The names on our labels, and what's actually behind them.
The flanken family
Flanken is short rib cut across the bones, so every piece carries a row of small bone cross-sections rather than one long rib. It's the oldest cut in the Jewish kitchen, and it comes off more than one part of the animal — which is why we sell four of them.
- TK Chuck Flanken — off the first ribs, up in the shoulder. Leaner than plate, and the most beef-forward of the four.
- TK Short Ribs Plate Flanken — from the plate, lower down and further back. The richest and most marbled ribs on the animal.
- TK First Cut Flanken — the meatiest end of the run.
- TK Boneless Flanken and Flanken Meat (Cholent Meat) — the same meat off the bone, cut for the pot.
- TK Miami Ribs — flanken sliced thin, around half an inch, so it cooks in minutes over high heat instead of hours in a pot. TK Boneless Miami Ribs the same, without the bone.
English cut runs the other way
TK Chuck Flanken English Cut and TK Beef English Ribs are cut parallel to the bones instead of across them, so each piece is one long rib carrying a thick block of meat. Same animal, same area, a completely different dinner: English cut wants hours, Miami ribs want minutes.
TK Beef Spare Ribs come off the plate — the most richly marbled ribs on the steer. Sear them first, then low and slow.
The roasts
- TK Beef Chuck Cap Breast (Brust) Deckel Roast — brust is the breast and deckel means cover. It's the fattier cap that lies over the leaner flat beneath, which is exactly why it stays moist where a flat can dry.
- TK Beef Blade Minute Roast — off the blade, in the shoulder, and one of the most tender things the shoulder gives. TK Split Minute Roast (De-veined) is the same roast opened above and below the line of gristle running through its centre, with that seam taken out.
- Silver Tip Roast — from the shoulder clod, sometimes called an arm roast. Well marbled, but leaner than a rib roast.
- TK Boneless New York Brick (French) Roast — a shoulder roast; the brick is the version trimmed square and even, where a French roast is left larger and more irregular.
- TK Chuck Eye Roast (Netted) — the chuck eye sits at the front ribs of the shoulder, right up against the ribeye, and that neighbourhood is where its tenderness comes from.
- TK Shoulder Kalochel and Chuck Kalochel Round Roast — the mock tender, a cone-shaped muscle sitting over the top of the shoulder. Lean, honest, and at its best braised or cubed for a stew rather than roasted fast.
- TK Rib Roast — the rib section, bone in, sold by the rib. TK Boneless Ribeye Roast is the same muscle taken off the bone.
- TK London Broil — a lean shoulder slab. London broil is really a method rather than a muscle: roast or broil it whole, then slice it thin across the grain.
The steaks
- Rib Steak, Prime Ribeye Steak and Tomahawk Cowboy Steak — the rib, in three presentations. Same muscle, more or less bone.
- Surprise Steak — the cap that lies over the ribeye. The most marbled piece on the whole animal, and traditionally the one butchers kept for themselves.
- Club Steak — also off the rib rather than the shoulder, which is why it eats tender under dry heat.
- Skirt Steak — the diaphragm. Long, loose grain and enormous flavour; always slice across it. Rolled Skirt Pinwheel Steaks are the same muscle rolled and cut into rounds so the grain spirals.
- Back Steak (Hanger Steak) — hangs off the last rib, one per animal. That scarcity is the whole reason it's called the butcher's cut.
- Eye Of The London Broil (Oyster Steak) — the shoulder tender, a small lean muscle buried in the shoulder.
- Marinated Denver Steak — a tender cut off the shoulder that takes a marinade well and grills fast.
- Chuck Steak and Beef Shoulder Steak — the chuck, which carries more fat than the shoulder cuts around it and repays it in flavour.
- Pepper Steak — sliced thin off the shoulder eye for high, fast heat. Stir-fry meat, not a steak to put on a plate whole.
- Beef Blade Minute Steaks and Fast Fry Steak — cut thin off the blade for weeknights. Two minutes a side.
- Shank Steaks — cross-cut through the shank, bone and marrow in the middle. Braise, never grill.
The slow cuts
TK Beef Cheek Meat is a muscle that works all day long, which is precisely why it turns silky after a few hours and stays tough before then. Whole Shank and TK Beef Shank Stewing Meat hold their shape for neat portions. Beef Marrow Bones aren't really meat at all — they're what gives a pot its body.