Buying the steaks can sometimes be a difficult task. I have had that experience a good number of times, so I deemed it fit to put together few tips on purchasing steaks. Use these tips the next time you are in the market looking to buy some steaks for family dinner or a small dinner party.
Have an Idea of The Kind of Steak You Want to Buy
It’s very important to have an idea of the type of steaks you want to buy before going to the market. At the very least, you should know how much steak you will need and how you are going to prepare them.
Steaks come in different sizes and shapes and the section of the cow from which they are cut can have a great influence on the price and cooking procedures.
Credible restaurants like Rif N’ Reef do go for thicker, multiple serving premium steak such as Bone-in-Rib-Eye or Porterhouse when preparing the delicacy for their customers.
Only a Butcher Knows Cheaper Cuts
Cheaper cuts like Ranch, Sirloin, or Tri Tip make a great grill if you find them with enough marbling.
There’s a lot more steak options on a cow than we know and they have different names depending on what part of the country you are from and whether it’s bone in. For example, rib-eye is also known as cowboy steak, Spencer steak, Delmonico steak, beauty steak, etc.
All these can be confusing! Definitely, that’s why you should get to know your butcher and seek his advice on what kind of steak will be the right fit for your budget.
Know your cuts of beef and keep an eye out for “value” cuts
It’s important that you learn the different parts of a cow and differentiate between cuts. For example, the chuck is the shoulder area of the cow’s body, the rump is at the back area and the ribs and loins are in the middle area.
The chuck and rump are movement muscles which are always engaged in lots of work thus making them tougher cuts of meat. This is also the reason they are better used for stewing compared to other types of meat. The more tender cuts come from short loin and tenderloin muscles.
Also, there are in-between parts of the cow that make tender and tougher cuts depending on where they are located. As you can imagine, in the rib section you will not only find tender rib-eyes steaks which are usually best for grilling, you will also find short ribs that need to be cooked slowly to make them tender.
At the back of the cow, you will find a section called the sirloin but it would also be good to know the difference between the top sirloin and the bottom sirloin. The top sirloin is tenderer than the bottom sirloin but doesn’t have as much flavor as the bottom sirloin.
So, you can see that once you know about the various cuts of beef, it will be easy for you to make cheaper bargains when in the market.