Pellet Fan
All Things Considered => General Discussion--Food Related => Topic started by: hughver on June 11, 2022, 05:50:16 PM
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This is a basic question that I should know the answer to. Flank, brisket Tritip, etc. are all easy to tell what against the grain is but when slicing better cuts of meat, filet, rib, etc. not so much. I have a couple of 1.5" rib eye steaks that I want to slice for beef stroganoff and the grain is not so obvious. It probably does not matter but if it does, I want to do it right. What think you all?
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I have always felt those cuts are usually so tender the grain does not matter!
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I have always felt those cuts are usually so tender the grain does not matter!
Me also
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I have always felt those cuts are usually so tender the grain does not matter!
Of course, you are correct. However, on occasion I've had one that was not as tender as I expected. On those occasions I've wondered if cutting differently would have made a difference in tenderness.
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Watch this to see if it helps you.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R26ALAQTVZk
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Watch this to see if it helps you.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R26ALAQTVZk
Thanks Lew, that was a big help, especially the part where she probed the meat with her fingers.
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This is a basic question that I should know the answer to. Flank, brisket Tritip, etc. are all easy to tell what against the grain is but when slicing better cuts of meat, filet, rib, etc. not so much. I have a couple of 1.5" rib eye steaks that I want to slice for beef stroganoff and the grain is not so obvious. It probably does not matter but if it does, I want to do it right. What think you all?
Steaks and chops are already cut across the grain, so it would be difficult to cut them thinner to get shorter grain. They should be perfect for stroganoff as they are. Just take outer fat/sinew edge off, and dice then into short strips or squares. If you are concerned about the texture of 1.5 inches you must have some tough ribeyes. Top sirloin stew meat makes good stroganoff. (and much cheaper).
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Steaks and chops are already cut across the grain,
I cut these steaks from a well-trimmed 14 lb. rib roast. I cut the four of them across the long side of the roast. I assumed that was cross grain, but I did not check. My decision to make stroganoff was made after steaks were cut. To make things worse, I seasoned them before I vacuum packed them. Using the video as a guide, I'll still check for grain direction. I'll remove the rub from two of them, and slice with meat slicer to 1/4th inch thick, hopefully against the grain.
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I don't agree with the lady in the video. Most steaks and chops the grain is going from top of the flat surface to the bottom. All major steaks come from a long muscle, i.e. an uncut fillet of beef, or ribeye, strip etc. A sirloin, however, has several muscles but they are mostly in the same direction. When butcher cuts them for steaks(or you do it at home), you always cut your steaks against the long grain, or else they would be chewy. Now, what you were looking at in the video looking at the top of a cut steak, you were looking at the ends of the muscle fibers where they were cut across the grain, and seeing other patterns separating the muscle groups. That is not the grain of the major muscle group. The grain is the length of the muscle from where it is connected, to where it connects at the other end. Consider that a thin steak is more tender than a thick steak because the fibers from top to bottom are shorter. If the grain is across the flat surface, then a thinner steak would still be tough and chewy. I submit that the nice lady in the video does not know basic butchery and should not be lecturing. Note the piece she cut as "with the grain" was almost raw compared to the piece she cut "against the grain". Yes there are some variations in toughness in a cut steak, but that is due to interconnecting tissues or sinew in that area. Perhaps we could call what she demonstrated as "secondary" grain patterns which I could begrudgingly accept.
PS, if those steaks came from Costco, all but fillet (which she did not have)have been blade tenderized as rule, creating all kinds of phony patterns on the surface. Check it out.
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I don't disagree with your position, and I'm sure quality of meat enters into the equation. Instead of cutting strips from raw, I could sous vide, sear and cut. However, searing strips yields much more seared surface area, and accompanying desirable Maillard reaction.
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The woman in the video is real close to clueless.
As Okie said, steaks and chops are cut across the grain by the meat cutter to start with. Any other way and you wouldn't want to eat them. Flank and skirt might be different as I've never seen them up close. What she's calling grain is not grain, it's segments.
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Wrap up. I made the stroganoff, and it was very good. Meat grain was undetectable, so I just cut the strips the easiest way. It was very tender.
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Wrap up. I made the stroganoff, and it was very good. Meat grain was undetectable, so I just cut the strips the easiest way. It was very tender.
Pictures?
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Wrap up. I made the stroganoff, and it was very good. Meat grain was undetectable, so I just cut the strips the easiest way. It was very tender.
Pictures?
Too late, I was running late and forgot to take the. Sorry