Techniques › Butchery and seafood
Cutting steaks from a larger piece
Intermediate Butchery and seafood
Cutting steaks from a larger piece is slicing a whole strip loin, ribeye roast or tenderloin into individual steaks of the thickness you want.
Written with AI help from the sources listed, and published by Cory. Sources: USDA safe minimum internal temperatures, USDA on the danger zone (40-140°F). Spot a mistake? Tell us and we'll fix it.
How do you do it?
- Chill the meat in the freezer for 20 to 30 minutes so it's firm, and trim off silverskin and excess fat first.
- Find the grain, the lines of muscle fiber, and position the meat so you'll cut straight across them.
- Use a long chef's or slicing knife. Hold the meat with a flat, clawed hand well back from the cut line.
- Cut each steak 1 to 1 1/2 inches thick in long, smooth strokes from heel to tip, not short sawing.
Why does it work?
Muscle is built of long fiber bundles. Cutting across them leaves short fibers in each bite, which feels tender; cutting along them leaves long, chewy strands. Thickness matters too: a 1 1/2-inch steak gives the outside time to brown in a hot pan before the center goes past medium.
What are the common mistakes?
- Cutting with the grain — chewy, stringy steaks.
- Sawing back and forth — ragged faces that brown unevenly.
- Cutting under 1 inch thick — the center overcooks before the crust forms.
Still stuck? Watch someone do it on YouTube.
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