenderloin/Fillet Mignon/Eye fillet)
Filet steak is taken from the tenderloin of a cow, which is almost round in shape and generally thicker. Because this part of the big brother cow almost does not exercise, the muscle content is very small, so it is the most tender, the thinnest, the least fat of all parts, generally speaking, it is also the most expensive.
Taste properties: tender, low fat
Notes: Low in fat, so it's not as flavorful and juicy as rib eye and sirloan
Recommended maturity: 1 point to 5 points of cooking can be, not recommended too old
Sirloin/New Yorker
Sirloin is the site of the dorsal ridge in the middle of the ribs and buttocks of cattle. The muscles of this area do not move too much, usually its oil flower is good, the oil content is between the ribs and the filer, and the flesh is tender. In particular, there will be a hanging grease on one side, which adds a unique flavor to the steak during the frying process.
Taste properties: tender, flavorful
Note: Some people may not like the grease that hangs down
Recommended cooked: 3 or 5 minutes
Rump Steak (Rump Steak/ Round Steak)
Rump steak belongs to the buttocks area, which is more active, has a high muscle content, and has less fat, so it is the most chewy and flavorful to eat.
Taste attributes: The meat is lean, very flavorful, and chewy
Note: Not as tender as Philip and rib eyes
Recommended cookery: Low fat content, 1 to 5 minutes can be cooked
There are also larger steaks, such as T bone Steak and Tomahawk steak.
Located on the short loin, the T-bone steak consists of a piece of filet and a slice of sirloin steak. Generally speaking, if there are more pieces of filipino when cutting, it is called porterhouse, and smaller filipino is t-bone steak. It is recommended to cook at 3 or 5 minutes.
Tomahawk steak can be said to be the most domineering in the steak industry, looking very much like a tomahawk, weighing at least 1kg or more. To put it bluntly, it's a giant ribbed steak. If a few friends share a piece together and then pair it with a bottle of red wine, it is very beautiful.
The ripeness is recommended at 5 minutes, as the panning time is usually longer. The next 2 are all tomahawks, but the meat on the bones is called the French-ed meat method, and the meat that is not picked is called the Unfrenched meat method.
2. The ripeness of the steak
Many people habitually think that things should be eaten fully cooked, otherwise there will be bacteria, which is not good for the body. So the steak has to be fully cooked?
The bacteria on the steak only stay on the surface of the steak, not in the meat, so the probability of foodborne illness from eating undercooked steak is extremely low.
All bacteria on the surface of the steak can be eliminated during the re-frying process. As a result, the steak can be cooked from 1 minute to fully cooked.
However, children and pregnant women, physical resistance is relatively weak, you have to eat fully cooked, completely eliminate the risk of foodborne germs.
Of course, this is all about a steak, not all beef.
Domestic cattle are mainly cattle and buffaloes, and the meat is relatively coarse and stiff, and there are many tendons. If you use it directly to make steak, the taste will be very poor. No matter how ripe it is, the thick piece may not be able to bite.
The steak is made of a special breed of beef, the meat quality is better than ordinary beef, and the thickness is relatively thick.
3. The type of cattle and the level of snowflakes
There are many breeds of beef cattle, the most famous of which is the Japanese Wagyu (Wagyu).
Wagyu beef includes 4 Japanese breeds, the most famous of which is the Takuma beef of the black Wagyu beef, and only beef cut from the Tashima beef produced in Hyogo Prefecture can be called Kobe beef. Just like only sparkling wine produced in the Champagne region can be called Champagne.
However, other countries or regions can also be called Wagyu beef after they are introduced from Japan. For example, there are many Wagyu cattle in Australia, but their mother or mother's mother is from Japan.
There are also some other famous breeds, such as the Angus from Scotland, the Hereford breeding cattle in England, and the Shorthorn cattle in England.
Differences in these breeds can lead to different grades of steak snowflakes (Marbling). What is snowflake?
Snowflakes are the oil between the muscle fibers in a steak. The higher the snowflake grade, the denser, more uniform, better the taste, and naturally the more expensive it is.
The common snowflake rating standard in Australia is M1-M9, and after the introduction of Japanese Wagyu beef, M10, M11 and M12 grades were added.
Japanese Wagyu beef is divided into 5 grades from low to high, A1, A2, A3, A4, and A5. The Australian M9 level is almost equivalent to the Japanese A3 level, and the M12 level is equivalent to the Japanese A5 level.
4. Feeding and maturation of cattle
There are two main ways to feed beef cattle, grass fed and grain fed.
Grass-fed cattle can run freely in the pasture, eat their own grass, exercise more, have relatively thin flesh, taste cleaner, and have lower cholesterol levels. However, it may be that due to insufficient rain in some years, the grass does not have enough nutrients to provide the nutrients needed for beef cattle to grow fat.
Grain-fed cattle can only stay in the barn to eat grain to grow, and its meat quality and supply are more stable. Exercise less, fatter.
Steaks, like wine and cheese, must be matured over a certain period of time to add flavor. The enzymes in the meat during the maturation process naturally soften the muscle fibers, improving the tenderness and flavor of the beef.
There are two kinds of beef, dry aging and wet aging.
Dry maturation involves slaughtering cattle or beef cut into large pieces immediately in a refrigerated maturation chamber at a constant temperature of 0.5°C to 1.0°C.
Dry-aged medium beef outer skin oil dried and hardened due to moisture loss, helping to lock in moisture inside and keep the inside meat tender. However, it takes a long time, and the water will lose a certain amount of weight after evaporation, which also makes it more expensive.
Wet maturation refers to the use of natural enzymes of beef itself in a vacuum bag for maturation.
This method is currently more common because it takes less time, less weight loss in maturation, and quality and yield are easy to control.
5. Pairing steak and wine
Having said all that, how do you choose a steak with a wine?
In fact, it is nothing more than 4 points: the part, the grade of snowflakes, the feeding method and the way of maturation.
The pairing of steak and wine actually follows the classic principle of table wine pairing. The more oil, the richer the flavor, with tannins and a heavier body of red wine.
Rib-eye steaks, with higher fats and suitable for tannins, are also good blends of Carbernet Sauvignon and Syrah (Syrah/Shiraz), Chateauneuf-du-pape.
Sirloin steaks are served with a Bordeaux blend that adds an elegance and a certain acidity to neutralize the oil.
Filet steaks are tender and have a low oil content, which is more suitable for grape varieties with relatively low tannins and wine bodies, such as Pinot Noir, Sangiovese, Merlot and so on.
Speaking of which, do you have an answer to the chef's question at the beginning of the article?
Well, the answer is revealed:
1 rib-eye steak for snowflake grade 6 plus;
2 and 5 are Filet steaks;
3, 8 and 9 are all rump steaks, the number of grams is not the same;
4 is the Eye of Rump, which also belongs to the buttocks, but it is closer to the legs.
6 ribbed steaks with bones;
7 is a sirloin steak.
Clever you, see that?