Where's the Beef?

[gogoblender 3,071]

Here it is!

 

 

Finally!

 

This time around, all set and ready... when the stuff went on sale, I was ready. At 6.59 a Kilo for the reddest, bloodiest thing available on the shopping shelf, no nothing except for the rarest of the rare, this delicious hunk was snatched off the shelves and run back home to a waiting oven at 325 degrees. Cut fresh potatoes and shoe-string onions were tossed in to add components for a second try at this dish. Browned in the pan before hand (Thank you Loco ) I was able to grill three sides of this beauty to sear in the juices before sticking it into the pyrex.

 

We began to keep an eye out for the meat at around the 30 minute mark, and, after about an hour, when the thermometer got jammed in to register a toasty 150 on the way to center, the pot was pulled out, let stand to set and now, this lunch, this beautiful Saturday, here in snowy Montreal, this rare roast beef, with a rich, fragrant onion gravy.

 

Seconds anyone?

 

 

 

 

gogo

[Genenut 8]

[gogoblender 3,071]

You know Dawn, we're not far from you and the James clan ^^

 

 

gogo

[Schot 407]

Yuuuuum yum! Can't wait to have some of that later on.

[gogoblender 3,071]

The only thing I kinda wish though...is that if there was some way to inject flavor directly into center of the meat chunk. Gravy is cool and all...but does marinating anything this big actually do anything to it? I did season quite a bit on top of the meat before I threw it into oven then covered it...but that flavor is a skin thing, the gravy a ... lol gravy thing..; do roasts just always taste like... roasts?

 

 

gogo

[locolagarto 15]

Well, it looks fantastic!

 

As for flavor on the inside, that has a lot to do with the quality of the cut. But it is not unheard of to make deep slices ( think Stab wounds) into the center and depositing garlic cloves, spices, etc. before and during cooking. I have even seen large cooking syringes with basting juices injected into the meat.

 

Love the pic. cooked just the way I like it.

[Furian67 15]

Ahh Man and all I have in the house are Eggs. Mouth watering goodiness you got Gogo.

[Delta! 987]

gogo that beef looks really delicious!

To impart more flavour, you can marinate it for a longer time (1-2days), in some oil/sauces/wine, herbs, garlic, just make sure it covers the whole piece!

or what Loco said also works well, or combining the 2. make slashes/hole in and insert the herbs in there and leave it in a marinating liquid.

Another solution is larding, but you need a larding needle.

 

"Larding is the process of inserting small strips of pork fat into meat with a larding needle. Larded meat is usually cooked by braising. During the cooking, the added fat contributes flavour and moisture. although once popular, larding is rarely used today because of advances in selective breeding produce consistently tender, well marbled meat."

 

"Braised foods benefit from the best qualities of both dry- and moist-heat cooking methods. foods to be braised are usually large pieces that are first browned in a small amount of fat at high temperatures. Vegetables and seasonings are added, and enough sauce or liquid(stock, marinating liquid if not to oily) is added to come one third to halfway up the item being cooked. The pot is covered and the heat is reduced. The food is then cooked at low heat, using a combination of simmering and steaming to transfer heat to the food. This can be done on the stove or in the oven. A long slow cooking period helps tenderize the main item. Braised foods are usually served with a sauce made from the cooking liquid.)"

[Dragon Brother 619]

+1 to loco's suggestion, slices to either insert your seasoning of choice into, or to simply let the marinade get into the core of the meat. Works a treat!

 

Nice roast

[locolagarto 15]

gogo that beef looks really delicious!

To impart more flavour, you can marinate it for a longer time (1-2days), in some oil/sauces/wine, herbs, garlic, just make sure it covers the whole piece!

or what Loco said also works well, or combining the 2. make slashes/hole in and insert the herbs in there and leave it in a marinating liquid.

Another solution is larding, but you need a larding needle.

 

"Larding is the process of inserting small strips of pork fat into meat with a larding needle. Larded meat is usually cooked by braising. During the cooking, the added fat contributes flavour and moisture. although once popular, larding is rarely used today because of advances in selective breeding produce consistently tender, well marbled meat."

