The New Cheaper Cuts of Steak

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Photo by Rob Baas.

“The only time to eat diet food is while you’re waiting for the steak to cook.”
      —Julia Child

Flat iron? Calotte? Teres major? Meet the new steaks, and don’t feel badly if you haven’t heard of them. A few years ago, the Beef Checkoff program teamed up with meat scientists from the University of Florida and the University of Nebraska to identify value cuts for consumers while minimizing “trim”—the bits that are ground into hamburger. They focused most of their efforts on the chuck (shoulder) and the round (hind leg), well-exercised muscles that are robustly flavored and tender if cooked properly.

The results mean good news for grillers as most of these so-called “chef’s cuts” (because chefs prize these flavorful cuts and pioneered them) are eminently well suited to the high dry heat of the grill. They can be marinated, rubbed, sauced, stuffed, or seasoned simply with salt and pepper. For maximum tenderness, cook to medium-rare, let rest, then slice thinly on a diagonal against the grain. Some of these steaks have been slow to come to market—another good reason to make fast friends with your butcher.

Cheaper Cuts of Steak

Flat Iron Steak: Also known as top blade steak, this boneless cut is the first of the new steaks to become a runaway commercial success, outselling T-bones and porterhouses. For tenderness, it is second only to filet mignon, say the meat scientists. Surprising, as unlike most steaks, it’s cut with the grain. There are four steaks per animal, each an even thickness and between 6 and 8 ounces. Beefy-tasting with a fine texture and good marbling, this steak wallowed in obscurity for so long because of a medial line of gristle—almost always removed before sale. The name flat iron is an old meat industry term thought to be inspired by the flat irons used by laundresses in days gone by.

Rib-Eye Cap: What’s in a name? A lot. Ralph Lifshitz didn’t become a household name until he rechristened himself Ralph Lauren. The real name of the rib-eye cap is spinalis dorsi. But an unsexy moniker—the French call it calotte—can’t take anything away from this luscious cut, the tender and flavorful rind of rib-eye. (Maybe deckle’s a better word than rind.) It’s a rarity in butcher shops, although premium meat purveyors could have it. Or you can buy a hunk of prime rib and carve it off the eye yourself along the natural separation. Whole, it’s 16 to 18 inches long, about 8 inches wide, and around an inch thick. The research team mentioned above ranks it third in tenderness behind beef tenderloin and flat iron steak. One of the richest, beefiest bites on Planet Barbecue.

Shoulder Petite Tender: Teres major is a hidden gem in the shoulder clod. Weighing 3/4 to 1 pound, it resembles nothing so much as a small beef tenderloin. It can be smoke-roasted whole or sliced into medallions like filets mignon. The shoulder petite tender (which incidentally, is tender) has more flavor than its pricey counterpart. There is almost no waste, though we urge you to remove any silverskin if the butcher has not done so. Use it to make a version of Steven’s “Ultimate Cheesesteak.”

The Ultimate "Cheese Steak" - cheaper cuts of steak

Denver Steak: The Japanese call this pillowy cut from the underblade of the chuck zabuton after a cushion used in Zen meditation. But focus groups in the U.S. liked the sound and easy memorability of Denver cut. (Confusingly, this steak is sometimes sold as boneless short ribs, though it isn’t a rib at all.) Found deep in the shoulder, this richly marbled cut is very grillable. Not widely available yet. But it will be.

Top Sirloin Butt Strip Steak: Top sirloin cap (from the loin primal) is one of the most popular cuts of meat in Brazil where it’s known as picanha. Top sirloin butt strip steaks are harvested from the same muscle. Because these steaks are very lean, be careful not to overcook and slice thinly against the grain. A little coarse salt is all that’s needed to bring out their great flavor. Try on sandwiches, specifically, Steven’s version of chivito—a steak and egg sandwich from Uruguay.

Picanha with Country Salsa

Baseball Cut Top Butt Steak/Filet of Sirloin: You would be forgiven for mistaking this steak for filet mignon in its raw state. It sure looks like one. Cut from the center of the top sirloin, this thick (2-inch) medallion of meat domes when grilled, taking on a spherical baseball shape. It is flavorful as well as a good value. Because it’s fairly lean, baseball steak benefits from added fat in the form of a compound butter or a circlet of bacon. My favorite method for cooking these steaks is reverse-searing. For maximum juiciness, do not take past medium-rare.

