Butchers - is twice the price for steak worth it? And freezi

[ralph]

So another Noob question... Sorry if this is in the wrong forum (mods please move if needed)...

I love my steak. My local butcher (peters meat) does good steak - about $30/kg for rib eyes. I've always liked them.

I've read a lot of the threads on hear about the really good butchers (Hudsons Meat lane cove and a few others around). Costs of a rib eye is about $60-70 /kg. are they worth it? (I'm thinking i will buy and find out).

(P.s any good butchers in Hills area?)

2nd part to my question...

Do you guys freeze high quality meet? I have always liked to buy and cook. But thinking to buy premium i may need to buy bulk. does it still taste great? How do you go about defrosting the steak prior to cooking if you do freeze? I get the sense you can only keep a steak in the fridge for 2-3 days before it spoils.

Again - really appreciate the comments and thoughts

Ralph

[Smokey]

A cryovac sealer is essential IMO.

As for cost, If you can afford it. It is generally much better.
However you can buy really good meat cheap, It just depends on what the butcher can get in.
Big meat markets can be hit and miss but if you talk to them and ask questions you can land great surprises.

[plumby]

Ive paid those top prices for Cape Grim scotch at the David Jones food court in Melbourne, just to get my fix of the best beef Ive ever tasted. Mind you it had Wagyu next to it at $200kg so didnt feel too bad

[ralph]

Cryovac - didn't think of that - i shall google!!

I understand what you mean to talk to the butcher - the trouble i find when i ask my butchers i get told crap like, these ones are better/ more tender thats why they are 35 vs 28 /kg which doesn't tell me a whole lot.

[urbangriller]

Ribeye is probably the best steak cut!

Freezing destroys the cellular structure, so not good!....tends to lose as lot of moisture!

Chris

[food&fish]

Ribeye is probably the best steak cut!

Freezing destroys the cellular structure, so not good!....tends to lose as lot of moisture!

Chris

Even if its vak packed !!

[urbangriller]

Ribeye is probably the best steak cut!

Freezing destroys the cellular structure, so not good!....tends to lose as lot of moisture!

Chris

Even if its vak packed !!

It's the ice crystals breaking the cell wall, when you cook it, the cells can't hold the moisture in.

Chris

[Gatsby]

Hi,
I know of two good butchers in the Carlingford area.
I prefer this one (just personal preference) - he will dry-age beef for you
http://www.stevesfinemeats.com.au/

and also
http://www.webstersmeats.com.au/
They also sell aged steaks. Their sausages are excellent.

Cheers

[DAK]

I'm a massive fan of Websters.

Duncan is the owner manager and he's more than accommodating for us carnivores. He's butchered
Beasts to get the exact cuts I want and all his steaks are dry ages and beautiful.

Give him a try. I'm at beecrift so will try Steve's too.

I never freeze steak etc. Chris's comments on cell structure are true. Frozen steak just isn't as moist or flavoursome.

Dylan

[Stevem109r]

I am starting to get hooked on Costco steak (beef) lately, much better and generous size cuts, it also seams to be holding a better flavour than the butcher and other supermarket type places

Sent from my A501 using Tapatalk 2

[ralph]

So I tried some Cape Grim scotch fillet, Recommended by the butcher. Pretty tasty - not sure if I can justify twice the price.

Taste was good - i use a bit of pepper and oil on my steaks pre cook, and lemon wedge post cook. meat was tender.

Just not sure about the price. Maybe a once a fortnight option.

Another question - anyway to make it a bit more crispy on the outside? I have genesis up on full with the sear station

[Jars]

Had some scotch fillets at a mates place, after about a year of only eating steak from the butcher. They were absolutely horrible! No flavour, watery and gross. I definitely think its worth it!

[Smokey]

So I tried some Cape Grim scotch fillet, Recommended by the butcher. Pretty tasty - not sure if I can justify twice the price.

Taste was good - i use a bit of pepper and oil on my steaks pre cook, and lemon wedge post cook. meat was tender.

Just not sure about the price. Maybe a once a fortnight option.

Another question - anyway to make it a bit more crispy on the outside? I have genesis up on full with the sear station

The answer it two fold to get a crust.
1) dry brine your steak.
Sprinkle a good amount of sea salt (about a table spoon) one each side and a little cracked pepper.
Let sit in the fridge for about 30-45 minutes for a thick steak then wash it off, towel dry then lightly oil. You can add more pepper again but no more salt.
2) Flash sear it
Once you have the crust and colour, Move it to a cooler spot off the direct heat on the BBQ until the internal temp is where you want it.

You will have crust,, as opposed to Just grill marks as there is a big difference .
The steak will have flavour right through too.
The hard thing with this it timing the brine to the thickness of the steak but a few practice runs on cheap steak will have you clued in.
It's supposed to tenderise but the jury is still out on that but it sure as he'll make a crunchy crust and puts salt and pepper flavour right through the steak.
Don't be fooled that you need this brand or that brand, or this butcher or what not. It's all sales. And those that push are usually tied in with product sales. Sure cape grim is good, But I've had better locally. much of it is hype
Go out and hunt. that's part of the fun. some you win and some you loose. But the more you try,,,, the more you know and the more you win.

[Dave]

Hi Ralph,
Firstly, where do you live? Adel Hills? Melb Hills?

The great thing about a BBQ Forum is the difference of opinions & experiences, so read all & make your own judgements.

What I have learnt is that you have to pay for consistency, this is the BIG thing. If you are happy with hit & miss then pay less, but be happy with not so good every now and then.

So, not sure where you live, but in Adelaide you just cant go past Feast Butchers, Meatman/Richard is a member here and definitely one of the leading experts in Beef farming in this country, even to the point of introducing new breeds that we don't have available as yet ( Google Heston's best breed of beef to eat in the world - The English Longhorn )

If you live in Sydney then Nicholson & Saville stock some excellent produce as well as Vic's Meats, in fact I picked up a couple of excellent Rib Eyes from Vics Meats in Sydney the other week at RRP of $20.00/ kg & flew back to Adelaide with them, direct flame grilled them & they were on the money! Ask Edgy about Vic's Meat

Vics Meats also have an outlet in Melbourne also & a few regard Berties Butcher quite highly. Ive been told that WA is not easy to get good beef & not sure in Bris.

As far as brands go, I would make up your own mind, I'm not to fussed about certain brands, that are a bit over-rated in my opinion & you can get better for your $$$. PM me if you want more info.

Regarding the science of Freezing, others are probably correct in theory. Can you actually taste the difference between frozen & fresh when it comes to a thick Rib Eye?..... In my experience this week after cooking one fresh & one frozen, reverse searing them & then trying them both, no one could tell, so try for yourself & be your own judge!

So these are just my opinions & it probably matters how you cook them also.

Cheers, Dave

[edgy]

I would say Hills district (NW Sydney) Dave, as he refers to a Lane Cove butcher.

I would definitely recommend Nicholson & Saville at Eastgardens who stock produce from our forums very own Meatman as well as some great imported NZ Grass fed gear, and of course Vic's Meat stock all the good stuff too.

I've always been an advocate for getting the best possible produce your budget allows, I have found (as I am sure lots of you have) that it helps to get familiar with the producers and know what they do good!