 

"Braised foods benefit from the best qualities of both dry- and moist-heat cooking methods. foods to be braised are usually large pieces that are first browned in a small amount of fat at high temperatures. Vegetables and seasonings are added, and enough sauce or liquid(stock, marinating liquid if not to oily) is added to come one third to halfway up the item being cooked. The pot is covered and the heat is reduced. The food is then cooked at low heat, using a combination of simmering and steaming to transfer heat to the food. This can be done on the stove or in the oven. A long slow cooking period helps tenderize the main item. Braised foods are usually served with a sauce made from the cooking liquid.)"

Written like a true expert. Delta I bet you could give us a breakdown of the names for the different cuts of meat and what the best tasting ones are? I always tend to go for the rib roasts and tenderloin. But I am not sure what is the best for the money.

[claudius 104]

Gogo, awesome picture I want to learn to cook that! Theres a new orleans chef/store that sells these injectors with flavor that you can inject in meat. I saw it on food tv. Maybe try google meat injector food tv new orleans...

[wolfie2kX 528]

Gogo, awesome picture I want to learn to cook that! Theres a new orleans chef/store that sells these injectors with flavor that you can inject in meat. I saw it on food tv. Maybe try google meat injector food tv new orleans...

 

Eh.. I've seen those injectors in common supermarkets in recent years. NO need to spend big money on a TV ad or a restaurnt supply house that's going to charge more for it.

[gogoblender 3,071]

lol;... lard injectors...will this community never cease to amaze me with the support and useful info! Loco, was a lot of fun searing it this time. I was a bit more courageous this time and actually picked up the piece of beef and pressed it down hard against the pan to sear it in...and this time I didnt let any pink spots to unbrowned... makes me think of maybe getting some kinds of tons to hold the beef so my hands are further away from the heat? And you made me think about the quality of meat. This meat I had was SO lean. I was thinking that a roast would only want meat in the middle. If we're looking for a good roast... are we supposed to have marbling then?

 

Theuns, how do you know so much about food, without opening your own restaurant... I think you're going to have a lot of insta fans the day you do this. Lard lacing... another elaborate, old school method... I hope someone is chronicling all of this in great cooking books...and almost makes me want to pull out my mom's old Julia Child cook book just to see the old day style stuff in there.

 

lol and when I wrote about injecting food into the meat, LOL... I would never have had the idea that this would be a commercialized product sold with pre-flavored, flavor vial?

 

DB, Wolfie, Claudius, next time there's a BBQ yer all invited for saying how well that pic turned out. lol I'm actually surprised on all that great color grading, now makes me want to cook something else today.

 

 

gogo

[wolfie2kX 528]

lol;... lard injectors...will this community never cease to amaze me with the support and useful info! Loco, was a lot of fun searing it this time. I was a bit more courageous this time and actually picked up the piece of beef and pressed it down hard against the pan to sear it in...and this time I didnt let any pink spots to unbrowned... makes me think of maybe getting some kinds of tons to hold the beef so my hands are further away from the heat? And you made me think about the quality of meat. This meat I had was SO lean. I was thinking that a roast would only want meat in the middle. If we're looking for a good roast... are we supposed to have marbling then?

 

Theuns, how do you know so much about food, without opening your own restaurant... I think you're going to have a lot of insta fans the day you do this. Lard lacing... another elaborate, old school method... I hope someone is chronicling all of this in great cooking books...and almost makes me want to pull out my mom's old Julia Child cook book just to see the old day style stuff in there.

 

lol and when I wrote about injecting food into the meat, LOL... I would never have had the idea that this would be a commercialized product sold with pre-flavored, flavor vial?

 

DB, Wolfie, Claudius, next time there's a BBQ yer all invited for saying how well that pic turned out. lol I'm actually surprised on all that great color grading, now makes me want to cook something else today.

 

 

gogo

 

Injecting flavor/fat/stuff into meat was a fad from the mid 1980's. An old guy from Louisiana named Justin E. Wilson got himself a show on PBS here in the US. He got a lot of oddball techniques off the ground - like the injector thing, the deep fat turkey fryer and using pecan wood for BBQing. His catch phrase was "I Garrontee!"

 

Today, flavor injectors are still popular, monster deep fat fryers are still being sold - and a number of people have been known to set fire to their houses with them. The only way you can safely deep fat fry a turkey is to make sure it is thawed 100%. If it's frozen, it will make the ice crystals literally explode into steam that will carry the hot oil with it - and since we're dealing with an open flame - the spray can ignite causing a major inferno.

