Meat cuts 101

I took great pleasure writing this post because as a Chef, I must admit, I still had some uncertainties regarding meat cuts and the million and one names that crowd the lexicon. So, to teach is to learn so off I went and read a lot, tried to demystify some of the origins and chatted with my butcher. Folks, let me tell you, it was a bigger undertaking than I expected.

First and foremost, know that different cuts of meat have different names from country to country which makes the list of cut names so much longer (than needed). With that in mind, because we're Canadian, eh, we will work with cut names from Canada which are 95% identical to the USA.

Also, know that there are 8 primal cuts (some say 9 if you breakdown the loin section but, let's go with 8). They are pointed out in the graphic bellow (front and back shanks count as one).

Also, it is practical to breakdown these cuts on how the carcass is handled. The animal is first cut in half length wise (down the spine), then the front (forequarters) and the back (hindquarters) are separated.

So at last, here is a pretty complete list of all the cuts and what they are best used for.

Brisket:

A cut from the breast and lower chest area of the cattle; the pecs -so to speak. The name brisket comes from an Old English term for cartilage so, as you can now imagine, it needs to be cookd thoroughly so to break down the connective tissues very present in this cut. This is why a brisket is often used for smoking meat or oven-baking several hours.

Chuck steak:

This is the more economical part of the carcass. More often used for ground beef it can also be roasted or braised. It is rich in meat and fat so makes great burgers. It helps to cook it in a pot for several hours to break down the connective tissues.

Clod steak:

A cut from the shoulder.

Delmonico:

Delmonico was a popular NYC restaurant in the 19th century that served a thick cut of rib eye. Many disagree as to where on the animal a Delmonico cut is from but it seems as though a thicker cut is a common ground of agreement to its name. Nowadays, a thick cut of any steak may be reffered to as a Delmonico regardless of ribeye or strip loin.

Fore shank (or shank):

Shanks are the less popular cut of meats, best used for soups or grinding. The meat is tougher because it is part of the upper leg of the animal and filled with muscles. One could use it as an Osso Bucco but why would you when veal shanks are so much more tender -get milk fed veal shanks if you can.

Plate:

Beef plate is cut from the area underneath the animal, the belly. It is where skirt steaks are cut. Fatty, tough and usually cut thin for better result.

Pot roast:

A pot roast cut is not a precise cut of meat from a specific area. Any recipe that calls for a pot roast cut means you’ll likely get a butcher to sell you a roast cut from the brisket or chuck.

Prime ribs:

Also called standing roast, it is a section cut from ribs 6 to 12 and usually comes with 5-6 bones. The prime rib as a whole is often used for roasts, where it is roasted standing up so the meat doesn’t touch the pan. If you cut steaks out of prime ribs, you get… rib eye steaks. So it’s to beef what a rack of lamb is to chops. Individual cuts of lamb racks are chops, individual cuts of prime ribs are rib eye.

Ribeye (rib eye)

Cut from the upper rib cage, precisely from ribs 6 to 12. Typically, a rib eye should have the bone in but here in Canada and in the US, the bone is removed. It is in the center of the rib steak (in the eye of the rib). Its fine marbling allows for delicious grilling when done fast at high temperature. The disadvantage of the ribeye (if you can call it a disadvantage, is that there are pockets of fat here and there which will leave you with a little less meat in say, an 8oz steak but don’t let that turn you off, it is most certainly up there with the best cuts of meat. By the way, fat pockets and even bone (like in a porter house steak add up to very little in ounces, don't ever think that it makes for a huge loss in value)

There are several other names to the ribeye:

Scotch filet: Used in Australia and New Zealand; it's a ribeye with bone in.

Spencer steak: An American variation on the name when bone removed.

Entrecôte: French version

Beauty Steak: Why beauty steak? No one seems to know.

Market Steak: Same as beauty steak.

Short ribs:

Short ribs are cut from the brisket, plate or chuck portion of the animals. There are two cuts; flanken which consist of cutting perpendicular to the rib cage. These slices are usually 1/2” thick and popular with Korean BBQ recipes. Then there’s the English cut where the cut runs between the ribs. Typically, one can serve a 6” piece or cut it into thicker 2” pieces. We use the latter cut for our short ribs.

Shoulder beef:

Also know as petite tender and home to a clod steak, this cut compares to a filet mignon cut, in other words it is extremely tender and commonly referred to as “white table cloth” quality. So why isn’t it more popular? Simply because it is harder to extract and doesn’t give more than 8 to 10 oz pieces so marketing it as such is a lot of work, considering you get so little out of a carcass.

Skirt steak:

If the animal stood up right, the skirt cut would be the area between the pecs and the 6-pack, just under the breast, above the stomach. It is cut from underneath the cow and often mistaken with flank. It is a tough cut best used in stir fry and fajitas and best cut against the grain so to facilitate consumption.

Standing Roast

See Prime rib

Tomahawk

Here’s a bucket of cold water. A Tomahawk Steak is a ribeye steak with an extra 6” to 8”of bone for effect. It makes for a cool Instagram photo shoot but the price tag that comes with the steak is a bit of a scam. The cut may be larger and able to feed two, but at the end of the day, you've eaten a Delmonico steak with a Fred Flintstone bone.

Ambassador Steak

It’s a strip steak.

Bavette

It’s a flank steak in French.

Chateaubriand

Much like the Filet Mignon and tournedos, this cut of meat is from the larger center of the tenderloin.

Club Steak

It’s a strip steak.

Contre-filet

It’s a strip steak, in Le french.

Filet Mignon

A cut from the end of the tenderloin.

Flank Steak

A cut from the abdominal part of the animal. It is often and best used for a London Broil, or much like skirt steaks, for fajitas and stir-frys.

Hotel Steak

It’s a strip steak.

Kansas City Strip

It’s a strip steak.

London Broil Steak

Not so much a cut but a preparation method. When cooking a London Broil Steak, ask for a fine cut of flank steak, or you could use a Top Loin cut. A London Broil Steak is first marinated for several hours than cooked in high heat and served cut against the grain. Best used for sandwiches

New York Steak

It’s a strip steak which oddly enough is only called New York steak outside of New York.

Porter House steak

A cut from the short loin area. It’s a T-Bone, only it is cut 1”+ thick. Usually ideal for two people.

Round

Cut from the very back end of the cow. It is however a tougher area with very little marbling resulting in a very dry dish if prepared wrong. Round steaks or roasts should be cooked at kow heat for longer time and best used for smoking, or making jerk beef.

Rump

Cut from the very back end of the cow.

Shell

It’s a strip steak

Sirloin

It’s a strip steak in the UK.

Striploin (Strip steak)

With the ribeye, strip loin (or steak) are the most popular steak cuts. Cut from the short loin area, without the bone. It is cut from the Longissimus muscle which is not used very much so the meat is almost as tender as a tenderloin. The strip loin is also and often referred to as the following:

New York Steak -or- New York Strip Steak.

Delmonico, here's that name again, some say it’s a strip loin when cut thick.

Ambassador steak, Hotel steak, Contre-filet, Kansas City, Top (top side) loin, Veiny Steak, shell.

T-Bone

A cut from the short loin area.

Tenderloin

Home of the filets, tournedos, chateaubriand, the tenderloin is at the end of the cow’s butt, where very little work happens thus making it the tenderist part of the animal.

Top Side

It’s a strip steak.

Tournedos

Much like the Filet Mignon, this cut of meat is fromthe tenderloin only a closer towards the smaller center of the loin,