Forequarter

Flat Iron - a pain to cut (correctly), but worth it. Very tender, good marbling. These steaks are thin and won’t take long to cook. Cook rare to medium rare.

Petite Tender - also known as the teres major muscle- you only get 1.5lb from a whole cow. So if you get it, consider yourself lucky- it’s super tender and tasty! Cook rare to medium rare.

Ranch Steak - appreciate the dependable things in this world? The ranch steak (technically the shoulder clod or clod heart muscle- sexy, no?) is an awesome cut when you want a good value, no nonsense steak. Takes well to a hard sear and a pan sauce. Cook medium rare to medium and slice thin.

Denver Steak - nicely marbled and a staff favorite. Make sure to slice thin after cooking. These steaks can have some the nicest marbling and best flavor on the whole cow. Cook medium rare to medium.

Chuck Eye Steak - as the ribeye goes into the shoulder, an awesome cut for flavor and value. We get about three of these per side of beef and they are prized for tenderness and flavor. Always boneless. Cook closer to medium for the most tender outcome.

Vegas Strip Steak - very thin steak that lays on top the shoulder blade. Tender and only needs a quick pan fry. Great for a steak salad, tacos or an easy weeknight steak. Cook rare to medium rare.

Loin

Ribeye - the true classic. Intense marbling and a high fat content. Always better to cook one larger steak than two smaller ones. Cook medium rare to medium to ensure the fat renders nicely.

NY Strip - strip loin, Kansas City strip, etc. More tender than a ribeye but far less fat. Ours are always bone in. Cook rare to medium rare.

Filet Mignon - you know what a damn filet is.

Hind Quarter (Steaks and Roasts)

Top Sirloin - an underrated true classic. Very lean with great tenderness and beefy flavor. A super versatile and a great choice to feed a crowd. Ours tend to be smaller than the grocery store version, as we pull out each individual muscle that are usually cut with it. Cook rare to medium.

Sirloin Filet - similar in shape to a true filet mignon but quite a bit smaller. They are incredibly tender with greatly flavor and generally just more interesting than the classic. You have probably had it on a top sirloin before and it was the best bites of the steak. Cook rare to medium rare.

Picanha (Coulotte) - the steak that they weirdly bend around steel skewers at Brazilian steakhouses. As a whole roast, its a picanha - great for smoking or roasting. Cut into steaks its a coulotte and is lovely. A massive fat cap covering a lean steak with strong muscle grain. Cook medium rare to medium and slice across the grain.

Tri Tip - where are you from in California? The favorite of barbecue aficionados in the west. A gorgeously marbled steak with three distinct points. Grill or roast it whole and slice across the grain. These take well to an assertive rub. Cook medium rare to medium.

Merlot - from the cow’s lower hind leg a tender oasis in a hard working muscle group. Lean and tender, this cut is shaped like a flank and is often cooked the same way (more tender than a flank though). Great steak to share, put over a salad, etc. Cook rare to medium rare.

Top Round Steak - nice beefy flavor and a favorite of Jason’s. Very tender when cooked correctly. We like to cook them very, very rare, slice thin and serve with an acidic vinaigrette. 

Flap/Plate 

Bavette - sometimes called the sirloin flap, vacio in South America and weirdly sometimes “steak tips” in the US. One of the butchers all time favorite cuts. Good intramuscular marbling and a strong muscle grain. An excellent steak at around 2.5 pounds to grill whole and share. Cook medium rare to medium.

Flank - a classic for tacos or a steak salad. It ages very nicely hanging exposed on the navel and has strong beefy flavor. Cook over high heat and slice across the easily discernible grain. Cook rare to medium rare.

Outside Skirt - just like the inside skirt but much smaller and with a much more intense flavor. And excellent cut of meat.

Inside Skirt - a long thin muscle that runs the entire length of the navel. Quick cooking and very tender. A favorite for carne asada. Cook medium rare.