 

The link above - comes with a 30 quart stock pot, the propane stove kit, the injector kit and a fry/boil basket. The nice thing about this gizmo - it's a multitasker - you can also do a New England Crab boil to feed a medium sized army using the same rig.

[Delta! 987]

Written like a true expert. Delta I bet you could give us a breakdown of the names for the different cuts of meat and what the best tasting ones are? I always tend to go for the rib roasts and tenderloin. But I am not sure what is the best for the money.

 

Thank you. The breakdown is coming. (sounds almost like impending doom)

[gogoblender 3,071]

This would be awesome Delta, as you've probably surmised... we're carnivores!

 

 

gogo

[chattius 2,529]

Larding, I think we have several words for different ways to do it. The area I live did mainly woodland pasture and used cows as replacements for horses. So if a cow was slaughtered it was vey old and the meat had to made eatible: marinating, larding, ...

 

Different ways to do larding:

1. Speck einziehen,Lardieren: What Delta is showing. insert lard stripes parallel to muscle fibres
   
2. Spicken: insert small lard stripes vertical to muscle fibres, the beef will look like a hedgehog with all the lard in it before putting in on a grill. Destroys more muscles fibres than Lardieren.
   
3. Umwickeln,Bardieren: do bandages of bacon, green lard around the beef: advantage no beef fibres hurt. I do this with pikes I want to grill mainly, pikes have nearly no fat, see the thread about redoing recipes found in sacred2 books
   
4. Buntes einziehen, Bigarrieren: as larding, but also herb fibres are put in this way, makes it more colourful
   

 

Rollbraten

To bring flavour in mid of the beef: I use the selfmade and very sharp, thin and flexible filet knife of my daughter (knife thread) to cut the beef into a single long piece. Just move the knife a finger broad from surface till you reach the mid. Then you add all the herbs, lard and spices you want. And roll it together and tie a cord around it. Tieing the cord is a bit tricky.

 

Here is a video starting after the beef is cut and how it is spiced and tied:

 

 

I lack the english words to search for a english video.

[Delta! 987]

After the cattle(most often steers - male cattle castrated prior to maturity and principally raised for beef) is slaughtered, it is cut into four pieces also called quarters for easy handling. this is done by first splitting the carcass down the backbone into two bilateral halves. Each half is divided into the forequarter(front portion) and hindquarter(rear portion) by cutting along the natural curvature between the 12th and 13th ribs. The quartered carcass is then further reduced into the primal cuts and the subprimal and fabricated cuts.

 

A properly illustrated picture of the primal cuts.

 

another...

 

...and another! LOL

 

The primal cuts of beef are the Chuck, Brisket and Shank, Rib, Short Plate, Short loin, Sirloin, Flank, and Round. An entire carcass can range in weight from 225kg to 360kg (500pounds to 800pounds)

 

Forequart:

 

Chuck - The primal chuck is the animal's shoulder and it accounts for +- 28% of carcass weight. It contains a portion of the backbone, five rib bones and portions of the blade and arm bones. Because an animal constantly uses its shoulder muscles, chuck contains a high percentage of connective tissue and is quite tough, however, it is one of the most flavourfull!

The primal chuck is used less frequently than other primal cuts in food service operations. If cooked whole the chuck is difficult to cut or carve because of the large number of bones and relatively small muscle groups that travel in different directions. The Primal chuck produces several fabricated cuts - cross rib pot roast, chuck short rib, cubed or tenderized steaks, stew meat and ground chuck. Because the meat is less tender, the fabricated cuts usually benefit from moist heat cooking, or combination cooking methods such as stewing and braising. There are exceptions however. The beef industry is developing new products from underutilized cuts of meat. Flat iron comes from the top shoulder of the chuck and is one such cut gaining popularity as an alternative steak suitable for dry heat cooking.

 

Brisket and Shank - The brisket and shank are located beneath the primal chuck on the front half of the carcass. Together they form a single primal that accounts for +- 8% of carcass weight. This primal consists of the animal's breast(the brisket), which contains the ribs and breast bone, and the arm(the foreshank), which contains only the shank bone. The ribs and breast bone are always removed from the brisket before cooking. The boneless brisket is very tough and contains a substantial percentage of fat, both intermuscular, and subcutaneous(under the skin fat). It is well suited for moist-heat and combination cooking methods such as simmering or braising. It is often pickled or corned to produce corned beef brisket, or cured and peppered to make Pastrami. Beef foreshanks are very flavourfull and high in collagen. because collagen converts to Gelatin when cooked using moist heat, foreshanks are excellent for making soups and stocks. Ground shank meat is often used to help clarify and flavour consommés because of its rich flavour and high collagen content.

