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Animal - Beef cattle
Cut - Skirt steak/Bavette
Why? - Beef is one of the more common meats, with a wide variety of cuts readily available to consumers. I chose the bavette because it was one of my personal favourites while I was working at a butcher shop. It's cheap, fairly tender when sliced and not overcooked and extremely flavourful.
Background
"Cattle (family Bovidae, genus Bos) were first brought to Canada by French settlers. In 1677 there were 3107 cattle in New France; in 1698, 10 209; by the mid-18th century, 50 013. Cattle were valuable as a food source (milk, cheese, butter, meat) and for their hides, used in leatherworking. Cattle farming spread across the country with settlement, and ranching became particularly important in the rangelands of western Canada." (www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca) There are now over 60,000 farms across Canada that produce beef, with 3.4 billion pounds being produced in 2009, making Canada the 6th largest beef exporter in the world. The bavette is a loose-grained cut of beef from the plate of the steer, generally weighing between 1.5 and 2.5 lbs. It is often mistaken for hanger steak (or onglet) or flank steak.
Cut - Skirt steak/Bavette
Why? - Beef is one of the more common meats, with a wide variety of cuts readily available to consumers. I chose the bavette because it was one of my personal favourites while I was working at a butcher shop. It's cheap, fairly tender when sliced and not overcooked and extremely flavourful.
Background
"Cattle (family Bovidae, genus Bos) were first brought to Canada by French settlers. In 1677 there were 3107 cattle in New France; in 1698, 10 209; by the mid-18th century, 50 013. Cattle were valuable as a food source (milk, cheese, butter, meat) and for their hides, used in leatherworking. Cattle farming spread across the country with settlement, and ranching became particularly important in the rangelands of western Canada." (www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca) There are now over 60,000 farms across Canada that produce beef, with 3.4 billion pounds being produced in 2009, making Canada the 6th largest beef exporter in the world. The bavette is a loose-grained cut of beef from the plate of the steer, generally weighing between 1.5 and 2.5 lbs. It is often mistaken for hanger steak (or onglet) or flank steak.
Bavette is generally a cheaper cut of beef, and at the butcher shop I went to was $8.99/lb. It does not lose much of it's weight or volume to cooking because it is a fairly lean meat. This of course also means that it can become quite tough pretty quickly. It should be cooked to at most medium rare and should be sliced against the grain to maximize tenderness. When this is done, it tends to pull apart really easily. With it's relatively low cost compared to other cuts, the skirt steak can be used for things like sandwiches easily. It can also be marinated to help improve tenderness making it a very versatile and low cost option. Skirt steak is often marinated ahead of time to help break down connective tissue and is then grilled, pan roasted or braised.
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Recipe:
Marinated Skirt Steak
by David Walzog and Andrew Friedman 2005 The New American Steakhouse Cookbook
taken from http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/marinated-skirt-steak-232357
"In this recipe, a long marinating time allows many powerful ingredients to penetrate the skirt steak: the acid in balsamic vinegar and Worcestershire sauce doesn't just flavor the meat; it also breaks down connective tissues, making the meat tender."
Yield: Makes 8 servings
Ingredients
3/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup corn oil or other neutral oil such as grapeseed or canola
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
2 shallots, roughly chopped
2 garlic cloves
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon kosher salt
4 pounds skirt steak, cleaned of all exterior fat and connective tissue
- Put all ingredients except the steak in a blender and blend until smooth
- Pour the marinade over the skirt steak in a nonreactive pan
- Marinate, refrigerated, for 3 to 4 hours before grilling, but no more than 10 hours.
- When ready to cook the steaks, prepare your grill for grilling
- Remove the skirt steak from the marinade and clean away any excess marinade with the back of a knife.
- Grill the steak over medium-high heat for 4 to 5 minutes per side to serve it rare to medium-rare.
- When cooked, slice the steak thinly against the grain, starting at one corner and cutting on the bias. Serve either hot or at room temperature.
Sources:
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/marinated-skirt-steak-232357
http://www.finecooking.com/item/5748/beef-skirt-steak
http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/beef-cattle-farming/
http://www.canadabeef.ca/fact-sheets/
Photos taken from :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skirt_steak
http://livingremixed.com/honey-lime-skirt-steak/
http://www.finecooking.com/item/5748/beef-skirt-steak
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/marinated-skirt-steak-232357
http://www.finecooking.com/item/5748/beef-skirt-steak
http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/beef-cattle-farming/
http://www.canadabeef.ca/fact-sheets/
Photos taken from :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skirt_steak
http://livingremixed.com/honey-lime-skirt-steak/
http://www.finecooking.com/item/5748/beef-skirt-steak