Beef Cuts Help


 
RDOwens

RDOwens

TVWBB Super Fan
I've read many folks smoking chuck roasts. I haven't done so and thought I might give that a whirl this weekend.

Also, I've have noticed some people grinding their own beef for burgers. I pulled out my grinder for my Kitchen Aid (hadn't been used in 15 years) and found a piece missing. KA was real good to send me the piece free of charge. I had hopes of grinding this weekend too so we could have fresh hamburgers.

When I got to BJ's (wholesale club) I found the following cuts.

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What are these cuts good for? I have checked out the charts of where they come from. I am confused.

Will you help me identify how one would cook these and which would be good for pulled beef and hamburgers?

I truly appreciate the help. If this is in the wrong section, please feel free to move it. I wasn't sure where this fit.
 
The top and the bottom pics are chuck and are best for burgers and pulled beef. The middle two are from the round, the rump and rear leg. Both can be used for roast beef. The Inside can be used for something like London Broil. They can be ground for burger but will be leaner.
 
Hi RD,

I believe the bottom photo is Top-Sirloin-Butt. I would roast (smoke) and slice. If you like relatively lean burger you could grind it--ground sirloin.

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<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by D. L. Whitehead:
I believe the bottom photo is Top-Sirloin-Butt. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>Just out of curiosity, why do you think this is sirloin? This has been my problem with the purchases as the labeling does not coincide with what I find on the charts.

I took the butt to indicate the shoulder much like a pork butt.

It's like learning a foreign language with these things and I wasn't particularly good with French, Spanish, or Latin.
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<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by RDOwens:
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by D. L. Whitehead:
I believe the bottom photo is Top-Sirloin-Butt. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>Just out of curiosity, why do you think this is sirloin? This has been my problem with the purchases as the labeling does not coincide with what I find on the charts.

I took the butt to indicate the shoulder much like a pork butt.

It's like learning a foreign language with these things and I wasn't particularly good with French, Spanish, or Latin.
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</div></BLOCKQUOTE>

The price is $0.30/lb. more than the chuck. That piqued my interest. Also, in my youth, I worked in a couple restaurants that purchased top-butts (sirloin). We cut steaks from them. I, personally, am not aware of any beef cut commonly called top butt that comes from any other portion of the beef besides the sirloin--others may have different knowledge.

See: Beef Top Sirloin Butt, IMPS/NAMP 184.

By-the-way, I find that entire site, Beef for Foodservice Professionals, to be a good reference resource.

Also, if one is really serious about their knowledge of meat cuts, the NAMP (The North American Meat Processors Association's) "The Meat Buyer’s Guide: Beef, Lamb, Veal, Pork, and Poultry" is also a good reference.

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Good call, D.L. The .30 differential did not strike me as odd as the cut I had in mind is more trimmed. However, the beef 'butt' I see that is chuck is labeled so at the retail level (as an alternate to 'chuck roll' occasionally, more often to replace 'shoulder clod', though it's trimmed smaller), The labels shown are clearly packinghouse labels, not retail. Boneless Top Butt is top sirloin, minor trimming, if any.
 
It can get confusing. Just Google "retail beef cuts" and it will have some nice charts that shows placement and names. It might take some of the confusion out of it. The bnls chuck roll would be the boston butt's bnls beef counter part. Anything that comes from the front quarter (chuck, shoulder, etc) is very flavorful but on the tough side and requires slow cooking, braising, stewing, etc. Its some of the most flavorful, but tough. The hind quarter (round) which includes bottoms, eyes, tops, is also a bit tough and is usually used as an oven roast. It is a muscle, very lean, no fat or marbling. The round is usually used for roast beef (steamship round). Any steaks cut from the round are usually tough and need to be tenderized or marinated or cut thin. London broils come from the top round and to enjoy it it needs to be cut thin across the grain. Any other way would be hard to chew.
Any thing from the middle (middle meats - rib & loin) ribs, strips, p-house, t-bones, topp butt (sirloin) will be more tender as it is the farthest from the legs (front quarter & hind quarter). A top sirloin steak comes from the "top butt". The front leg and shoulder is a motor muscle such as the round (its rear end). The steer uses these muscles to walk, so they are firm (tougher) than the middle meats where they just "hang" there off its back bone. That area gets no excercise so it will be tender. Anything closest to the legs will be tougher and require slow cooking to break down the muscle fibers. Again stewing, braising, oven roast, pot roast, etc.
There are many names for different retail cuts (primals and sub primals) and alot depends on what part of the country you live. Up north strips steaks are sometimes referred to as shell steaks. There is some good info on the internet regarding names of cuts, diagrams showing placement, and descriptions and cooking methods.
Pork is similiar as is lamb and veal. They are all "made" the same just different sizes and a few different names for the cuts. Pork, the butt and picnic comes from the front quarter and the ham is the rear quarter. The loin which contains loin pork chops and rib pork chops is actually porterhouse and t-bone steaks on beef and rib and loin chops on lamb and veal. A bnls center cut pork chop is a bnls NY Strip steak on beef.

Don't mean to ramble, but once you look at the side view of beef, pork, lamb and veal, you will see they are all the same (except size). Its just learning the different names! Anything closest to the legs is tougher (muscle), farther from the legs more tender. This will help determine the cooking methods too.

