Chomping On Steak

[David M]

Originally Posted by SARGE Comes packed in dry ice. Sooner you can pick up and freeze, the better.

Wouldn't fresh steak taste better than frozen? I know fresh fish, chicken etc tastes better than frozen. I don't think I have ever had previously frozen beef.

[fleeingpepper]

Mine came in on a Monday with the dry ice melted because it sat around on the weekend when UPS was closed. Even though the ice was melted when it came in the food and stuff in there was still cold. And I'm not sure if UPS delivers to dorms, or if you were talking about the post office (USPS).

[Stuey]

I pick up all of my packages at a US post office within walking distance. Knowing that it can stay fresh over a weekend makes me feel so warm and grumbly inside!

[Stuey]

I went to the local Pathmark for the first time tonight. They had ok looking beef but not the cut I was looking for today.

However, I saw "Aussie free range beef" so I picked up a two steak packet. Might be tasty.

Last week I cooked beef for myself for the first time in a few months. Top round. Ick. It was a thick piece which is only goof for london broil type strip cutting, not as a steak. I went a few days later and got a slightly thin rib steak - the difference was phenomenal.

[hitchface]

Originally Posted by David M Wouldn't fresh steak taste better than frozen? I know fresh fish, chicken etc tastes better than frozen. I don't think I have ever had previously frozen beef.

Fresh usually does taste better. When it is cooked from frozen, all of the juices/blood/whatever basically evaporate very quickly, and you end up having to cook it longer in order to unfreeze it. Even if it thaws, you end up losing a lot of the juices to simple condensation and whatever drizzles out is usually diluted with water. This is especially true with chicken.

It is usually better to let that meat thaw in open air in its own drip pan, so that it can soak up whatever is there, and then pan sear it so that it forms a shell on the outside that more or less locks in moisture. I usually do that with fresh meats too, especially on steak. If you have steak seasoning, rub it right in before you sear it, and you will have this awesome spice layer on the outside with the most juicy inside.

Well folks, thats all we have time for today, but when you are cooking in your kitchen, remember to kick it up a notch. Bam!

[Kasturi]

Whenever I cook my steaks, whether on a grill, oven or in a skillet I always pour a little Ameretto (sp) over them. It gives them a nice almond flavor after all of the alcohol cooks off.

[Litespeed]

Sarge, went to Nick & Sams on McKinney last night. Dinner was pricey but one of the best steaks I have ever eaten; and this coming from a West Texas boy that has had his share of good meat. I go the 22 oz. bone-in rib eye cooked rare and the wife got the bone in filet cooked medium-rare. Absolutely wonderful. Service was amazing. Any one ever visiting Dallas I would highly recommend Nick & Sams Steak House

[glc]

How pricey was it, Lite?

[Litespeed]

Originally Posted by glc How pricey was it, Lite?

We had: Shrimp appetizer, she had a salad; we had two steaks, two sides, two cocktails, 1 bottle of wine and split a dessert. Including tip was about $193. We did get a pretty nice bottle of wine. But all that and great service. It was for a nice occasion and I would do it again.......hopefully after I work off a few pounds. Every now and then wife and I like to go out and have a little get away at a nice place.

I really thought all in all we got what we paid for, especially living here in Dallas where you can go crazy trying to choose a place to go eat. Dallas the home of too many restaurants, especially steak houses and Mexican food places.

[hitchface]

Wow. I know this Japanese steak house in Vancouver. You are looking at about 50 dollars per meal without drinks, tips or dessert. That was about the most expensive place I've ever known...but that one tops it.

[glc]

50 bucks a head is the going price in mainstream decent downtown Chicago restaurants such as Lawry's and Nick's Fishmarket.

If you like prime rib, you should go there, Lite.

http://www.lawrysonline.com/theprime...s_gen_info.asp

[hitchface]

Man, you guys have some expensive eatin'! You can get some really good Brazilian BBQ around Vancouver for less than 25. And thats Canadian, too!

[Litespeed]

Originally Posted by glc 50 bucks a head is the going price in mainstream decent downtown Chicago restaurants such as Lawry's and Nick's Fishmarket. If you like prime rib, you should go there, Lite. http://www.lawrysonline.com/theprime...s_gen_info.asp

I think that Lawrys is just up the road. And I love a nice cut of Prime Rib with hot Au Ju. Well I am hungry again.

[jfk]

Cool. Meateaters. Gotta love it.

