Meat Cuts (Cookery)

• Beef


  Cuts are broken down further (or fabricated) into individual steaks and other retail cuts.
• Primal Cuts


  Divided into large sections.
• Front Quarter

  • Chuck
  • Rib
  • Brisket
  • Plate
  • Shank
• Hind Quarter

  • Short loin
  • Sirloin
  • Tender loin
  • Flank
  • Round
• Chuck

  1. Parts of the neck, shoulder blade and upper arm.
  2. Tough cut of meat.
  3. Good choice for braising and stewing, particularly for making pot roast.
  4. Also excellent for making ground beef.

  
• Rib

  1. Center section of rib.
  2. This cut is used for traditional standing rib roast (referred to as prime cut).
  3. Tender, used for dry-heat cooking.

  
• Brisket

  1. Tough cut, used for pot roast.
  2. Used for making corned beef.

  
• Plate

  1. Also called the short plate, includes short rib and skirt steak. Used for making Carne Asada.
  2. Contains a lot of cartilage, good for braising.
  3. Used for making ground beef.

  
• Shank

  1. Leg of the animal, and extremely tough and full of connective tissue.
  2. Used for making the luxurious Italian dish Osso Buco.

  
• Shortloin

  1. Most desirable cuts, including T-bone and Porterhouse steaks, as well as the strip loin or strip steak.
  2. Dry-heat cooking

  
• Sirloin

  1. Tender cut
  2. Excellent for roasting or barbecuing.

  
• Tenderloin

  1. Finest cut of beef
  2. Where we get filet mignon, very tip of the pointy end of the tenderloin.
  3. Grilling and broiling.

  
• Flank

  1. Tough, which is why it is marinated first.
  2. Suited for braising or for making ground beef.

  
• Round

  1. Fairly lean cut, also tough.
  2. Prepared using moist heat, as in crockpot.

  
• Beef Retail Cut

  1. Chuck
  2. Rib
  3. Shortloin
  4. Sirloin
  5. Breast and foreshank
  6. Plate
  7. Flank
  8. Round
• Beef Basic Cut

  1. Shin
  2. Topside
  3. Knuckle
  4. Rump
  5. Tenderloin
  6. Skirt
  7. Striploin
  8. Cube roll
  9. Blade/Chuck
• Pork Basic Cuts

  1. Boston Butt
  2. Picnic Shoulder
  3. Loin
  4. Ham
  5. Spareribs
  6. Jowl
  7. Foot
• Pork Retail Cuts

  1. Shoulder
  2. Loin
  3. Side
  4. Leg
• Boston Butt

  1. Upper shoulder of the hog.
  2. Parts of the neck, shoulder blade and upper arm.
  3. Tough cut
  4. Can be roasted, well suited for braising and stewing.
  5. Ground pork or sausages
  6. Clear plate or fatback
  7. Making lard
• Picnic Shoulder

  1. Cured or smoked
  2. Making ground pork or sausage meat.
  3. Sometimes roasted, but not ideal.
• Loin

  1. Hogs bred to have extra long loins, they can have up to 17 ribs.
  2. Entire pork loin can be roasted.
  3. Tenderloin is taken from the rear of the loin, and baby-back ribs come from the upper ribcage area of the loin.
• Ham

  1. Back leg of the hog: fresh, smoked, or cured hams.
  2. Serrano ham and prosciutto.
  3. Roasted but can be cut into steaks.
• Spareribs

  1. Belly side of the ribs where they join the breastbone.
  2. Prepared by grilling.
• Jowl

  1. Making sausages, it can be cured and made into bacon.
• Foot

  1. High in collagen, excellent sources of gelatin and frequently added to soups and stews.
  2. Long, slow simmering.
  3. Cured, smoked, even pickled.
  4. Traditional Mexican Menudo.