Hope this helps!
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Anything that comes from the front quarter (chuck, shoulder, etc) is very flavorful but on the tough side and requires slow cooking, braising, stewing, etc. Its some of the most flavorful, but tough. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Mostly but not all. The chuck top blade, a favorite, (trimmed correctly, known as 'flat iron steaks') and the chuck eye, especially the former, can be cooked as for any tender steak. But, yes, the most of the chuck is tough.

'London Broil' is a term denoting a cooking procedure (the marinating then broiling or grilling of a tough cut, formerly most often flank, more recently top round). It is not the name of a cut itself. Consumer confusion created the problem and packers responded via their labeling. Usually one sees 'Top round - for London Broil' or 'London Broil - top round', or the like, but I have seen just 'London Broil' on top round packages. This is a mistake made at the retail level.
 
Correct Kevin. London Broil was the cooking method used for a thick cut top round steak used in London I believe in the 1800's. Just like the term Delmonico is sometimes used for ribeyes. Delmonico's was a steak house in New York city that popularized this cut I believe in the early 1900's.
I tried to keep it simple but as you stated the chuck eye (first part of the rib) is a great steak on the grill and I remember the days we used to sell them for $1.99lb as no one wanted them. Great secret. I worked with a few hispanic meat cutters who swore the top blade was the most flavorful and tender cut of all. Years ago they would seam out the top blade and grill the pieces, now known as the Flat Iron which restaurants get $12.99 for a 4oz piece!! They would buy evey top blade we processed, cheap.
Who would have thought?
I believe the beef industry has or had a set of "specific" names for retail cuts that were used in most retail mkts but over the years the names have changes a bit or a fancy name means more $$.
Do you know of such a list? I think it was ERMS? or something along those lines. This was supposed to be the industry standard names to avoid confusion at retail level.I can't remember the name!!
Just like Fillet Mignon, Tenderloin Steak or the once popular Cheautu Briand (spelling?) The briand is the center 2-3 cuts of the tenderloin but too was named after the recipe. We used to sell "Bnls California Roast" aka a plain old bnls chuck roast. Fancy name just a pot roast!
 
RD,
Buy all of them. You'll have 75 pounds of burger meat and you'll be able to put the grinder away for a while.
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While you're at it, throw some brisket meat in there too.
 
Yeah, I used to buy top blade in the 80s and cut them to grill at the restaurant where I exec cheffed. Dirt cheap, as was skirt, which I marinated and featured regularly.

London Broil is unheard of in London. No one really knows the origin, but it is distinctly an American invention.

I no longer know of a retail list. I recall one - but it was a couple decades ago!

Chateaubriand (the cut) was indeed named after the recipe.
 
I stand corrected on the London's. I got some bad info years ago! Never looked it up.
I remembered the guide put out by the beef industry "Uniform Retail Meat Identity Standard" (URMIS). This was put out years ago to standardize all names of retail cuts for consumers. Does not hold any water these days.
Yeah, skirts, top blades, chuck eyes, flanks, cap off the bone in ribs, tails off the whole beef loins, great cuts and no one wanted them.
Lot of work breaking down hanging beef though, too easy now!
 
As RD noted, identifying cuts of meat these days almost seems to require a new language--with specific dialects too!

When I go to some stores, I see cuts of meat with familiar names that don't remotely resemble what I associate with the names. There was an interesting article discussing cuts of meat in The New York Times about Same Cow, No Matter How You Slice It?

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I agree. I have been cutting meat/in the meat business for 21 years and have seen the names change numerous times on many different cuts. Fancy new names can mean more $$.
 
The timing of this post is perfect. I also like to get these big bags of beef at BJs and I'm so confused by the names. Up until now, I've only been buying the chuck roll, which at least was easy.

But, I've got a new slicer to try out and I'm thinking roast beef, the wife loves it, and so does the rest of the extended family.

So is the Bottom round the go to choice for nice thinly sliced roast beef, like what you can buy at the deli?

Thanks,
Todd
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Todd Randall:
The timing of this post is perfect. I also like to get these big bags of beef at BJs and I'm so confused by the names. Up until now, I've only been buying the chuck roll, which at least was easy.

But, I've got a new slicer to try out and I'm thinking roast beef, the wife loves it, and so does the rest of the extended family.

So is the Bottom round the go to choice for nice thinly sliced roast beef, like what you can buy at the deli?

Thanks,
Todd </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Todd, if you like thinly sliced roasted (smoked) beef, you can't go wrong with a top round roast. Bottom round is probably a little less flavorful and a bit more chewy. My personal favorite for sliced, stacked roast beef sandwiches is eye of the round. It might not be quite as flavorful as top round, but I still think it's delicious. I slice at about 3/32" thick and stack sandwiches high.

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Or the 'sirloin tip' roast. It is not from the sirloin, despite the name, more a marketing thing. It's from the round and is otherwise known as 'beef knuckle'.

You can see a nice one that Tony C just did, also under the Barbecue heading on this forum.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Gary N:
...Just like the term Delmonico is sometimes used for ribeyes. Delmonico's was a steak house in New York city that popularized this cut I believe in the early 1900's. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Delmonico's is still there, just a few blocks from my office.
 
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