Steaks: Educate me

[Saab2000]

I don't order a steak very often when I eat out but when I do it is always a filet mignon. My rationale is that it has less visible fat and little, if any, of the gristle that I get in other cuts. You can just eat the whole thing and when done properly they're pretty effin' tasty.

So today I'm reading some reviews of some famous steakhouses. Pricey ones. Why would someone order other cuts? Seems if you're going to drop the money on a good steak dinner that you'd go for the best cut, which I have always presumed to be the filet. Am I wrong?

Teach me. I'm all ears.

Also, how about bison steaks?

[bellman]

I think the fat makes them taste differently, in a good way. While I loves me some fillet, a 2" thick ribeye is my favorite. I like them grilled so they are still pink and then I turn it white with salt from the shaker.

Kinda like chicken breast is the leanest but the fattier thigh tastes like a summer picnic should. You know, potato salad-cold chicken- checkered table cloth....

Man, this sucks. Now I'm hungry.....

[topher]

I too usually get the filet however I have been reconsidering as almost everyone tells me that the other cuts have more flavor. The filet is generally the most tender but a properly cooked t-bone, sirloin, etc will have more flavor and can be close to as tender. I may have to branch out but I really hate the fat and any gristle.

[TMB]

Filet is honestly the last thing I would order if going out. Ribeye and Top Sirloin are the most flavorful of steaks, a slight edge to Sirloin, and given the typical methods of cooking in a steakhouse, you want marbled fat in the steak.

Much of the flavour in a steak is in the marbled fat, you order a Filet, you're ordering an expensive paperweight.

[devlin]

I like the good old rib eye as well. Closer to teh bone as well as a little bit of fat make for a juicy and tender steak. I like it flame grilled, still pink going on red with a little salt and pepper put on before being cooked.

Cold drumsticks are sooooo good on a hot day. Damn Bellman, the jam sandwhich I just had tastes like crap now!

[edoz]

I'm a strip steak kinda guy, Jake is right about the fat making them taste different and strips have a fat content somewhere between the ribeye and the tenderloin that filet mignon is made from. It's a lot of personal preference, though.

[bellman]

I think the fat makes them taste differently, in a good way. While I loves me some fillet, a 2" thick ribeye is my favorite. I like them grilled so they are still pink and then I turn it white with salt from the shaker.

Kinda like chicken breast is the leanest but the fattier thigh tastes like a summer picnic should. You know, potato salad-cold chicken- checkered table cloth....

Man, this sucks. Now I'm hungry.....

[deepsix]

The ultimate treat to myself:
Ribeye cooked sous vide (I do this with a thermometer on the stovetop- easy) then seared on the grill, precisely medium rare. Topped with some cracked pepper and a drizzle of nice balsamic reduction. It must be wrong to lust so powerfully for anything.

Ask someone smarter about sous vide. You're missing out.

[jbartmc]

New York strip and ribeye stand alone so well, and the fillet is milder. I like them all.

[Hindmost]

Ribeye.

[zetroc]

Ribeye med rare or maybe a t-bone for flavor. I dont think I've had a filet in 2 years.

[Shinomaster]

Most real foodies shun the filet in favor of the more flavorful strip, ribeye/delmonico, or something cheap and fun like a skirt/bavette/flat iron. I do happen to like a nice filet with real sauce bernaise or bourdelaise imho. :) Saab do you ever cook? Throw a rib eye on the bbq and report back.

[Saab2000]

Most real foodies shun the filet in favor of the more flavorful strip, ribeye/delmonico, or something cheap and fun like a skirt/bavette/flat iron. I do happen to like a nice filet with real sauce bernaise or bourdelaise imho. :) Saab do you ever cook? Throw a rib eye on the bbq and report back.

I barely ever cook. And I'm embarrassed about that fact. I'm just home so little and so irregularly that it's hard to learn. But I think I'd like it and I think I'd be good at it. But I'm mostly embarrassed that I really don't know how to do much of anything in the kitchen.

I do know how to boil water.... But not much more.

[-HvA-]

Alton Brown has some really good instructions on cooking steak (it worked for me and I can't cook for shit).

[EFHeath]

Seems if you're going to drop the money on a good steak dinner that you'd go for the best cut, which I have always presumed to be the filet.
Also, how about bison steaks?

