"expensive" cuts that are worth it
There are some cheap cuts I like as much as the next hound, but every now and again, I like to splash out and try something I see on TV. And I have to say, for sheer luxury and deliciousness, some cuts are just stand out. In the past year these are cuts that I'll certainly buy again (money permitting):
Rack of lamb; Done simply, one rack of 6 is perfect for two people, but will cost about £10? Still, cheaper than going to a restaurant, and as long as you can cook, probably better! Might do this for valentines...
Fore-rib of beef; This bad boy cost £18 and comfortably served 3 with leftovers. I'd probably give it another go at some point on a special occasion, but steak is easier and I can't think of many occasions I'd want to spend this much on other people...
Sirloin: One of the most expensive, but somehow I got 24oz from the butcher for about £10 on valentines last year. An Overestimation on my part, as it lasted for 3 meals (for 2 people). But it has to be said Sirloin is up there as one of the best flavour/texture steaks alongside...
Ribeye: For me, this generally requires a different cooking technique to the thin sirloins I'm used to, and I'm not sure I've mastered rendering the fat out in a hot pan. However, I'm ALWAYS tempted by this in a restaurant, and never disappointed. Perhaps my favorite cut at the moment (and I always tell people that it's officially ranked as the best steak - they never question).
Leg of lamb: Perhaps slightly less than the two above, I've always cooked it classicly with rosamary and garlic (sometimes goats cheese too). I have to say, I prefer the fattier shoulder I slow cooked and should have been half the price, but this was reduced to a 3rd of it's original cost and was damn tasty in it's own right.
Tuna: Obv. we have to get responsibly sourced tuna steaks (I mean the fresh steaks, not canned) and this drives the cost up. But it's got such a great texture, whether it's just-seared or cooked through, and it lends itself to other delicate flavours. Particularly with salads.
I think that's pretty much my year. What about you hounds? if you find a spare $20 and an old foodie friend is coming around, what might you splash out on?
By Soop
on Feb 10, 2010 07:17 AM
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Dry aged prime NY strip for me.
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Ditto.
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Raw meat skeeves me out so I don't tend to buy it (and always feel bad when it gets served to me because I'm just not the right audience), but seafood ...
Love tuna. I think it's amazing when you can get a perfect steak, sear it light and then serve with a sesame miso dipping sauce. YUM!
Salmon: Again, seared lightly with white wine shallot sauce is so good and yet such an indulgence due to the price.
Duck: I love duck but it's always so expensive and time consuming.
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Duck is a good one, but I don't get why a whole duck is nearly the same price as 2 breasts?!
If they're ever on offer though...
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Because the boning is such a pain? I don't know, but that's my guess. If I want a boned duck, my fav shop asks that I call ahead a few days(!!!) so that he has time to thaw and then bone the duck (not to mention so that he can get the duck in stock, too). Ridiculous either way.
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Treated myself to a gorgeous bone in ribeye steak last night (about 24 oz) cut 2 in thick. It was about $15, but will serve for 2 meals and it was delicious! I always have the butcher cut my steaks thick and he does a great job selecting beautiful meat. Prepared very simply by broiling in pan with rack seasoned with s&p, fresh garlic, 4 min on ea side, let rest for 6 min. It was beautifully charred on outside and perfect rare on inside. Since it was just me, I picked up the rib bone and gnawed all the juicy bits off. Still have a big hunk left, which I will slice thinly, serve room temp, with mixture of mayo & dijon and thin slice of Jarlsberg on crusty French baguette tomorrow night. This was a treat.
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omfg, sounds good!!!
Just as a matter of interest, can you post up a rough photo of what you bought?
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For me, when it comes to beef, the grade is much more important than the cut. I’d take a prime flank steak over a choice prime rib or strip steak any day.
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Great point! But there is a range in each grade ~ A top-of-the-choice-grade would leave me happier than a bottom-of-the-prime-grade, know what I mean?
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If I have a foodie guest? You mean there are others? Wasn't that what the first 3rd of my life was for? To weed 'em out? '-)
Seriously, there are _so_ many _choices_! It boggles the mind!
_The tuna steaks are don't-miss, with a pot stickers type dipping sauce: Yum!