Kalbi Ribs - sometimes called “Galbi”, these are cut flanken style across the bone. Great grilled with salt and pepper or marinated in something of the soy variety. Kind of like chicken wings of the cow. Cook medium to medium well with lots of char.

Braising Cuts

Beef Osso Bucco - the shank, or leg, of a cow cross cut with the marrow bone exposed. A truly incredible and economical cut. Calories to cost, it doesn’t get any better. These need a very long slow braise.

Short Ribs - classically braised, these can also be smoked or roasted. They have a great fat content which keeps them tender over a long cooking period.

Boneless Short Rib - the first five ribs of the cow, boned out, rolled and cut into portions. These are an excellent all around braising cut or can be used as stew beef in chilis or stews.

A Simple Braise

1. Heat oil in a dutch oven at medium-high heat. 

2. Season meat and brown outsides of it. If you’re doing more than a few pieces, do this in batches so as to not overcrowd. See below for notes on browning.

3. Remove meat, add your mirepoix (or other vegetables) which should pull up any browning bits on your pan (splash in a bit of liquid if they’re not coming off the pan). Soften vegetables. Then add chopped garlic and tomato paste and cook until tomato paste turns a brick-red color. 

4. Add your braising liquid (two thirds of the way up the meat) and any herbs you’d like. Bring to a simmer (don’t skip this step!). Put the lid on, slide into a 300 degree oven. 

5. Flip once or twice. Braise should be done in 2-3.5 hours, depending on the cut and how much you want it to fall apart (we prefer it not totally mush). 

Now What? How to finish your braise

• Feel free to keep your vegetables (rustic!), strain out your vegetables (fancy!), or to puree them with a stick blender (real rustic!)

• Need to thicken the sauce? 3 Options:

1. Remove meat and vegetables and simmer liquid. (This is the reason to only season your meat and not your braising liquid—if you reduce it here, you will need to make sure your final sauce is not too salty. Always season the liquid after you’ve reached your desired consistency. 

2. Cornstarch

3. Beurre Manie

• Try adding acid to bring out all the flavors you’ve developed. Vinegars, lemon- depends on the dish, but they all work. Add to your final sauce, a little at a time until the flavors of the braise are pronounced. 

• Finish with a Gremolata. Spend the extra two minutes—you’ll be shocked at the impact it’ll have on your braise. Feel free to riff on the traditional gremolata with different fresh herbs or citrus.

*Notes on Browning

• Think of it as “browning” and not “searing” (like you might do with a steak), meaning medium-high instead of super high heat. This could take a little bit of time to develop as much crust as you’d like, but it’s important not to get black burned spots on your pan. 

• When doing a large batch, I find it’s worth using an extra pan (say, in addition to browning in the dutch oven you’re using). It’ll take 10 seconds to clean the extra pan but saves browning in multiple batches, and lessens the likelihood of developing burned spots. 

• I prep my mirepoix while my meat is browning so that I’m patient enough to develop lots of crust on my meat. That’s my hack!

Cooking Sausages

Seems easy, right? But it’s probably the meat that is most often incorrectly cooked. The key, however you cook it, is to do it gently. Not too hot of a skillet, not directly over a raging set of coals, etc. Here is a fool-proof way to cook sausages:

1. Put sausages into a pan that is a good fit. 

2. Put water in ~⅓ of the way up the sausages and bring to a simmer. 

3. Flip once and cook until the water is gone. Then with the residual fat in the pan, lightly brown each side of the sausage. Let rest and slice and now you know how sausage should always taste!

Making a Pan Sauce with Demi-glace

After cooking your steaks or chops, remove to let rest. Splash in some liquid to pull up what brown bits are on the pan (wine works great if you have some open). Toss in 1 or 2 demi cubes and let them melt over medium heat. I like to add a teaspoon of dijon mustard. Reduce till it’s the desired consistency. Season to taste (healthy pinch of kosher usually does it). Pull off heat and swirl in a knob of butter to emulsify. Slice your steak or chops and plate, then drizzle sauce over. Should take about a minute!