Varieties and Storage Procedures for Steak
A steak is a slice of meat cut from the muscle fibers or from the rib cage of bovines, especially cattle like cows. The term ‘steak’ suggests a small slice from a larger piece and is usually associated with beef. But nowadays, fish, chicken and red meat is also been referred to as steak. The tendered steak is obtained from the rib and loin sections of the cattle. The steak is usually cooked by dry-heat methods and can also be consumed with other dishes. Steak is a major food ingredient in the Australian, American and European cuisine.
The steak variety
Due to the rising demand, steak is available in every supermarket or can be bought directly from the butcher. The premium steaks, such as T-Bone, strip (top loin), Porterhouse, rib, rib eye and tenderloin, are the top quality steak that can be bought from the market at a higher cost, while, tender steaks such as ranch (shoulder center), flat iron (shoulder top blade), top sirloin, round tip and chuck eye are also known to be good choices among the steak and can be preferred for family meals. The steaks that are tender-less are the flesh obtained from the parts like fore and hindquarters of the animal and mostly used for moist-heat cooking as they are not as tender as the premium steak. These cuts include eye round and bottom round; full-cut round, chuck shoulder, chuck arm, chuck 7-Bone and chuck blade; skirt and flank. Some of these tender-less cuts such as the top round steak can be cooked by the process of dry heat after they are tenderized in a marinade.
The cut
The uniqueness of steak lies in its cut. They are cut in a typical fashion i.e. perpendicularly to the fiber of the muscle. This cut increases the tenderness of the meat. The steaks follow different kinds of cooking which vary according to the place and the softness of the meat. The most common type of steak preparation seen in the US is the barbecued or the grilled version. A number of steak houses are found at different parts of the world.
Storage of steak
Steaks can be spoiled like any other food and thus need to be preserved. They can also cause food-borne illness if decayed. You should refrigerate the steak in the coldest part of your freezer and also freeze it as soon as you purchase it. One should not defrost steak in the normal room temperature. Steak can be defrosted in the refrigerator itself. You can also wrap the meat in order to prevent bacterial decay. The ground beef, beef for stew, beef for stir-fry and beef for kabobs are more perishable than the meat of whole muscle cuts (steaks and roasts). The grinding process of the steak accumulates more bacteria and cutting the steak into strips provides more surface area for the growth of bacteria. The steaks help in body- building and muscle development.
Nowadays, steak preservation is practiced on a large scale as frozen steak in the supermarkets and also the installation of freezers in the meat transportation vehicles.
Now that you know some details about preparing and storage of steaks you can make them yourself instead of going to a Steak House. FInd more interesting steak recipe ideas on this website: Hverdag med biff is the term in Norwegian. And if you are on a diet, please follow this link to see a great variety of low-carb meals recipes: Hva er lavkarbo is the term in Norwegian.
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