I've read some recent posts concerning tenderness complaints after grilling some chuck eye steaks. For those who may not know anything about this cut perhaps a little anatomy explanation is in order. There's a muscle that runs from about the hip area up to the shoulder of a cow called the longissimus dorsi. For the most part it is a non-working muscle so it is generally very tender. Along with the spinalis dorsi, it is the main muscle that makes up your prime rib or ribeye cuts. As that muscle enters into the chuck section (at the junction of the 5th and 6th ribs) it continues for about two more ribs (or maybe 4-5") then terminates into a tougher working muscle that makes up what is called the chuck eye roll, pictured here....
It's critical that your meat cutter knows to carve out that first few inches because it's literally like it's adjacent ribeye cousin. Also known as the Delmonico steak it has all the tenderness and juiciness of a ribeye. The remainder of the chuck eye roll is then portioned into country ribs or sold whole as an American roast that needs to obviously be treated and cooked differently in a low and slow manner. Having said this, I suspect that folks are buying cuts of meat in the grocery store labeled "chuck eye" and finding them to be tough, indicating that the cut may be taken from too far back in the chuck eye roll.
I have a local butcher who is keenly aware of this so I trust what he gives me are the true chuck eye steaks. Shown here are some I recently bought and cooked, these are CAB quality....
So why all the fuss about this cut and making sure you get it right? Well this falls into the category of beef that I call cheaper meats make good eats. As I write this, prime ribeyes here in Houston are hovering around $20/lb. I'm able to get these CAB chuck eyes for around $8.99/lb. That's less than half the price for something as good as prime steak !!!
If you can find them I encourage you to buy them, just make sure it's the right cut of meat. I went ahead and made some bacon wrapped Anaheim peppers stuffed with a mix of sharp cheddar and mild Italian sausage for a side. Throw in some Texas Hill Country sausage, and we're eating good at reasonable prices !!!
ENJOY !!! TROUTMAN STEVE IS OUT !!!!!
It's critical that your meat cutter knows to carve out that first few inches because it's literally like it's adjacent ribeye cousin. Also known as the Delmonico steak it has all the tenderness and juiciness of a ribeye. The remainder of the chuck eye roll is then portioned into country ribs or sold whole as an American roast that needs to obviously be treated and cooked differently in a low and slow manner. Having said this, I suspect that folks are buying cuts of meat in the grocery store labeled "chuck eye" and finding them to be tough, indicating that the cut may be taken from too far back in the chuck eye roll.
I have a local butcher who is keenly aware of this so I trust what he gives me are the true chuck eye steaks. Shown here are some I recently bought and cooked, these are CAB quality....
So why all the fuss about this cut and making sure you get it right? Well this falls into the category of beef that I call cheaper meats make good eats. As I write this, prime ribeyes here in Houston are hovering around $20/lb. I'm able to get these CAB chuck eyes for around $8.99/lb. That's less than half the price for something as good as prime steak !!!
If you can find them I encourage you to buy them, just make sure it's the right cut of meat. I went ahead and made some bacon wrapped Anaheim peppers stuffed with a mix of sharp cheddar and mild Italian sausage for a side. Throw in some Texas Hill Country sausage, and we're eating good at reasonable prices !!!
ENJOY !!! TROUTMAN STEVE IS OUT !!!!!
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