Am I a steak snob?

[IdahoJim]

We went to dinner last night for my wife's birthday. We went to Jakers in Meridian Idaho, a nice steakhouse / bar and grill. They had a ribeye cap steak on the menu, but they were out of it. Instead of getting the 14oz ribeye or the filet, I decided to try something different and ordered the sirloin steak, medium rare. I haven't had sirloin in a long time. I always thought it was a lesser cut of meat. At home it's usually tenderloin/filet or ribeyes with an occasional T-bone. This steak was great. It was perfectly cooked, tender and delicious. Have I been missing out on something by dismissing sirloin steaks? It may help that they use "premium meats (Double R Ranch)".

[Greygoose]

NY strip MR is my favorite,,,
filet mignon my least favorite unless dowsed with a fresh bernaise sauce,,,

[captainlee]

Filet about 1 1/2 thick cooked rare plus. Some salt and pepper and if they melt some butter fine. Melt in your mouth. So we are total opposites.

[jfmorris]

I had a really good sirloin steak out (med-rare) as well. If you can get good quality sirloin, and don't overcook it, its a can be a great steak. I think the problem is when you take it med-well or well done, as it usually has little marbling to keep it from drying out.

[Richard Chrz]

I think you nailed it on “ good quality,”

[FireMan]

Yes! You are! 🕶

[Michael_in_TX]

Absolutely. I far prefer sirloins and NY strips to ribeyes. While I certainly recognize the tenderness of ribeye, I find that sirloins and strips have more beefy flavor. And you don't have to eat around so much unrendered fat.

[rodkeary]

+1

[bbqLuv]

Why for did you go and post this? Now I have to try sirloins.
HeHeHeHe.

[klflowers]

+2 on the NY strip. I haven't had a sirloin in years. I need to try one

[Bkhuna]

Growing up, my Dad make sirloins for the whole brood about once a month on his PK. Maybe that's why I associate that flavor with steak,.

[bbqLuv]

Sounds like a good Did to me.

[randy.56]

It was nice of you to take your wife out for steak dinner on her B-day.

[Mosca]

RR Ranch steaks are really good.

”Sirloin” sometimes means NY strip steak. Here is a screenshot from The Old Homestead:



But sometimes it means a steak cut further down the loin, like what they call “baseball steaks”. And then there’s top sirloin and bottom sirloin.

I consider strip steaks the equal to ribeyes and tenderloins. The baseball sirloins are pretty damn good, too; they’re really beefy, if not quite as tender. The top and bottom sirloins are okay, but they’re so close in price to the others that there’s no point in choosing them. At a certain point an excellent burger is better than an okay steak. If I were looking at top or bottom sirloin, I’d make the burgers.

[Oak Smoke]

I don’t order sirloin when we are eating out but will definitely grill them at home. After getting some advice from acorgihouse on SV I take the ones I think might be a bit tough through about 4 hours in the SV at 130 F them grill them hot and fast. They’re great.

[DaveD]

OMG yes you must! Sous vide que is absolutely foolproof, perfect every time (unless you overdo it while searing, as I did on my last go-round). So tender, and every bit of the steak is cooked to the exact same doneness. Dooooo eeeeeet!!!

[klflowers]

IdahoJim DaveD and Oak Smoke are on point. I almost always SV my steaks these days

[lemayp]

I’ll sv leaner cuts. Flat Irons are great with a SV then hot and fast sear.

[fzxdoc]

Give SV a go, IdahoJim , on your next steak. Make your wife's steak the way she likes it. Then compare.

For a possibly tougher cut like sirloin (not much marbling), depending on the time, SV can tenderize the meat while it's cooking to your desired temperature. For a more tender cut of beef, it can ensure that the steak is the exact temperature that you like.

Once the SV time is over, dry the meat off, add oil and a tasty rub, and sear on the grill or in a skillet with some ghee, tallow, etc. Delicious.

Kathryn

[IdahoJim]

Should I season or dry brine the steak before the SV? We have a big tenderloin steak (big enough to split between the two of us) vacuum sealed in the freezer. It went straight from the store package into the vacuum sealer bag. I'd like to try SV on that one, straight from the freezer. If not having a chance to dry brine it will negatively impact it, then I may not get another chance to try it with my wife.

[fzxdoc]

If you dry brine your steak before Sous Vide, IdahoJim , you can possibly lose more meat juices to the bag than if you don't dry brine. Experiments on the interwebs testing this abound. Results are mixed. Both end products are good. I like to season before searing.

As long as it's in a good sous vide bag, (not cryovac from the grocery), you can take it right from freezer to sous vide. You'll have to leave it in the water a bit longer because its frozen.

K.

[DaveD]

I would never cook any meat without dry brining first, honestly. Let that frozen cut thaw, salt it, leave in fridge overnight, then hit it with your favorite seasoning, re-seal in a fresh vac bag and into the SV. That's my SOP and it is tremendous.

And there is not a thing wrong with being a steak snob! I sure am one

[JoeSousa]

I have had quite a few Double R sirloins and have loved them. Excellent flavor and texture. Back when they used to do some BOGO sales on those I would buy quite a few of them.

If you can find a decently thick grocery store sirloin and cook it to medium rare or less it can be a nice, cheap steak. But most of the sirloin I see in the grocery store is usually pretty thin and harder to cook properly. A quick fry in a pan for some steak and eggs works for a cut like that though.

[bbqLuv]

Only if you identify as one!

[texastweeter]

Dry aged prime ribeye "blue"

[bbqLuv]

Blue on blue, My heart ack so true
Chicago Blue it will not do
For table fair it's a bit too rare

[texastweeter]

bbqLuv give it up, lol.