4 ms·

I'm just here trying to understand what a "shitty cut" even means. For me, it's all meat. Some tastes better than other. But the baseline is "good". The old an

by bserge 5y ago

I'm just here trying to understand what a "shitty cut" even means. For me, it's all meat. Some tastes better than other. But the baseline is "good". The old animal meat (from milk cows and goats, and egg hens) that I ate as a kid would probably horrify someone like you lol

graycat 5y ago
> old animal meat? In one of his books, Escoffier explained that in making beef stock get better flavor starting with the meat of old animals. Soooo, I considered that, and in NY thought of retired dairy cows so called around. I got to a packing house in PA where I got an explanation "think fast food". So, maybe McDonald's, Burger King, etc. are serving the beef the Escoffier liked for making beef stock!
PeterWhittaker 5y ago
Well, think of it this way: all cuts of meat have varying degrees of meat, fat, and gristle. The meat, properly cooked, adds texture and some flavour; the fat carries immense flavour but can overwhelm with grease; the gristle is mostly crap: no flavour, gets in your teeth, chewy, unpleasant, best discarded or ground into sausage. Broadly speaking. Some meat is so lean (bison, e.g.) that is must be cooked rare lest it become as dusty as the rest of Utah (the best bison I ever had was this fantastic place in southern Utah, hence the reference) and some meat is so fatty or gristly it must be slow cooked or braised or otherwise managed. And consider that how tough is a cut depends on its use: various fowl favour standing on one leg so the other is ceteris paribus more tender; cf also the reference above to the front legs of red deer. So “shitty meat” basically says “this animal did not lay about on fluffy cushions but scrambled for a living, except for this little bit here”. Some people rave over tenderloin aka filet mignon. I love it, if properly larded and cooked. Otherwise, I much prefer rib eye: juicier, more flavourful, even if a little gristlier. When I’m hungry, I don’t much care. When I have time and/or spare cash, a good starting piece well prepared is a joy.

by bserge 5y ago

graycat 5y ago

> old animal meat? In one of his books, Escoffier explained that in making beef stock get better flavor starting with the meat of old animals. Soooo, I considered that, and in NY thought of retired dairy cows so called around. I got to a packing house in PA where I got an explanation "think fast food". So, maybe McDonald's, Burger King, etc. are serving the beef the Escoffier liked for making beef stock!

PeterWhittaker 5y ago

Well, think of it this way: all cuts of meat have varying degrees of meat, fat, and gristle. The meat, properly cooked, adds texture and some flavour; the fat carries immense flavour but can overwhelm with grease; the gristle is mostly crap: no flavour, gets in your teeth, chewy, unpleasant, best discarded or ground into sausage. Broadly speaking. Some meat is so lean (bison, e.g.) that is must be cooked rare lest it become as dusty as the rest of Utah (the best bison I ever had was this fantastic place in southern Utah, hence the reference) and some meat is so fatty or gristly it must be slow cooked or braised or otherwise managed. And consider that how tough is a cut depends on its use: various fowl favour standing on one leg so the other is ceteris paribus more tender; cf also the reference above to the front legs of red deer. So “shitty meat” basically says “this animal did not lay about on fluffy cushions but scrambled for a living, except for this little bit here”. Some people rave over tenderloin aka filet mignon. I love it, if properly larded and cooked. Otherwise, I much prefer rib eye: juicier, more flavourful, even if a little gristlier. When I’m hungry, I don’t much care. When I have time and/or spare cash, a good starting piece well prepared is a joy.