Steak Knowledge from a Meat Expert...

Tips On Making Great Steak Everytime
By Chef Mick Rosacci, Tony's Meats and Specialty Foods
POSTED: 1:34 p.m. MDT August 15, 2003
UPDATED: 1:44 p.m. MDT August 15, 2003

DENVER -- There is nothing like a truly great beef steak; tender, juicy, bursting with flavor and supremely satisfying, it's the ultimate meal! But not all steaks are created equal. What makes a steak tender? What makes it juicy? What makes it flavorful? Why is there such a big difference in price? All very good questions!
There are no secrets or tricks; great beef is a result of good genetics, excellent animal husbandry, high quality feed, extended time in the feedlot, and long-term aging. The USDA Grading Test measures beef's potential quality, assigning each carcass a USDA Grade. USDA Prime is the highest quality grade, followed by Premium Choice (a sub-category of USDA Choice), Standard Choice is the middle grade, and Select is the lowest grade.
The key factor to a high USDA Grade is internal marbling, those thin lines of fat that streak the center of steaks. It's internal marbling that makes a steak flavorful and juicy -- and the more, the better! Marbling is developed in the feedlot; unfortunately, record demand for beef has significantly shortened the time most beef spends in the feedlot, creating a real shortage of high-grade beef in today's marketplace.
The butcher can further enhance tenderness and flavor of quality beef by extended aging -- that is hanging sides or primal cuts in a cooler for three to four weeks before cutting. During aging, natural enzymes work to tenderize as they enhance and mature flavor. Due to the extra cost, the extended aging of beef is rare these days and often misrepresented.
This week's food page is dedicated to making you a steak expert. I've detailed four key factors to great steak below; understand them and you'll know how to get a great steak in a steakhouse and at home.


Steak Cuts
Each cut has it's own unique texture and flavor; they also vary in size, price and tenderness.
Rib Steak -- Thanks to abundant marbling, the rib steak is the juiciest and most flavorful of all steaks. Exceptionally tender, it's available bone in or boneless (rib eye). Steaks from the 'large end' of the rib are the highest in marbling and a real prize for the lover of juicy steak.
Tenderloin or filet mignon is beef's most tender cut, and with only 6-8 pounds per steer, it's also the most expensive. Slender, irregularly shaped, and completely encased in gristle and fat, they require special care from the butcher. Filets are often wrapped in bacon to make up for their lower fat level.
Strip Steaks are boneless, medium to well marbled, and easy to carve. Juicy, flavorful and tender, strip steaks are one of beef's most popular cuts.
T-bone On one side of the T-shaped bone is the tenderloin, and on the other, the strip steak -- but cooked with the bone, this steak is more than simply the sum of its parts! Large in size (1-2 pounds), tender, juicy and flavorful; the T-bone is a first-class steak.
Sirloin lacks the marbling and tenderness of other quality cuts, but it's fine flavor and low price makes it a particularly good value. Large in size (from 1-2 pounds), moderate in price and usually boneless, sirloin steak is a fine choice for the budget-minded.


Beef Grades
The United States Department of Agriculture offers an optional Grading Inspection that assesses potential quality. Inspectors evaluate size, animal age, color and most importantly, fat marbling; then assign the appropriate USDA Grade.
USDA Prime offers abundant marbling and the greatest potential to yield juicy and tender steaks. Only 2 percent of all beef can meet the stringent standards for the Prime grade, making it more expensive and relatively rare. USDA Prime steaks are the most juicy and flavorful of all steaks.
USDA Choice grade is also of high quality, but has less marbling than Prime. This grade represents a wide range of marbling levels from slight to abundant, generally producing steaks that are tender, juicy and flavorful.
Premium Choice is a sub category representing roughly the top 18 percent of USDA Choice beef, or those with the most abundant marbling. Very close to Prime grade, Premium Choice beef is of exceptional quality.
USDA Select has the lowest level of internal marbling and lacks the juiciness and flavor of higher graded beef. Only the most tender of USDA Select cuts should be cooked with dry heat. Select is the least expensive grade of quality beef.
Standard and Commercial grades are frequently sold as non-graded or store brand meats.
Note: The term organic is not a grade or measurement of quality and has no bearing on taste, juiciness or tenderness.


Extended Aging
Butchers and chefs have long known that aging sides or primal cuts of beef for three to four weeks can dramatically improve both tenderness and flavor. During aging, the muscles own enzymes are the principal elements of change, breaking down tissue as they enhance and mature flavors.
Aging beef is an expensive step because in the process valuable weight is lost to evaporation and additional trimming. In today's price conscious market, the extended aging of beef is rare and often misrepresented.
Aged beef exhibits visual clues that the savvy buyer can identify. While fresh cuts of beef are a very bright red, shiny and wet looking, aged cuts have a duller appearance, lacking that moist, wet shine on the surface. Some cuts will even have a dark edge. Once the steaks are cut, aging stops and spoilage begins so you cannot age a steak in your refrigerator.

Vote on the February's Steakhouse!

So here's the list compiled thus far... If I've left one off that you think should be considered, let me know! Comment here and we'll come up with February's STEAKOUT...

NY Prime
PRIME
Rathbun's Steak
McKendrick's
Bone's
Capital Grill
Morton's
Ruth's Chris
Palm
ROOM
Chops
Stoney River
Craft Steak

January's Steakhouse...

So I've selected one of my current favorites!


THE STEAKHOUSE: Hal's on Old Ivy in Buckhead
THE DATE: Wednesday, January 23rd, 2008
THE TIME: 7:00 PM

Straight from their website:

The FOOD
With a taste for every palette, Hal's menu is bold, rich and extensive. From fresh seafood and pasta to veal, lamb and fish, the selection is diverse-yet consistent in its quality and purposeful in its ensemble. The food is prepared with exceptional care, with hints of Creole and Italian influence that are both subtle and distinctive-never compromising taste for form. And it is served by a career wait staff who are knowledgeable, professional, and as often requested by name as the dishes they serve.

Did we mention the steak? From the ever-faithful filet served three ways, to the nightly New York Strip special, to new specials such as the Steak Oscar composed of tender medallions and lump crab meat, Hal's has surpassed some of the most notable Atlanta area steak houses in quality and taste. In keeping with the old tradition, Hal's chefs prepare the steak using an open flame grill, rather than using the mass-produced, assembly-line broiler ovens typical of other restaurants. When combined with the highest quality meat-cut the day it's served and never before-it's no wonder Hal's has become known for serving "the steak that everyone else advertises".

Meet your Meat! Go ahead and Check out Hal's Menu Now

REMEMBER: The 'High STEAKS' table is limited to 12! I already have 8 reservations... which ONLY leaves 4 seats!! I'll be making the reservation for 12 on Friday, January 18th...Comment on this post (if you've not already emailed) and let me know that you want a seat!

A Question, An Idea, A Mission

Who has the best the STEAK in Atlanta?

Ask a different Atlantan and you get a different answer.

Some swear by a crowded spot in old Buckhead with a piano in the bar. Others will argue that the best beef is found at a decadent, boys' club institution amongst the city's movers and shakers.

Many will say that a trip OTP (outside the perimeter) is necessary, but the fledgling steakhouse of a quickly growing Midtown group hopes to change those minds.

Others are betting on the impending arrival of great steak from a top chef of New York fame.

With 12 Steaks in 12 Months, I don't intend to come to a definitive answer. Though other palates may concur, 'the best Steak in Atlanta' will always remain a subjective opinion... and you know what they say about opinions.

I do expect, however, to have found my personal favorite by the end of the year, as, I predict, will my dining companions.