Vegas Strip Steak: Cattle have been domesticated for over 5,000 years. So it raised eyebrows a few years ago when a meat scientist working with the University of Oklahoma applied for a U.S. patent claiming to have “discovered” a new cut of beef. Tony Mata doesn’t care if he’s controversial. He says that extricating this tender cut (usually condemned to the meat grinder for hamburger) from the fat and gristle of the beefy tasting chuck primal was not intuitive to butchers as it doesn’t follow natural muscle seams.

Strip steaks on grill - cheaper cuts of steak

In any case, the Vegas strip steak, which chefs say reminds them of a New York strip, has a glitzy name. Mata is evasive about the cut’s exact location, but the Vegas strip steak is described as “a tender pad of flesh from under the shoulder blade.” It still has limited distribution, but can be ordered online.

Flap Meat/Chuck Tail Flap/Sirloin Tip: From the bottom sirloin butt, this bistro-style cut could easily be confused for skirt steak or hanger steak. (Sometimes, it’s labeled “faux hanger steak.”) It’s a meat lover’s meat, intensely beefy. Its coarse texture embraces flavor-enhancing marinades as well as dry or wet rubs. Less expensive than flank steak and a terrific choice for Steven’s Thai Grilled Beef Salad, Mexican carne asada, or fajitas.

Thai Grilled Beef Salad

Flap meat takes just minutes to cook to medium-rare, so have your side dishes and/or condiments ready before you commit to grilling. For maximum tenderness, slice each steak with the grain (its fibers run crosswise) into 2-inch pieces, then slice each piece into thin strips against the grain. It’s available in many supermarkets—I have seen it for as little as $3.99 a pound—or can be special ordered from Whole Foods.

Ball Tip Steak/Knuckle Steak/Sandwich Steak: If you’re from Michigan, you might know this cut—it’s popular there—as “Sizzler Steak.” Like flap meat, ball tip steak is harvested from the bottom of the muscle-bound sirloin butt. When the fat and connective tissue is trimmed off, this 2 to 3 pound hunk o’ meat resembles a ball. The butcher can sell it as is as a roast, or he can portion it into individual steaks. Though it can technically be marketed as a sirloin steak, it’s tougher (and cheaper) than top sirloin. Consequently, some retailers mechanically tenderize this steak before selling it. You can do this at home with a meat mallet or a jaccard. Cut into cubes and substitute for lamb in The Real Turkish Shish Kebab, originally from The Barbecue! Bible. Incidentally, the yogurt in the marinade is a natural tenderizer.

Beef Kebabs

Ranch Steak: The beef industry dubbed this steak from the chuck the “ranch cut” to make it easy for consumers to ask for it by name. But like many of the lesser-known steaks, it has aliases, including boneless shoulder center steak and arm steak. Designated one of 29 lean steaks by the USDA (meaning less than 10 grams of total fat per 3.5 ounce serving), it’s marketed as a good choice for anyone who has a cardiologist on speed dial. Portion sizes are usually bigger than that, though—6 to 8 ounces.

Flavorwise, it’s often compared to top sirloin. I personally like to soak these steaks in a Korean-inspired marinade (the kind you’d use for bulgogi), sear them over a hot fire, then thinly slice on a sharp diagonal and wrap in Bibb lettuce leaves with sliced garlic cloves and jalapeños, scallions, and fiery gochujang—Korean chili paste. But if your cardiologist didn’t put the kibosh on your drinking, break out the bourbon and try Steven’s Drunken Steak.

Tri-Tip Steak/Newport Steak: “Tri-tip? That’s old news,” you say. Well, yes and no. Like sriracha, it’s hard to remember when tri-tip wasn’t a thing, especially if you’re from Santa Maria, California. My own supermarket east of the Mississippi has been carrying tri-tip for a couple of years now. But it was just recently that they began selling tri-tip steaks. (In New York, they’re sometimes labeled Newport steaks, the name given to them by the former owner of a hole-in-the-wall Greenwich Village butcher shop, Florence Prime Meat Market. He thought the steak resembled the reddish-orange “swoosh” in the Newport cigarette logo.) Tri-tip steaks can be bought individually, making them great for smaller appetites and/or households. Buy the ones with the most marbling; they’ll be juicier and more flavorful when grilled. Dust liberally with your favorite rub, cook to medium-rare, slice against the grain, and serve, if desired, with traditional Santa Maria sides: pinquito or pink beans; garlic bread; fresh salsa; and a green salad.

New York Strip Steak - cheaper cuts of steak

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