Fibber McGee’s Guide to Buying Beef
Here @ Fibber McGee’s we age and butcher all our steaks on the premises so we can consistently provide you with the best steaks in Perth!
Cuts of Beef
Rib
Rib-eye - Rib Eye steaks come from the main muscle attached to the spine of a cow ( also referred to as the Rib). This part of a cow does very little work, which means that the meat is very very tender and it’s taste is very beefy and rich.
Widely considered the most tasty steak, Rib Eye steaks are also often laced with ribbons of marbling (inter-muscular fat), giving them their much known rich, beefy taste.
Best cooked to at least medium rare so all the fat is properly rendered down!
Round
Rump Steak - The Rump steak comes from the backside of the cow (the hardest working part of it’s posterior). The rump steak is widely considered to be one of the most flavoursome cuts due to its significant marbling (inter-muscular fat), you’ll find that it’s slightly chewy compared to a Sirloin or Rib-eye Steak
Sirloin
Sirloin steak - is a cut of beef from the mid-back of a cow; between the Fore Rib, Round and Flank. Sirloin steaks are often quite lean — with high protein and low inter-muscular fat (or ‘marbling’) contents. this is due to the muscles that make up this region of a cow being used substantially during its life,
Sirloin steak is famed for its tenderness and is known to be notably 'beefy' in taste — lending itself nicely with strongly flavoured sides or sauces.
The word Sirloin derives from the french term “surlonge” — sur for 'above' and longe for 'loin'. There’s also a long history of urban myths surrounding the origins of the beef sirloin name! The most popular of these is that in the 1600’s, King James I knighted a loin of beef after falling head-over-heels in love with its taste during a meal; “Arise, Sirloin”, he said!
Tenderloin
Fillet/Eye-Fillet/Tenderloin Steak - Fillet steak is cut from the tenderloin muscle, As this muscle is not exercised and does not bear any weight of the cow (unlike almost all other steaks), it’s connective tissues are not toughened and therefore , this delivers the softest, most tender cut of beef you can find. The fillet steak is a very lean cut of meat with little inter-muscular fat (marbling) giving it a finer, more subtle taste than other steak cuts.
The word Fillet derives from the french term “filet” — which translates literally to “thick slice”. As this suggests, fillet steaks are traditionally cut into relatively thicker slices as, unlike other steaks, their surface area is by nature limited by the small diameter of the round tenderloin. Each cow carcass typically delivers about 2 Kg of fillet steak which, alongside its unique tenderness and texture, makes it the most expensive steak!
Ageing
Dry Ageing
The dry ageing method involves hanging the (non-covered) beef carcass inside a closed room at a controlled temperature
(usually 0° to 4 °C) and relative humidity (75% to 80%) levels.
This process encourages the beef’s natural enzymes to break down proteins and fats into amino acids and fatty acids (which create a meaty/nutty taste), and connective protein tissues to tenderise the beef.
Dry ageing also triggers the growth of a fungal crust on the surface of the beef which is trimmed off before cooking. This fungus is known to produce collagenolytic enzymes which have been found to significantly intensify the flavor of dry aged beef.
The moisture within the meat evaporates increasing fat-to-meat ratio of the beef carcass, and in turn intensifying the taste and flavour
Wet Ageing
The wet ageing method works by storing primal cuts of the beef carcass inside closed, vacuum sealed bags at a temperature of between 0 °C and 7.2 °C.
During wet aging the meat is not in contact with the air, but rather ages in its own natural juices, therefore the concentration of enzyme activity in breaking down the beef’s connective tissues is very, very high.
Unlike dry ageing, the process of water evaporation and the growing of exterior fungal crust does not take place. The process of wet ageing beef is thought to make the beef incredibly tender and deliver a tasty, slightly metallic flavour.
Koji Aged Beef
Koji (otherwise known as Aspergillus Oryzae) ferments food, Japanese cooks have used it for centuries to make soy sauce, miso, and natural sweeteners and they even use it to brew sake.
It's considered the national mould (a microscopic mascot that imparts umami wherever it goes).
The science behind koji: Its spores are fond of hot and humid environments and grows on cooked rice. As they get bigger, they release biochemical agents-protease enzymes that break down protein and amylases that digest starch. When mixed with soybeans, the ensuing culture helps transform the concoction into soy sauce but when applied to steak, koji does something amazing. Its powerful enzymes slowly tenderise the meat.
Innovative chefs have found that koji can turn a fresh-cut piece of beef into something that resembles, in texture and taste, a 45-day-aged steak. A koji-aged Rib-eye, properly cooked, will offer up the same nutty and funky flavor as one that's been professionally cured, and with a touch of miso sweetness.
Storage
At Fibber McGee’s all our steaks are sold vacuum packed
Vacuum packing is a method of food packaging that removes all air from from a food filled, plastic film package before “sealing” it.
By keeping oxygen out, vacuum packing preserves food by obstructing the growth of fungus, mould and oxygen induced bacteria.
The main benefit of Vacuum packed meat is an increased shelf life.
Vacuum packing meat keeps it fresh for up to 3 - 5 times longer than beef that has been stored in supermarket packaging such as bags or plastic containers. Vacuum packed meat will keep for up to 2 weeks in the fridge and 2-3 years if frozen (although we recommend 4-5 days for meat in the fridge)
Because vacuum packing beef blocks out all oxygen, the moisture inside your meat can’t evaporate and as a result, the beef keeps its juice and tenderness!
Cooking your Steak
Remove your steak from the fridge and allow it reach room temperature 20 minutes before you cook it, next season the steak with salt and pepper
Preheat the pan to a very high temperature and add some oil and then set your steak in.
Sear for two minutes, flip and sear for another two minutes, then transfer the entire steak to a 175 degree oven for 2 to 5 minutes.
Next remove the steak from the pan and let it rest for 5 minutes.
Serve perfectly cooked (medium rare) steak to your guests!