 

Rib - The primal beef rib accounts for approximately 10% of carcass weight. It consists of ribs 6 through to 12 as well as a portion of the backbone. This primal is best known for yielding roast prime rib of beef. Prime rib is not named after the quality grade, rather it's name reflects the fact that it constitutes the majority of the primal cut. The eye meat of the rib(the center muscle portion) is not a well exercised muscle and therefore is quite tender. It also contains large amounts of marbling, compared to the rest of the carcass and produces rich, full-flavoured roasts and steaks. Although roasting the eye muscle on the rib bones produces a moister roast, the eye meat can be removed to produce a boneless rib eye roast or cut into rib eye steaks. The rib bones that are seperated from the rib eye meat are quite meaty and flavourfull and can be served as barbecued beef ribs. The ends of the rib bones that are trimmed off the primal rib to produce the rib roast are known as beef short ribs. They are meaty and are often served as braised beef short ribs.

 

Short Plate - The short plate is located directly beneath the primal rib on the side of the carcass and account for +-9% of overall carcass weight. The short plate contains rib bones and cartilage and produces the short rib and skirt steak. Short ribs are meaty, yet high in connective tissue, and are best when braised. Skirt steaks are often marinated and grilled as fajitas. Other less meaty portions of the short plate are trimmed and ground.

 

Hindquarter

 

Short Loin - The short loin is the anterior(front) portion of the beef loin. It is located just behind the rib and becomes the first primal cut of the hindquarter when the side of the beef is divided into a fore-and-hindquarter. It accounts for +- 8% of carcass weight.

The short loin contains a single rib, the 13th, and a portion of the backbone. With carefull butchering, this small primal can yield several subprimal and fabricated cuts, all of which are among the most tender, popular and expensive cuts of beef.

The loin eye muscle, a continuation of the rib eye muscle, runs along the top of the T-shaped bones that form the backbone. Beneath the loin eye muscle on the other side of the backbone is the tenderloin, the most tender cut of all(also known as fillet). When the short loin is cut into cross sections with the bone in, starting from the rib end, it produces club steaks(which do not contain any tenderloin), T-bone steaks(containing only a small portion of tenderloin), and porterhouse steaks(containing a large portion of tenderloin).

The whole tenderloin can also be removed and cut into Chateaubriand, Fillet mignon and tournedos. A portion of the tenderloin is located in the sirloin portion of the loin. If the tenderloin is to be kept whole, it must be cut out before the short loin and the sirloin are separated. The whole tenderloin is boneless and very tender and can be cut into boneless strip steaks. (my father's honest oppinion is that it might be tender, but lacks flavour)

 

Sirloin - The sirloin is located between the short loin and the round. It accounts for +- 7% of carcass weight and contains part of the backbone as well as a portion of the hip bone. The sirloin produces bone-in or boneless roasts and steaks that are flavourfull and tender. With the exception of the piece of tenderloin found in the sirloin, the subprimal and fabricated cuts from the sirloin are not as tender as those from short loin. Cuts from the sirloin are cooked using dry-heat methods such as broiling, grilling or roasting.

 

Flank - The flank is located directly beneath the loin and behind the short plate. It accounts for +-6% of carcass weight. the flank contains no bones. Although quite flavourfull, it is a less tender cut with a good deal of fat and connective tissue. Flank meat is usually trimmed and ground, with the exception of the flank steak and London broil. the flank also contains a small piece of meat known as the hanging tenderloin. Although not actually part of the tenderloin, it is a very tender piece and can be cooked using any method.

 

Round - The primal round is very large, weighing as much as 90kg(200pounds) and accounts for +-24% of overall carcass mass. It is the hind leg of the animal and contains the round, aitch, shank and tail bones. Meat from the round is flavourfull and fairly tender. The round yields a wide variety of subprimal and fabricated cuts. The top round, outside round, eye round (the eye and outside round together are known as the bottom round), knuckle and shank. Steaks cut from the round are less tender, but because they have large muscles and limited intermuscular fat, the top round is best when braised. the hindshank is prepared in the same fashion as the foreshank.

