What is a good, yet somewhat inexpensive, cut of beef

[Alice S. Fuzzybutt]

for grilling or broiling?

We're really tired of rice and beans and chicken! We want to eat STEAK. I've watched enough Alton Brown to know that the best cuts are from the middle top part of the cow (the furthest from the legs and do the least work).

So, what's the SECOND best cut of meat? And how should I prepare it?

[midwestjeff]

Bacon.

[Alice S. Fuzzybutt]

OMG-- a cheaper cut of beef wrapped in bacon. GENIUS!!!!!!! :clap:

I'll do it!

[zentraed]

Try the flat iron. It's supposed to be incredibly tender.

The Flat Iron Steak (also know as a Top Blade Steak), now appearing in grocery stores and on restaurant menus was developed by teams at the University of Nebraska and the University of Florida. The problem that presented these researchers of the cow was what to do with a waste cut of beef from the shoulder of the cow. Though a flavorful and relatively tender cut of meat, the top blade roast has a serious flaw in the middle of it; an impossibly tough piece of connective tissue running through the middle.

So, after developing a method for cutting and presenting this steak, these friendly scientists have presented to us an amazing cut of beef. More than that, they have developed a nearly perfect steak for the grill. The Flat Iron (supposedly named because it looks like an old fashioned metal flat iron) is uniform in thickness and rectangular in shape. The only variation is the cut into the middle of the steak where the connective tissues have been removed.

[landarch]

Skirt steak is our latest favorite. It's relatively cheap and even good out of the microwave the next day.

[biggestmexi]

Flank.

Or go to a mexican store. Who else i cheaper than beaners?

Also if you get flank and a few veggies you got your self fajitas right thur

[TjM]

Top/Bottom Round (London Broil) Usually at least one market has it on sale every week

Before anyone says anything I know London Broil is not the actual name but some stores label it that way

[sailor]

If your mega-mart has their own butcher you can get a whole ny strip for like 4 per lb (at times) and they'll trim and cut it to your specs.

[Recyclerz]

I second Mexi's recommendation for flank steak. Give it a good pounding to tenderize, marinate it for an hour or two (inexpensive Italian salad dressing is surprisingly good) and grill. It will be tender enough to enjoy but remain just chewy enough to give it a "steaky" mouth feel.

:thumbup:

[underdog]

Flank, skirt and flat iron are all relatively expensive steaks now. Most former "cheap" cuts are, because people started buying them all the time. Same thing happened with hangar steak.

[epo]

In terms of pure value, the ribeye is the best cut of beef.

[aceofspades7]

flap meat from costco is the best cheapo for grilling. flat irons are good too.

[A.J.]

We want to eat STEAK.

http://download.lardlad.com/sounds/season5/scouts1.mp3

[deliciousV]

Coat it in sea-salt and butter and any cut of red meat is delicious, tendernous will be the only issue.

[Chigworthy]

Papayin

[PapaBear]

Top/Bottom Round (London Broil) Usually at least one market has it on sale every week

Before anyone says anything I know London Broil is not the actual name but some stores label it that way
I see many good deals on London Broil, but I've yet to be able to cook it in a way that doesn't have it come out being too tough.

[sailor]

I see many good deals on London Broil, but I've yet to be able to cook it in a way that doesn't have it come out being too tough.


marinate
broil (obviously)
cut across grain

[Alice S. Fuzzybutt]

Ironically, he was actually okay with Boca Burgers! GO FIGURE!!

I've noticed that skirt and flank steak is becoming more popular-- even in some "upscale" restaurants. May we'll enjoy some skirt steak when I get my next unemployment check. WHOO HOO!!! Gumnt steak!

[realmenhatelife]

I wish flank steak was cheap, it seems to be the one thing that never goes on sale at my supermarket and is always priced like $10/lb, which is more expensive than strips and rib eyes.

I find there is no reliably cheap cut, but there is always something on sale. You have to be opportunistic. I think even London Broil, which is cheap compared to the other hunks of meat, is overpriced when I know 1 week a month its going to cost half as much as it does every other day.

Top Round cut as chip steak is good if your market carries it. Per pound it isn't cheap, but you're buying it in such low weights and stretching it with veggies and bread that it turns out cost effective.

If you're dealing with a tought cut, like London broil, cutting thin is the other thing to really help the tenderness.

[aceofspades7]

we grilled up a 2 lb flap steak from whole foods last night - I think it was 8.99/lb and it was fantastic - kind of a cross between flank and skirt. they are much cheaper (but cut up into strips) at costco.

[Gutter]

I wish flank steak was cheap, it seems to be the one thing that never goes on sale at my supermarket and is always priced like $10/lb, which is more expensive than strips and rib eyes.




i'm surprised by that....i thought that flank, or skirt steak was generally pretty inexpensive.

[Ogre]

i'm surprised by that....i thought that flank, or skirt steak was generally pretty inexpensive.

It used to be until the Butchers and Grocery stores realized there was a big big market for it. It has blown up over the last 15 yrs or so. The meat factories sell a ton of it thru the Hispanic food/culture boom of the last couple of decades. Remember when TGIMcBennigans everywheres big hook was fajitas? It went from a buck or two a pound to sirloin prices for one reason only. demand.


Obama should nationalize the meat markets !!!

You cant get affordable skirt steak and its beacuse of those rich fat cat mega meat tycoons !!

Your family is being starved by the meat man !!!

It is everyone's right to free meat at no profit !!!!!

WHADDA WE WANT ?

FREE MEAT !!!!

WHEN DO WE WANT IT ??

NOW !!!!


sorry wrong forum, but I digress.

[Gutter]

It used to be until the Butchers and Grocery stores realized there was a big big market for it. It has blown up over the last 15 yrs or so. The meat factories sell a ton of it thru the Hispanic food/culture boom of the last couple of decades. Remember when TGIMcBennigans everywheres big hook was fajitas? It went from a buck or two a pound to sirloin prices for one reason only. demand.


Obama should nationalize the meat markets !!!

You cant get affordable skirt steak and its beacuse of those rich fat cat mega meat tycoons !!

Your family is being starved by the meat man !!!

It is everyone's right to free meat at no profit !!!!!

WHADDA WE WANT ?

FREE MEAT !!!!

WHEN DO WE WANT IT ??

NOW !!!!


sorry wrong forum, but I digress.

interesting.......perhaps the skirt steak is still cheap? i know essentially they're the same cuts, but maybe you can save a few bucks with the skirt as opposed to the flank.

[underdog]

interesting.......perhaps the skirt steak is still cheap? i know essentially they're the same cuts, but maybe you can save a few bucks with the skirt as opposed to the flank.

skirt steak, in my experience, is usually about a $1/lb more expensive than flank.

[Gutter]

damn...i guess its been longer than i thought since i purchased some steak for myself. i gotta get some milk after work, so i'll have a butchers at the butchers prices.

anyone ever had Tri-Tip steak? my moms cousin introduced us to it and its friggin delicious. a simple seasoning of salt and pepper and its unreal. i think its also a bit on the spensive side, but its a big cut of beef you can really spread out and its real tasty.