Not all meat is created equal. The number-one secret to making a brilliant steak is to start with high-quality meat. Yes, this meat is more expensive. (It costs more at the wholesale level for the restaurant too—we buy some of the most expensive meat out there.) But some things are more than worth the price.
There are a few truths behind the noble mantra—eat only great meat—and they’re all related. First and foremost, great meat tastes better. What’s the point of eating animal flesh if it has little to no flavor? Sadly, that’s the state of most of the commodity chicken, pork, and beef you find at the supermarket. Bland meat needs enhancement with marinades, rubs, and sauces. There’s nothing wrong with these flavor boosts, but the thing about good meat is that when you have it, you don’t need anything beyond a little salt and pepper. The taste is so primal and perfect that it defies descriptive language, except as a deep, powerful “beefiness.” The flavor sits somewhere amid earthy and funky, sweet and savory, but communicates a sense of stirring, deeply fulfilling umami (the fifth taste, a.k.a. the taste of protein deliciousness).
Finally, beyond flavor and nutrition, properly raised beef is important for the environment, for the health and integrity of the animals themselves, and for the people raising them, and things must be done right—humanely, generously, compassionately. Everything about raising a cow well contributes to the values of eating it—both the values we can savor and the virtues of eating something that was raised in harmony with nature.
The point I’m making is—eat better meat. Maybe eat a little less meat, but spend more on it—you will be happier and healthier. In this day and age, it’s not so hard to do.
If you’re fortunate to have a good butcher in your town, ask about where the meat is sourced. Butcher shops had all but disappeared for decades, but they seem to be gently rebounding as more and more people are becoming particular about their meat. If the source is good, the butcher will be more than happy to tell you about it. And nowadays, specialty grocers and even high-end stores like Whole Foods are making an effort to stock good-quality, ethically raised meat. If you’re curious about the source and nature of the meat, ask the employees at the store’s meat counter. If they have good product, they’ll be happy to tell you about it. If you don’t have access to a butcher, there are now plenty of ranchers that will gladly ship you high-quality steaks. Yes, mail-ordering adds to the cost and makes having an already spendy steak even more of an investment. But I promise you, it’s worth it. And there’s another way to lower the cost. Not every steak you eat needs to be a rib eye or a filet mignon. You can always save money by learning about what I call the New School cuts—delicious, relatively inexpensive cuts that are packed with flavor and come at a fraction of the cost of major cuts.
