A complete guide to the 8 basic beef cuts: brisket, shank, rib, loin, round, chuck, flank, and short plate, with images. Find out how to cook each cut of beef to perfection.

 

WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT CUTS OF BEEF?

Many readers have inquired about various cuts of beef over the years. What type of beef should I use for a specific recipe? A tutorial produced by Bro BBQ on the eight primal beef cuts has been shared with me today.

This article will go over the many types of beef cuts and the best ways to prepare and cook them. Visit Bro BBQ for additional information about BBQ recipes and other related topics.

THE 8 PRIMAL CUTS OF BEEF

1. BRISKET

• The best cooking methods are braising, slow cooking, smoking, stewing, and pot roasting.
• Preparation: Brisket should be marinated or brined for at least four hours before cooking. The brisket is typically covered in a dry pepper rub made up of various spices and seasonings.
• The “bark” on the brisket results from this process, which gives the meat its dark, crispy surface.
• When barbecuing brisket, an indirect heat smoker is one of the most outstanding options for equipment. Indirect heat smokers are perfect for cooking brisket because they maintain low temperatures easily.

1. SHANK

• The meat is quite challenging since it has very little fat in it. Long-term cooking is required, either at low temperatures in crockpots or at higher temperatures in the oven, to bring out the flavor of the meat. This will tear down the beef’s structure.
• Using a meat tenderizer seasoning or mallet, you can help break down the flesh to prepare a shank.
• This tough cut of beef can benefit from a marinade, which can assist in both tenderizing and flavoring the flesh.
• Roasts and stews should be cooked in a conventional oven or crockpot, whereas beef should be cooked on a direct fire grill.

1. RIB

• Cooking a prime rib rapidly at high-temperature yields the best results for a crispy exterior and a rare inside.
• On a direct heat grill, ribeye steaks are the best. Charcoal is the most acceptable option for enhancing the flavor of the meat, although any sort of fuel can be used.
• Short ribs are excellent if they are first braised to break down the meat’s structure. Back ribs are best smoked in an offset smoker at low temperatures for an extended period after being rubbed with a dry or wet rub.
• Before cooking, a dry rub of spices and seasonings is applied to the prime rib. Ribeye steaks don’t require any special preparation.
• Before they can be cooked, a butcher must cut short ribs to a precise length. In the same way as any other rib, back ribs can be prepared. Click here for recipe ideas.
• Barbecue grills and smokers come in many varieties. A conventional oven or direct heat smoker can cook prime rib. Grilled ribeye steaks over high heat. The traditional oven and the direct heat grill are good options for short ribs. Back ribs – indirect heat smoker.

1. LOIN

• Grilled steaks such as porterhouses, T-bones, and clubs are excellent when cooked to a medium-rare or rare internal temperature.
• Before or after cooking, steaks are seasoned with salt and pepper.
• In general, medium-rare is the ideal cooking temperature for steaks such as filet mignon, Chateaubriand, and tri-tip. Grilled steaks such as New York strip and Sirloin are best-served medium-rare or rarer. Before or after cooking, steaks are seasoned with salt and pepper.
• Porterhouse, T-bone, and club steaks require only a light seasoning before cooking. Cuts like Filet Mignon, Chateaubriand, and Tri-Tip need a lot of time and attention to prepare.
• Before cooking a particularly thick steak, you may wish to butterfly it. Salt & pepper are all you need to season New York strip and Sirloin steaks.
• Porterhouse, T-bone, and club steaks can be cooked on an open flame barbecue or a direct fire grill. Filet mignon, Chateaubriand, and tri-tip — grilled over direct fire, in a conventional oven, or over an open flame. A natural heat grill or an open flame grill can cook New York strip and sirloin steaks.

1. ROUND

• When simmered in an oven with liquid, this dish is at its best. Jerky can also be made by slicing and drying the meat. Ground round is extraordinarily lean and needs additional fat, such as eggs, to keep it from drying out when cooking.
• Methods: If you want to make jerky, thinly slice the beef and season it with various spices to achieve the desired flavor.
• Make sure the meat is completely submerged or injected in liquid before braising.
• When barbecuing, use a conventional oven grill or smoker.

1. CHUCK

• Long, low-temperature braising is the most acceptable method for tenderizing the shoulder and neck of cattle.
• Dry or wet rub, marinade, and sometimes marinade is all that’s needed to get the most flavor out of beef ribs. After that, the meat was slowly smoked using indirect heat and a low temperature.
• Known as a “butcher steak” because it is the best cut of the beef, Blade or flat iron steaks have a substantial amount of fat marbling.
• Tenderized and pounded-out chuck steaks and chuck filets are commonly used in chicken fried steaks and roulades.
• Before braising or pressure cooking, the shoulder and neck need a hefty seasoning or rub.
• Before smoking or grilling, beef ribs can be cooked for an hour on the stove to help break down the meat’s structure and make it softer.
• There is no need to prepare Blade for combat. Grill it up. Tenderizing the chuck steak and chuck filet using a meat mallet is required before cooking.
• The shoulder and neck should be cooked in a conventional oven when barbecuing. Smoked and grilled beef ribs are both excellent options. Traditional oven, pan, and direct heat grill work well for chuck steak and chuck filet.

1. FLANK

• Typically, Flank steak is marinated for a considerable time or overnight before being coated in a dry rub. After that, it’s grilled to a medium-rare temperature and sliced into bite-sized pieces.
• Tenderize this piece of beef before cooking with a meat mallet or meat tenderizer spices.
• Marinating a flank steak in a strongly acidic sauce is also popular. The juice of citrus fruits like limes and lemons is added to acidic marinades to help tenderize meat even further.
• When barbecuing, use a direct-fire grill or an open flame barbecue.

1. SHORT PLATE

• When adequately prepared, hangar steaks, one of the most sought-after cuts of beef, become incredibly soft. Skirt steak can be grilled over direct heat. It is generally marinated for a long time before being covered in a dry or wet rub.
• The flavor of Hangar Steaks can be significantly enhanced by adding a little salt and pepper.
• Before cooking, you should marinate skirt steak for at least 12 hours in a solid acidic marinade. The acidic marinade will loosen up the beef sections with all the fibers in this cut.
• Grilled hangar steaks: Grills that use direct heat, such as a charcoal barbecue or a gas grill. Skirt steak can be cooked in a natural heat grill or open-flame grill.

What kind of meat should you buy? In reality, there isn’t a single cut better than another.

“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder,” as the saying goes. However, one person may love a medium-rare steak, while another prefers a well-done roast.

Click here for a chart showing the correct temperatures for various cuts of beef and how they should be cooked.

It’s also not necessary for you to deal with any raw meat cuts at all. Sub-primal beef cuts are always made by the retail butcher from primal beef cuts.