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SMART SHOPPING: Blade Steaks

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One of our favorite cuts for the slow cooker, this surprisingly tender steak is a small cut from the cow’s shoulder, or chuck, where most other cuts are quite tough. Blade steaks are inexpensive because they have a line of gristle that runs down the middle, but when slow cooked, these steaks turn fall-apart tender and the gristle is easily removed, yielding a richly flavored, beefy steak.