_A whole loin of pork, carted home and sliced into 14 1.5" cutlets, dusted with S&P & corn starch, then, simply pan-fried in olive oil: Greatness! And, next morning, who wants leftovers? Yum! '-)
We just did that this past week (Costco: $15) 6+8 cutlets / batch. Lovely! 3 for each of the 4 of us + 2 for the kitchen '-)
If it's beef, it's tri-tip ~ _so_ many options there! "-)
_Lamb ~ eh, p-a-s-s
_Goat: Give me the ribs & I'll make you the birria ~ But, with my guest it'd be more like, "Let's pitch in, go to Chino, select one for fresh kill, or, bring it home to do + make "blood pudding in/with the stomach & copious minced mint+jalapenos+garlic+onions, tied off in the washed stomach and roasted along side, then, a veritable vat of the consomme & an endless supply of double-ground masa for corn tortillas ~ Simple rustic fare to die for! "-)
_Mussels: A pot some of the white we're already drinking, some shallots, a crusty loaf, some ubber awesome fresh from my blender mayo with lemon zest & let the good times roll! :-D
_Oysters... if only they were "edible" here ~ We'd have to pile into a car & drive an hour to the coast, but _so_ "worth it" '-)
_Osso Bucco ~ Please.
_I _could_ do the standing crown rib roast - and even make the frilly "caps" for each end of a rib bone, but the days of "impressing folk" are past me ~ If you want me to _work_, _pay me_ '-)
_Dark-meat / black-skinned chicken ~ It's a Korean thing & I'd only spring for it for my Korean gal pal since '92 who keeps _begging_ me to raise these "pea hens", I think they're called...
_"Back Straps" off a fresh-kill deer ~ Quickly seared in a smoking hot skillet with the barest dusting of S&P + dried pimento with seeds ~ _b-l-i-s-s..._
_Rabbit - stewed, not fried - also to please my Korean pal, as I did in the 90s... twice.
And now, the muse has left me...I'm harkening back on that deer,,, and some similarly done scallops ~ B-l-i-s-s...
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Are you in the states? A lot of Americans don't seem to like lamb, and I don't know why - it's one of out most expensive meats (at least out of the regular 4).
Maybe to do with the way that it's reared?
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Soop, I live in central Ohio and adore lamb (and veal) too. Although it seems to be not so much in favor at the market and can be expensive. In the spring, summer and fall locally grown Ohio lamb is delicious and I have acquired a relationship with my butcher and farmer's market to get some. Australian and NZ lamb don't hold a candle to this stuff.
Used to cook for 4 people every night, but kids have gone to college and DH left home as well. Used to buy a half lamb from local farmer, have it cut into steaks, roasts and chops and lasted quite a while. Really miss doing that as it doesn't pay for one person.
Have many favorites in lamb - butterflied roast leg, rib or loin chops, lamb rack, braised lamb shanks or lamb shoulder.
The younger generation in the US seems devoid of knowledge of meat besides port and beef, not sure why.
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I love all those cuts you mentioned :)
I think a lot of it is down to what you're used to; I've heard many Americans really dislike "European" beef, and I'm pretty sure we worked out it was because U.S. beef is corn fed rather than grass fed.
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Because I buy my meat from the butcher rather than a super market, my beef is usually grass fed rather than corn fed. It is different, a little chewier, but has more "taste" IMHO. Costs more money too, but I like to know that someone is watching out for hormone free, well raised chicken and beef, rather than large commercial farming of animals.
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It took Americans awhile to appreciate lamb, true, but I think we've long since reached that point, at least in urban areas. I see it on contemporary menus more often than not. Granted, I live in Colorado, famed for its lamb, but it was true when I lived in Boston too.
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Scoop ~
Out here in Southern California, we have ready access to live lambs & goats - and more! :-)
But, most folk have the New Zealand frozen boxed lamb and I'd as soon not bother at all than ever sample it again.
I'll eat barbacoa de borrego with the best of them, but when it comes to preparation, I'm not game for digging a pit in my backyard for it ~ I travel to Monterey Bay for that (Castroville, actually - Artichoke Capitol of the World ) and we use a pit behind someone's house overlooking endless 'choke fields for that...
I just snagged #8 pencil thin asparagus at Fresh & Easy tonight + #2 organic sweet peas, and looked at gorgeous lamb chops, but passed on them ~ tonight...
Besides in barbacoa I don't recall any lamb being liked by me, ever... too "gamey" - a very strong and displeasing ( to me ) aroma/stench... But not at all in barbacoa... odd...
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Just got back from local butcher.
Grilled lamb Kabobs for dinner tonight!
Doing Philly Steak sans tomorrow with thin sliced ribeye and boars head provalone.
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What cut do you prefer for your kabobs/kebaps?
I love a great kebap in olive oil with plenty of Savory! :-)
YUM!
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