I enjoy T-bones and Porterhouse, when I can afford a treat. There IS a difference due to where they come from. Sorry Hal, but roasts come from the round or shoulder....there is a HUGE difference in tenderness due to that. You can marinade them to your heart's content, but they can never match the tenderness of loin cuts due to the differences in the muscle fibers inherent in tissue from those regions.....they tend to be short muscle fibers which tend to be tougher due to the nature of what they do in the animal. The tenderness of other cuts of steaks comes from their position on the Loin, which is where steaks come from. Sorry for the basics, my BS is in Animal Science from MSU, so a couple meats classes, as well as meat judging is in my background, not to mention a couple years working at a butcher shop. I probably need to get a life.............

[Stuey]

I will DEFINITELY look for this Aussie Beef again. It was pretty affordable ($5 or $6 a lb for rib eye) and proved to be delicious.

I checked out the site and they have some pretty good beef cooking tips for newbies and intermediates. I've been flipping my beef at random; I never knew to gauge the flip time by watching for the fluid to rise to the top.

http://www.australian-beef.com/beef/...g/cooking.html

Does anybody know how to get a uniform color throughout the beef? A few years ago I went to Outback and the steak was pink throughout the 3/4" or so inch depth of it. How? I always end up with a gradient. Red/pink center and the edges are seared with some slightly well done portions. Since the oven in this apartment stinks, I've been using a stove-top grill pan.

[SARGE]

Originally Posted by Stuey Does anybody know how to get a uniform color throughout the beef? A few years ago I went to Outback and the steak was pink throughout the 3/4" or so inch depth of it. How? I always end up with a gradient. Red/pink center and the edges are seared with some slightly well done portions. Since the oven in this apartment stinks, I've been using a stove-top grill pan.

If you want it even throughout, cook it accordingly. It's an art that comes easy to many, not so easy to the rest. Here are ways the interior should look:

http://www.alazing.com/servlet/OnlineShopping?DSP=393

[glc]

Hitch, we are talking the whole dinner including tax and tip, not just the entree. We are also talking classy restaurants with white tablecloths.

[HAL9000]

Originally Posted by jfk Cool. Meateaters. Gotta love it. I enjoy T-bones and Porterhouse, when I can afford a treat. There IS a difference due to where they come from. Sorry Hal, but roasts come from the round or shoulder....there is a HUGE difference in tenderness due to that. You can marinade them to your heart's content, but they can never match the tenderness of loin cuts due to the differences in the muscle fibers inherent in tissue from those regions.....they tend to be short muscle fibers which tend to be tougher due to the nature of what they do in the animal. The tenderness of other cuts of steaks comes from their position on the Loin, which is where steaks come from. Sorry for the basics, my BS is in Animal Science from MSU, so a couple meats classes, as well as meat judging is in my background, not to mention a couple years working at a butcher shop. I probably need to get a life.............

I like em rare... borderline blue rare... and really, I don't notice much of a difference... on a steak that is more well done, then ya, I notice a difference in cut.

[jgis19]

Originally Posted by Litespeed Sarge, went to Nick & Sams on McKinney last night. Dinner was pricey but one of the best steaks I have ever eaten; and this coming from a West Texas boy that has had his share of good meat. I go the 22 oz. bone-in rib eye cooked rare and the wife got the bone in filet cooked medium-rare. Absolutely wonderful. Service was amazing. Any one ever visiting Dallas I would highly recommend Nick & Sams Steak House

In the Metroplex I don't think you can beat Dels or Silverfox.

[clroberts]

How many people have lived on a farm and eaten a Cow that has been freshly butchered? I am just wondering if that is the ultimate in great tasting meat. I did eat chicken one time at a campout in scouts that was from a chicken that was killed on the spot. I even watched as they held out its neck and hit it with an axe. (And then let it run around headless until it finally stopped moving!) That chicken was pretty good if you ask me.

[hitchface]

Originally Posted by glc Hitch, we are talking the whole dinner including tax and tip, not just the entree. We are also talking classy restaurants with white tablecloths.

I'm talking about the same thing. That Japanese place will put you at about 75-80 with everything, but its a very very nice place. No tablecloths here, instead there are pro chefs (they have to cook in front of you, so they had better be pro) and some fancy-pants hardwood tables and dishes. Pretty nice.

[jfk]

Originally Posted by clroberts How many people have lived on a farm and eaten a Cow that has been freshly butchered? I am just wondering if that is the ultimate in great tasting meat. I did eat chicken one time at a campout in scouts that was from a chicken that was killed on the spot. I even watched as they held out its neck and hit it with an axe. (And then let it run around headless until it finally stopped moving!) That chicken was pretty good if you ask me.

Freshly butchered is NEVER as good as aged meat. We had a ham in the cooler where I worked at one time. That ham aged for almost a year....had green mold on it.....really NASTY green mold.....it was INCREDIBLE. Never is fresh slaughtered meat as good as aged meat. The aging process adds tenderness that can't be touched by fresh slaughter.......