“When the Weather Turns” Cooking Project

Over the years Dave has helped select cuts of meats for our friends and their special occasion recipes. (Without fail. Well…as far as we have been told!) Several times they have asked him to teach them more about the cuts and after some arm twisting and possibly a few beers as incentive, they finally talked him into doing it.

I decided the best way to teach them the cuts of meat, how they are best prepared and where they come from in the animal, would be to cook them--ALL OF THEM! And since prepping and cooking an entire animal throughout the winter seemed like a half ton undertaking, we enlisted a lot of meat loving friends to undertake the “When the Weather Turns” cooking project.

Our goal is to start with the steer, have Dave choose a cut, help us choose a dish that showcases the cut and then 2 or 3 of us butcher the meat, prepare the dish and have the others over for a meal. After eating our prized steer parts we have an educational component. We blog on this very site to let our retail customers better understand what cuts of meat can be used for what recipes. We hope you enjoy learning about our efforts as much as we do devouring them! In October, look for Steer Part I, The Loin--Butchering a New York strip loin and grilling New York strip steaks.

“When the Weather Turns” Cooking Project Team plans to learn a great deal throughout this process and we hope our retail customers will, too. If so, look forward to next winter’s cooking project-the hog!

When the Weather Turns: Winter Cooking Project #1

September 14, 2008

The Tutor: Davo

The Organizer: Karrie

The Tutees/Bloggers: Christie, Lizz, Mary, and Jen P. (who was in and out of the kitchen for her KEEN volunteer commitment)

Cut and Grade of beef: USDA Choice New York Strip from the loin of the steer (some people call it a top loin, but strip loin is more correct)

Price point: Whole strip, 11-15 pounds @ $5.95/lb versus 8-16 oz strip steaks @ or $14.95/lb choice, $23.50/lb prime

Why Jefe Dave chose it: It’s the most basic and popular cut for restaurant and home chefs (Did we mention Dave disapproves of this nickname???)

Recipe: The Saloon’s Cheese Steak Sandwich with BBQ Mayonnaise (adapted by Cooking Project Members since our organizer can’t follow a recipe precisely) from the Steak Lover’s Cookbook by William Rice.

Why we chose it: You don’t get too many wonderful weeks of weather in Chicago so we wanted to grill. Little did we know hurricane Ike was in town so we ended up indoors. Oh, well, we were closer to the tv and it is football season. We also wanted to use the green peppers from Karrie’s garden and red peppers, onions, bread and cheese from the farmers market so this dish worked seasonally for us. When in the Midwest (given the right time of the year) buy from the Midwest !

The butchering

The large hunk of meat was intimidating.  How do we cut thick delicious looking strip steaks from a piece of meat as big as our torsos?  It’s challenging until Jefe Dave talks us through it and in less than 30 minutes we have 8 NY strip steaks, 2 vein steaks and enough left over for a nice big bowl of steak tartar.

We were “meatfully” blessed with an 11 pound boneless strip loin whichis a portion of the short loin. If the short loin was left whole and bone in, we could have made other popular cuts of steak, such as the porterhouse, but today we chose the NY Strip.

The loin is weighed down by the “tail”, a fatty piece running the entire bottom of the loin. The tail varies in size and is measured at both ends in inches. Trimming this piece off was our first butchering assignment (unfortunately it’s not as risqué as it sounds). Our loin had a 1 inch tail at both ends, which means it had a “1x1 trim.” Loin cuts can have larger tails and the larger the tail the less expensive the loin should be – it carries more fat which adds weight but not steak yield.

Dave informed us that some people like to keep as much fat as possible on the outside but the actual flavoring of the meat comes from the marbling, the inner muscular fat on the inside of the meat. So, under Jefe Dave’s watchful instruction, Lizz, who tackled our butchering and trimming, felt for a natural tough spot along the length of the tail and cut along that seam and cut off our 1x1 trim. Much to the dogs’ dismay, we discarded this piece. You may want to find a more inventive use for the tail and if you do, good for you.

The next step in the butchering process was to slice off the fat and sinew from the inside of the loin. Unlike the marbling inside the beef, the fat & sinew around the outside of the cut can render the cooked piece chewy and unpleasant. Cut these pieces away from the meat as close as you can without taking away too much of the good stuff.     We tossed these fatty scraps too. Our meat Sherpa Dave said that wholesalers sometimes take these trimmed tail and fat slices and render them down into grease that can be used to make tasty beef fat for frying and even more creative things like lip stick or candles. We decided to save the craft making for another day.

The top of the loin, the side that was closest to the outside of the animal when it was still chewing cud and impairing the ozone layer with its gas, is a thick and ample layer of fat called the “fat cap.” The fat cap must also be removed, but unlike the other side which you want to cut down to reveal as much meat as possible, a thin layer of the fat cap can be left on the meat. To remove the fat cap start at one end and either work it loose with your hands or use a chef’s knife to cut it away, then toss it. (Picture 2-Dave)

Now you’ve got a piece of loin that’s just about ready for butchering into steaks. You’ll notice that there is a section running the length of the meat, opposite the tail side, that seems a little fatty – this is called the “strap” – this is where the animal’s muscles met. This piece can be trimmed away but it’s not necessary. You can expect to see this piece left on the steak when served in restaurants.

The only thing left to do before slicing up your steaks is to trim the “rib end.” The rib end is the end of the loin that would normally point toward the middle of the animal, it’s opposite the “sirloin end,” which points towards the steer’s ass, and you can tell the difference on your loin because the sirloin end is wider than the rib end and has a “vein” end which is described later.

