Category: Meat - Beef
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Braising steak (called Chuck steak in USA) is a cut of beef and is part of the primal cut known as the chuck.
The typical chuck steak is a rectangular cut, about 1" thick and containing parts of the shoulder bones, and is often known as a " 7-bone steak ". (This is in reference to the shape of the bone, which resembles the numeral '7', not to the number of bones in the cut.)
This cut is usually grilled or broiled ; a thicker version is sold as a "7-bone roast" or "chuck roast" and is usually cooked with liquid as a pot roast (beef) .
The bone-in chuck steak or roast is one of the more economical cuts of beef.
Other boneless chuck cuts include: the chuck eye (boneless cuts from the centre of the roll, sold as Mock Tender Steak or Chuck Tender Steak), chuck fillet (sold as Chuck Eye Steak and Chuck Tender Steak,) cross-rib roast (sold as Cross-Rib Pot Roast, English Roast, or "the bread and butter cut"), top blade steak , under blade steak , shoulder steak and roast , and arm steak and roast.
The average meat market cuts thick and thin chuck steaks (often sold as Braising steak or Braising steak Family Pack) from the neck and shoulder, but some markets also cut it from the centre of the cross-rib portion. Short ribs are cut from the lip of the roll.
Some meat markets will sell cross-rib pot roast under the generic name "pot roast."
The difference between a pot roast and a cross-rib pot roast is the vertical line of fat separating the two types of chuck meat; the cross-rib pot roast contains the line of fat.
The chuck contains a lot of connective tissue, including collagen. Collagen melts during the cooking of the meat, making the flavour intensely stronger.
Meat from the chuck is usually used for stewing, slow cooking, braising, or pot roasting
Certain cuts of so-called ‘braising steak’ are better for some dishes than for others, I generally name the cut and suggest you always ask for it by name too.
Unidentified stewing or braising steak can often be a mixture and can cook unevenly.
Below is a list of the cuts that are suitable for braising (and stewing too); as you would see from a chart these cuts are always from the same part of the animal-s anatomy but, confusingly, the way they-re cut varies from region to region.
Upper cuts:
Braising steak ( Chuck) · Rib · Short Loin · Sirloin · Tenderloin · Top sirloin · Round
Lower Cuts:
Brisket · Plate · Flank · Shank
Beef cut for Braising steak (chuck steak, blade steak).
In some regions it can be called shoulder, which is exactly where it is cut.
If you want large pieces of meat rather than cubes:
Thick flank is suitable: actually from the hindquarters and called round or flesh end in Scotland or bedpiece elsewhere.
Beef skirt comes from below the diaphragm of the animal.
It is however an excellent cut for braising and one end can even be grilled if scored across the grain and tenderised by marinating before cooking.
Matching Beef to wine table
Special beef designation names, click here |