Steak Recipe - How To Make Steak Tender You invest a lot of time and money into the steaks for a special occasion and when dinner time comes, they are tough. What happened? How can you cook steaks as tender as your favorite restaurant? The first step to cooking a good steak is to choose the right grade of steak. The top quality beef is graded USDA Prime and commands top prices. USDA Prime grade meats are sold to the restaurant industry and specialty markets and are not as likely to be found at your local grocery chain. The next grade of beef is USDA Choice. USDA Choice is tender, flavorful and only slightly lower in quality than USDA Prime. The meat is well marbled with fat and will be tender and juicy when properly prepared. USDA Choice makes up about 70% of all graded beef and is readily available in your supermarket. USDA Good graded beef is an acceptable grade of beef that has only minimal marbling of fat. It is leaner, but may not be as tender as USDA Prime or Choice. Next, ...
Pro Cooking Tips Braising Meats for Tenderness and Flavor Remember visiting grandma’s house and walking into a kitchen overflowing with the most luscious smells you’ve ever encountered? There was always a large pot on the stovetop simmering away. And when that pot was opened at dinnertime, you found yourself face to face with a plate of the most tasty meats and vegetables you’ve ever eaten. Nobody could cook like grandma! Not to diminish your childhood memories, but you can now cook every bit as good as grandma. Chances are, in that stovetop pot, grandma was braising. Braising is a method of cooking meats and vegetables. It is especially effective for tougher, cheaper cuts of meat such as shanks, briskets and rumps. This is a primary technique taught in culinary school. Braising is not only great for home cooked meals, it is also a method for gourmet preparations straight from New York or Hollywood. Cooking school graduates have developed some wonderful variations to the meats, liquids...