Don't know how common this really is but... <http://boingboing.net/2012/05/01/meat-glue.html> . Something to consider.

As far as bison steaks, I'm sure they could be great if done right by a good chef, but all the bison I've had has been tough and dry, compared to beef. Maybe something to experiment with at home.

[Chance Legstrong]

Sorry i didn't see this earlier.

***disclaimer***
Family was in the grocery business for 50yrs. I trained as a meat cutter apprentice for 2 years.

Sirloins- only if you want to marinate them in red wine and olive oil for a cheap eat on the weekends. Sirloins are the cuts that all of the "microwave" resertaunts serve because they can hide lack of flavor in a sub-choice grade (select) by dunking them in a bath for days on end. Think, Chilli's Applebee's Outback etc.. Even "higher" end joints will "bathe" their Sirloins.
Ribeyes- fat, fat and more fat. you will not be able to enjoy the flavor (esp grass fed Choice or Prime grade) with all the fat chunks.
Filiets- are cute, but if i am plunking down $ at a Steak house and you don't want your man card revoked don't waste the $ on a 4 bite cut.
New York / KC strips- now we are getting somewhere. the big brother cut to the filet off the Loin. 2" cut, bonus if the bone is left on- some call it a club steak. (bone on)
T-bone- DO NOT call it a Porterhouse. IF ordering a T-bone ask for the 4th or 5th cut off the loin. If the server has to ask what you mean, you are in the wrong place.
Porterhouse- this is where we get real. The PH is the first 3 cuts off the loin. I always ask for the 3rd cut. this will ensure you get the largest, filet and strip.

this is elementary but always look for the USDA Choice (minimum) and or Prime.
do not confuse fat for marbling.
you can also ask to see the cut prior to grilling.
all that should be done to them is salt/pepper
steak butter again hides what's underneath. ask for it on the side.
<edit> Preparation- At home, I will prepare more on the rare side since i am the one handling the cuts, but out at my favorite chop house i will as for a Med-Rare. Again, you can always send it back. They should serve you and wait while you cut into the steak to verify the doneness. Akin to tasting a wine. If they do not, or ask that you, thats poor service.

Bison- you can eff these up REAL fast. a very lean meat. Do not bother.

it's good to be top of the food chain

[Too Tall]

Make that two. That's great intel Chance.

[bking]

Can't believe it took to the second page for a steak guy to speak up. Chance here mentions what sperates steaks: grade, not so much cuts.
You take prime sirloin (in choice, I won't touch it expect for soup), Cap ends -- they call them at Costco: about two inches square and 4 to 6 inches long. Heat cast iron skillet to 450 to 500 degrees, add peanut oil and clarifed butter. Crush sea salt and fresh cracked pepper, and don't be bashful, three times what you think you would want, top and bottom. Throw them on, 3 to 4 minutes a side. Don't be afraid of putting a seared crust on them...that's just locked in flavor. Pull them off, let them rest 3 to 5 minutes...bite down.
Repeat this for any cut, prime is always best...

If you do choice, which can be good, you have to look for as much marbling of fat as possilbe, not to confused with gristle. Marbling is not the large fat caps that surround meat, but thin flecks and streaks of fat in the meat itself.

And don't ever cook good meat on gas, please. Go buy some good mesquite or other good lump charcoal. And the best meats really deserve only minimal seasoning: salt and pepper. I like bernaise as much as most anyone...but i just couldn't bring myself to putting in on a really good steak. Bernaise perhaps on a choice tenderloin would be perfect.

my 2 cents

[billrick]

Great stuff, Chance.

My best steak ever was in Italy - bistec alla florentine (forgive my hack italian). Basically a porterhouse cut from a local breed, rubbed with garlic, grilled over an extremely hot fire, and salted after the turn. Sometimes with a light drizzle of olive oil on the plate. Simple, but I've never seen it duplicated outside of Italy.

[Too Tall]

Great stuff, Chance.

My best steak ever was in Italy - bistec alla florentine (forgive my hack italian). Basically a porterhouse cut from a local breed, rubbed with garlic, grilled over an extremely hot fire, and salted after the turn. Sometimes with a light drizzle of olive oil on the plate. Simple, but I've never seen it duplicated outside of Italy.

Come to my house. That's exactly how I cook steak for myself when I'm cooking for myself. The alternate to that is the same but using a cast iron pan, all the windows open.