Tag Archives: steak

Braising the Steaks

Well, folks, it’s getting to be that time of year again–that time of year when it’s almost too cold to go outside and grill and we start craving foods that combat those cold temperatures. While this doesn’t mean that we have to say goodbye to our nice steaks (there are many ways to cook them inside in the kitchen) it does mean that the season of soups and stews, of braising and roasting is coming. As a butcher, this is an exciting shift. We’re moving from the cuts of meat that are well-known and easy to recognize, to the cuts that are not as familiar, often overlooked, but are packed with more flavor. The problem with many of these cuts is that they are typically tougher pieces of meat and require special methods of cooking to prepare. One of these methods is one of my all-time favorite ways to cook: braising.

Braising is, in simplest form, is slow-cooking in liquid. It is a method that is nearly universal in practice; ranging from a variety traditional dishes in northern China, to a Jewish brisket, certain preparations of Mexican carnitas, and ossobuco–Italy’s famous preparation of a crosscut veal shank. The common denominator between all of these different recipes is that they are all pieces of meat that have substantial amounts of fat and connective tissue. It takes time to break that stuff down, rendering the meat edible. But by the end of the process the meat is tender enough to be eaten without a knife, and having both absorbed and contributed to the flavor of the gravy that remains of the cooking liquid.

As with any cooking method that results in such “simple” foods, there are some very important steps to braising that, when left out or minimized can prevent your cooking from reaching its full potential. The most important, in my opinion, are:

  1. Sear the meat. This is definitely one of the most misunderstood steps of the braising process. Most recipes will all on you to brown your meat before you begin to cook it but nearly always the neglect to specify why. Contrary to popular belief this step isn’t done to to capture moisture, but rather to deepen the flavor of the dish as a whole. By altering the chemical nature of the outer layer of meat (a process referred to as the Maillard reaction) you are adding a carmel/roast-y flavor to the meat that goes miles in improving your dish.
  2. After searing the meat, recipes often call for the sautéing of vegetables and spices. It is very important that you do this in the order that the recipe calls for. For example, if you were to add onions and garlic at once, in the time it takes to sauté an onion to desired softness, any flavor that the garlic would have added has been lost. Make sure to add your aromatics and spices later in the process.
  3. Choose your liquid wisely! Any liquid can be used, but the most common are wine, beer and stock. Any will work, just make sure you use something that will complement your spices and the meat that you’re using.
  4. Skim the fat! While not the most crucial, this prevents your dish from being overly greasy when finished. This especially matters for fattier meats, such as the short rib.
  5. Patience! Braising is a method of low and slow cooking and it takes time. Don’t rush it.
  6. Don’t worry about it! Braising can, and probably should, be made a day in advance. That extra time, with all the ingredients sitting together let flavors to continue to blend. That’s also what makes it great for entertaining. Make it the day before and all you have to do when your guests arrive is warm it up.

When done properly, braising yields some of the most succulent, delicious meat possible without an overwhelming amount of effort. Don’t just take my word for it though- stop by the counter to pick up your favorite cut and see for yourself.

Scott Weiss
Scott Weiss

Meat tender enough to be eaten without a knife Read more

Well, folks, it’s getting to be that time of year again–that time of year when it’s almost too cold to go outside ...

What’s your beef (steak)?

Fresh Cut Beef

If you’ve been by the Via Umbria meat counter lately you may have noticed a steak called the teres major. Despite its strange sounding name (it is the scientific name for the muscle, one that humans also have), the teres major is actually steak familiar to most of us. Cut off of the chuck, the shoulder of the cow that is traditionally used for ground or stew meat, the teres major is a muscle that is rarely, if ever, used by the cow during its lifetime. This gives it a unique set of qualities when it’s time for the cook to take over. First and foremost, it is soft. This means that even after you cook it, even when you cook it well done, it is tender. Secondly, there is virtually no intramuscular fat. This is the type of fat that gives the ribeye its pronounced rich flavor, and it is the type of fat that is impossible to avoid eating (not that you really should want to). There is one other muscle that has these two qualities: the beef tenderloin, or as it is known on most steakhouse menus: the filet mignon.

The thing that both of these qualities have in common is: you can see or feel them when the steak is still raw. When you walk into butcher shops it may be overwhelming when you see steaks or cuts of pork that you have never heard of. Don’t be intimidated! Talk to your butcher, but you can also look for a few simple things:

1. Fat cap – This will help protect your meat, keeping it moist while cooking, but it can also catch aflame when grilling. I always advise removing the fat cap after cooking, if you don’t want to eat it. That being said, I also think it looks great on a plate.

