Beef buying guide
Prime versus choice:
The USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) grades beef according to tenderness, texture, and “marbling” (the distribution of intramuscular fat). (Remember this equation: Fat = Flavor.) There are eight USDA grades, but only two—“Prime” and “Choice”—turn up at your local market.
“Prime” designates beef of the highest quality with the best marbling. The USDA uses a complicated inspection system that evaluates the marbling in the rib-eye muscle, but factors in the age of the animal. (As with much in life, younger is considered better).
Only 2 percent of all American beef is graded “Prime,” and most of that goes to restaurants and specialty meat markets—or to high-end Internet purveyors like Allen Brothers or Lobel’s.
Do you need to buy “Prime?” No, but when it comes to steak, you’ll definitely taste the difference. Splurge if you can for a special occasion.
“Choice” is the grade generally sold at supermarkets, and because meat classification guidelines are fairly subjective, it can be adequate, good, or very good. “Choice” beef is fine for braised or other slow-cooked meats (it would be a waste to use “Prime” in these dishes). I’ve also had many tasty “Choice” steaks over the years, too.
Organic versus conventional beef:
If you believe that you are what you eat (the nineteenth century French food philosopher, Brillat-Savarin, did), you’ll probably join me in eating organic beef and other meats whenever possible. Not that organic automatically means more flavor (it generally does) or more tenderness (often it doesn’t).
But organic meats come free of the growth hormones, antibiotics, pesticide residues in the feed, or other chemicals associated with feedlot livestock. Organic cattle are generally raised more humanely than stockyard animals, and this enhances your eating experience. (I believe it also enhances the taste.) If you haven’t already done so, rent the movie Food, Inc. You’ll see why I prefer organic.
Grass-fed versus corn-fed:
In their natural state, cows evolved to eat grass, not corn or other grains. But grass-fed beef is leaner than grain-fed, resulting in drier, tougher meat that lacks the rich mouth-feel of the latter. So most Americans came to appreciate the flavor of grain-fed beef.
On the downside, grain-fed cows are treated with antibiotics and other chemicals to help them digest what essentially is an unnatural diet. One compromise used by many progressive cattle ranchers is to raise the steer on a grass diet for most of its life, then finish it on a grain diet six months prior to processing. Note: Many cultures in South America prefer the texture and aromatic flavor of grass-fed beef. Try it and decide for yourself.
Dry-aged versus wet-aged:
Unlike vegetables and shellfish, which taste best the moment they’re harvested, beef needs to be aged to develop its tenderness and flavor. This can be done one of two ways: by dry-aging or wet.
- Dry-Aging. The meat is hung or racked in a walk-in refrigerator at a controlled temperature, humidity level, and air circulation. Over the two to four weeks of dry-aging, enzymes in the meat tenderize it and deepen the flavor. Some of the water in the meat evaporates, further concentrating the taste.
But because the meat ages unwrapped, the exterior dries out and must be trimmed off and discarded, so as much as 35 percent goes to waste. Time and shrinkage cost money, so dry-aged beef is considerably more expensive than wet-aged. It’s definitely worth the splurge.
- Wet-Aging. The meat is vacuum-sealed in its own juices in plastic and stored under refrigeration for a few days or weeks to allow the natural enzymes to tenderize it from within and deepen its flavor. There is no shrinkage as in dry-aging, so wet-aged meat costs less.
Wagyu versus Kobe-style:
“Kobe” and “Wagyu” beef began turning up on American menus a decade ago—at prices ranging from lofty to exorbitant. “Kobe” refers to a super-premium, incredibly richly marbled beef from the city of Kobe, the capital of Hyogo Prefecture in Japan. Richly marbled? A slice of raw Kobe beef looks like white lace laid over a red tablecloth. You may have heard tales of special massage sessions for Kobe bovines. They’re false.
However, the traditional Kobe diet does include beer as an appetite stimulator in hot weather. Unfortunately, the Japanese don’t export this premium beef, so any “Kobe” beef you see in the U.S. is a misnomer at best and a rip-off at worst. “Kobe-style” refers to Wagyu beef raised and processed in the Kobe style, but to be honest with you, I’ve never had anything in North America that even approaches the exquisite flavor of what you get in Japan.
“Wagyu” refers to the breed of cattle used to make true Kobe beef and it is raised in the U.S. Wagyu beef can be exceptionally well-marbled, flavorful, and worth the price. It can also disappoint. Respected purveyors include Snake River Farms, Allen Brothers, and Lobel’s, but know you will pay a premium—up to $100 per pound for rib-eye. And that’s before shipping!
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