 

Organ Meats - Although not a cut of meat, it can't be left out (imho).

Several organ meats are used in food service operations. this group of products known as offal includes the heart, kidneys, tongue, tripe(stomach lining), oxtail and head. Offal benefits mostly from moist cooking methods and are often used in soups, stews, or braised dishes

[Delta! 987]

 

[*]Umwickeln,Bardieren: do bandages of bacon, green lard around the beef: advantage no beef fibres hurt. I do this with pikes I want to grill mainly, pikes have nearly no fat, see the thread about redoing recipes found in sacred2 books

 

 

 

Here is a description of barding.

 

Barding is the process of covering the surface of meat and poultry with with thin slices of pork fatback and tying them in place with butchers twine. Barded meat or poultry is usually roasted. As the item cooks the fatback continually bastes it, adding moisture and flavour. a drawback of barding is that the fatback prevents the meat or poultry from developing the crusty exterior associated with roasting.

Today barding with fatback is also used less because of better breeding programs and advances in husbandry, but wrapping the meat or poultry in bacon/parma ham/coppa/cured meats allows flavour to be added.

[chattius 2,529]

Barding:

Yes, thats why I said mainly for grilling pikes: no crusty surface wanted at fish.

 

High quality meat:

Sometimes you have to take what you get, then it is allways good to know the old tricks Mainly the case for wild game (I have hunting license) when selling the good stuff and experimenting with the unsold meat.

 

Crusty exterior:

If you have access to it: Take a piece of pork which still has the skin/crust with all the fat below to make a Schweinekrustenbraten(crispy roasted pork). Cut some crossing lines into the crust without hurting the meat below. Add salt and pepper. Do a quick roasting from all sides. Put onions, carrots, malt beer (sugar makes the crust even more crusty), small potatoes in a pan. Lay the pork with the crust up on the onions and into the oven. (Krustenbraten is also good for grilling (then with Sauerkraut).

 

 

[cider_steve 26]

Hey there Gogo, fine looking bit o' dinner that mate.

 

Over here we always have horseradish sause with our roast beef. Gives it a nice bit of tang.

 

Chuck in a few roasted parsnips, and I'll be on my way, lol !

 

Steve.

[Dragon Brother 619]

Hey there Gogo, fine looking bit o' dinner that mate.

 

Over here we always have horseradish sause with our roast beef. Gives it a nice bit of tang.

 

Chuck in a few roasted parsnips, and I'll be on my way, lol !

 

Steve.

 

Yes, horseradish is good on roast beef, very nice.

[cider_steve 26]

Hey there Gogo, fine looking bit o' dinner that mate.

 

Over here we always have horseradish sause with our roast beef. Gives it a nice bit of tang.

 

Chuck in a few roasted parsnips, and I'll be on my way, lol !

 

Steve.

 

Yes, horseradish is good on roast beef, very nice.

 

Comes in different grades too, from creamy to hot. The hot one has a real kick to it, gave me hickups last time, lol !

[FrostElfGuard 9]

Besides searing the meat to seal in the flavours... if you sprinkle it with salt and sugar before searing... you will get a carmalized seal which will produce a moisture barrier (keeping moisture in), and prevent burning the meat.

 

I saw this on a cooking show... where the cook was searing the meat... then eating it 'blue'. (That is: primarily uncooked). I suggest thorough cooking though!

[Delta! 987]

Besides searing the meat to seal in the flavours... if you sprinkle it with salt and sugar before searing... you will get a carmalized seal which will produce a moisture barrier (keeping moisture in), and prevent burning the meat.

 

I saw this on a cooking show... where the cook was searing the meat... then eating it 'blue'. (That is: primarily uncooked). I suggest thorough cooking though!

 

Beef and lamb/mutton can be eaten blue/rare, with better health regulations, abatoirs check that there's nothing wrong with the meat, and samples get tested frequently. They also buy the cattle from reputable farmer that have licenses and are approved to have "clean" animals

 

Chicken(poultry) and pork should be cooked through! pork can contain worms that must be killed with high enough temperatures. Chicken and salmonella, well need I say more.

 

Fish. Generally Oily fish, like salmon and tuna can be served rare - well done, although it dries out. White fish and shellfish should be just cooked through to prevent it from becoming dry.

 

Delta!

Edited February 28, 2011 by Delta!