2. Visible grain – You’ve probably heard the expression “slice against the grain,” and that’s 100% true. That being said, there are several steaks with visible grain running perpendicular to the length of the steak. These are your hanger steaks, skirt steaks, bavette (flap meat) steaks, et cetera. In Italy these are the steaks called tagliata di mazo, sliced beef steak. In the New World, the skirt and the bavette are the most common cuts used in fajitas.

Grilling Beef

3. Intramuscular Fat – These small flecks of white within the meat are what give the ribeye its prowess as a steak. Unlike the fat cap, this is a fat that cannot be removed. But why would you? This is a fat that adds a richness of flavor that makes the steak versatile. It can be sliced thick and eaten as a steak, it can be ground, it can even be sliced think and served on a bread with some cheese whiz or provolone!

4. Pliability – This is the one that needs to be felt rather than seen. Both the tenderloin and the teres major are incredibly soft and flexible when raw. That is how you know they are incredibly tender.

So this isn’t a complete list by any stretch. There are so many different cuts of beef that can be used as steak or otherwise. It is, however, the four most important factors for me when judging how I will prepare the meat that I have purchased. It also helps you when you have a recipe that calls for a specific cut that you can’t locate (even though, if you call us in advance, we’ll have it for you!). There is always a similar enough cut of meat that you can use. Just don’t be afraid to ask!

Scott Weiss
Scott Weiss

Everything you need to know about steak Read more

If you’ve been by the Via Umbria meat counter lately you may have noticed a steak called the teres major. Despite its ...

Bring on Grilling Season

I haven’t written much about my recent trip to Italy yet. There’s quite simply too much to say, if I wanted to convey how much I saw and learned on this expedition. Instead, I’ll focus on a single simple experience: watching my steak grilling – right in front of me.. Driving to Norcia, the walled town in southern Umbria famed for its excellent cured pork and as the home of some heady saints (Saint Benedict of Nursia and his sister Saint Scholastica), Chef Simone, informed me of a plan to stop for dinner on the way back north. But for now, we headed on to Norcia. This town was swimming in little butcher shops. Mostly selling the local cured pork and wild boar products, norcineria. The prosciutto here was so well-balanced: nutty, sweet, salty, that I was ready to write the USDA and complain about their importation requirements right then and there. And it sure didn’t help that we were trying this in a little restaurant on the main piazza in the shadow of St. Benedict and his church. I could go on and on, but we’ll save that for another time.

Hanging Sausages

After leaving the dizzying array of hanging cured meats behind us, we headed to the mountainside town where dinner was on the agenda. There certainly wasn’t much to this town, a few cafes and restaurants, with a truffle museum being the only real tourist attraction. The restaurant destination was a little osteria that felt more like a basement than a restaurant. Vaulted stone sealing, maybe ten tables, and a raging fireplace. Flanking the fireplace, a table with a whole prosciutto, sliced only by hand, made by the chef from pigs he raised himself. Above that, links of his dried sausage. This was the definition of comfortable.

For our main course, we ordered a steak, rare. To cook it, he brought out a little metal grill, placed in front of the fire and started moving the hot coals underneath it. Before too long, there was a massive steak sizzling right there in front of us. I was beside myself. Here I am, on an Italian mountainside, watching my steak being grilled right in front of me: on the floor of the restaurant. And unsurprisingly, looking at glowing hot coals, my mind wandered and I remembered all the times we grilled growing up.

Sizzling Steak

Fortunately for me, with this memory in mind, it’s starting to warm up here. What I mean to say is, it is almost time for us to start grilling too. We may not be able to cook up a steak right in our fireplaces, but we sure can cook on the open flame. At the Via Umbria meat counter, we’re ready. Having seen this steak transformed from raw meat into delicious dinner right in front of me, I think we should translate that experience to our own backyards. Whether it’s a prime cut that you’ve heard of: the ribeye, the New York strip, the fiorentina, or an off cut you may never have tried before: the hanger, the bavette, teres major, let’s throw that beef over some hot coals (or gas flame, if that’s what’s available). I’ll likely never have that experience again, coming immediately from one of the meat capitals of the world to fireplace-cooked steak; but we can make something just as delicious in our own backyards. So come on down, get a steak. Bring on grilling season!

 

Scott Weiss
Scott Weiss

Let’s throw that beef over some hot coals Read more

I haven’t written much about my recent trip to Italy yet. There’s quite simply too much to say, if I wanted to ...