3 Questions To Ask Your Butcher Before Buying Steak
Purchasing a piece of steak at the store can be quite an investment depending on the cut, so you want to make sure you're getting a high-quality cut of steak that will cook and taste exactly how you expected. But if you don't know much about beef, it's tough to know where to start. Next time you step into your local butcher shop, make sure you're asking the right questions. Jeanne Oleksiak, executive chef at Herd Provisions in Charleston, South Carolina, told Chowhound that the meat's quality all comes down to where, when, and how it was prepared.
Where the meat comes from and how it was raised can impact its flavor and nutrients. There are varying standards of meat in the United States, with eight different grades for labeling a meat's quality. The highest-quality, prime beef, is the one to strive for, but no more than 5% of beef in the U.S. receive this rating. Other acceptable standards for a cut of steak include choice beef, which is the next-highest meat grade, or select beef, which is still good quality and generally more affordable than prime and choice.
Where does the meat come from?
The first question to ask your butcher is where they got their meat. The answer should be clear cut and simple. "If the butcher has no idea, then the shopper should move on," Oleksiak said. Not all beef is created equally, and not all cows are raised under the same conditions. Ideally, you want a cow that has room to graze and live a healthy lifestyle, which could impact how its meat tastes.
"If the answer is a feedlot, I recommend moving on," Oleksiak said. "Even if it's a grain fed cow, if it's raised well, it will be delicious." A feedlot is essentially a quick way to fatten the cow for harvest. Feedlots trap cows in small areas, which gives them little room to move around. The cows are sedentary, yet eat a ton of food, which helps them gain weight as quickly as possible, so they can be turned into meat. Feedlots are a controversial method due to their impact on the environment and the cows' health.
When was the meat cut?
When you buy raw meat, it doesn't have a very long shelf life and should be consumed quickly to avoid potential bacteria growth. Foodsafety.gov says that raw beef should be cooked and eaten within three to five days, so it's important to know when the meat was cut in order to know how much time you have to prepare it. Plus, it speaks to the freshness of the meat from that shop. Make sure you also ask if it was cut in-house or shipped in already cut.
"If it's cut in house, the shopper has more options of thickness [and] weight for their steak," Oleksiak explained. If you're looking for a specific thickness or cut, and the meat is cut to order, then you have better customization and control over how your steak will taste. Plus, cut-to-order meat means you have several days to prepare it, which allows you to purchase it in advance if needed.
Was the meat grass-fed and finished?
Not only does the farm and cow's freedom matter, but the cow's diet also plays a role in the overall quality of the steak. There are two common ways to feed a cow herd: grass-fed and grain-fed. Cows fed a grass diet generally produce meat that is less fatty and more nutrient-dense than cows fed a grain diet. The feed also determines the meat's flavor. "This will inform the shopper that meat will be very beefy in flavor and probably a bit more on the lean side," Okelsiak said.
Finally, once you've asked the three big ones, there is one quick question to walk away with: knowing the best way to cook your cut of steak. "What kind of cooking method is best for a specific cut?" Oleksiak said. "For example, if you're braising meat you don't want to use something like a ribeye or even an eye round because their structure does not lend itself to braising," Ultimately, the cooking method will determine the outcome within your control, but everything leading up to you purchasing the steak is information you should be ready and willing to ask.