So, use your knife to square up the rib end and start slicing your steaks. We cut our steaks approximately 1.5 inches thick. We used a handy scale to weigh each piece, trying to keep them uniform in weight. Now we could really see the level of marbling, the thin streaks of fat running throughout the steak, in our meat. A Choice grade piece of meat has varying levels of marbling and the more marbling in the meat the better. If you want a steak with great marbling look for Angus or Prime. When cooked properly, the fat that causes the marbling effect melts into the meat creating the tender juiciness that makes steak so addictive. The marbling on our steer (a.k.a. Mr. Bessie) was low but that’s probably because Dave knew better than to blow a really nice piece of beef on a bunch of novices. 

Karrie was our knife master for this part of our class and she took that 11lb. hunk and whittled it down into ten total steaks that averaged about 10 ounces each. Eight of those steaks were what Dave called “center cut,” meaning that they came from the part of loin that would naturally lay closer to the center of the cow. Two of the steaks, the 2 closest to the sirloin end of the loin, were called “vein cut” because they both had an unattractive, large vein running through the outer edge of the steak. This vein becomes gristly and tough when cooked and takes away from the quality and experience of eating the steak. Depending on how you cut your steaks you can also end up with a “shadow steak.” This steak will look perfect on one side, but when you flip it over it has the pesky vein running through the other side.

A word of warning, grocers and chefs will often try to sell you vein steaks at the same price as the preferable center cut steaks – do not be fooled! Either barter for a better price or send back your sizzle platter and request a free dessert for your troubles.

We still had a little end piece left with some good meat on it, not enough to make a steak out of but too good to throw away, so we chopped it up for a little appetizer of steak tartar (dijon mustard, capers, onion, paprika, salt, pepper, srircha chile sauce, and a raw egg). While we marveled at Lizz and Karrie’s knife skills and patted ourselves on the back for a job well done, Dave did some mind boggling math on the fly so we could find out just how much we saved cutting up our own NY Strips versus buying them portioned at the grocer. Christie and Mary had too many Miller Lites by then to follow the algebra, but only the final result mattered – we saved a bundle which was perfect since we were making enough food to feed a football team. (For those of you who want to see the numbers crunched, the math is below).

When Jen P. returned from her volunteer commitment (which became as much about her preoccupation with NY strip as working with the kiddies), the When the Weather Turns Cooking Project Team and the football fans who finally moved their buns off the couch fell on the platter of steaming, spicy, cheesy NY strip steak sandwiches, sucking BBQ mayo and meat juice from fingers. To think the deluge of 2008 and a mini fender bender almost prevented this meal from happening but the When the Weather Turns Cooking Project team was determined; we had a hunk of meat to cut, cook and savor, while learning lots from the Meat Man.

It may seem like an abomination to hack up a bunch of beautiful, freshly cut steaks for sandwich meat, but that’s just what we did. The strip steaks joined the crusty bread, a mountain of locally made shredded cheeses, farmer’s market peppers and onions, home blended BBQ mayo, hand chopped rice wine vinegar slaw and hand cut, twice fried French fries (recipes below) to become a bounty fit for Sunday dinner, which we happily gorged on in front of Sunday football. Deluges and car accidents be damned.

The confusing but correct math on NY strip loin vs pre portioned NY trip steaks:

JDY Retail Pricing is Applied

8 center cut steaks, approximately 10oz each (5 pounds x $5.95/lb=$29.75)

2 vein no vein steaks, approximately 11.5oz each (1.44 pounds x $4.50/lb=$6.47)

Trim, 5oz (.313 pounds x $2.50/lb=$.78)

Our strip was 11 pounds x $5.95/lb=  $65.45

Vein steak                                           - $6.47

Trim                                                     -   $.78

Cost for 8pcs 10oz c.c. strip steaks     $58.20

5# NY strip steaks x $11.64/pound=$58.20

10oz steak divided by 16oz (16oz=1 pound)=.625 x $11.64/lb=$7.28 per steak

Retail price on a 10oz NY strip steak .625 x $14.95/lb=$9.34/steak

5# NY strip steaks x $14.95/lb=$74.75

Savings=$16.55 (plus 2 vein steaks and trim=$23.80)

The Saloon’s Cheese Steak Sandwich (Paraphrased) We doubled it to accommodate other guests who came just for the football. They are all about eating the meat, not butchering or cooking it.

1 Cup mayo

1 Tbs bbq spice (we used the Spice House’s Milwaukee Iron Seasoning)

2 Tsp fresh lemon juice

1 Tsp minced garlic

1 Tsp paprika

½ Tsp minced jalepeno

Cayenne pepper and salt to taste

4 Tbs olive oil

1 Lg onion, thinly sliced

1 Small red bell pepper-julienned

1 Small green bell pepper-julienned

4 Strip steaks (about 10 oz each, 1 inch thick)

8 Sub sandwich rolls (we chose ciabatta)

8oz Sharp cheddar, shredded

8oz Monteray jack, shredded (we opted for a mild, chipotle cheddar from the North Center farmers market)

Combine the mayo, bbq spice, lemon juice, garlic, paprika, jalepeno, cayenne, and salt and whisk until well blended.

Preheat the broiler

Heat 2 tbs of the oil in a large sauté pan over medium. Add the onion and bell peppers and sauté until soft and start to color (approx. 8 minutes). Remove pan from heat and season veggies with salt.

Pat steaks dry and coat with remaining 2 Tbs of oil. Broil steaks until seared and well crusted on one side (approx. 4 minutes). Turn, season with salt, and cook the 2^nd side for 4 minutes (medium rare), 5 for medium (we don’t recommend anything but rare or medium rare!). Transfer steaks to a cutting board.

Reheat the veggies while cutting steaks crosswise in ½ inch thick slices. Spread the bbq mayo on both sides of the ciabatta, add steak slices, top with veggies, sprinkle cheese over all. Broil, 2 at a time, until the cheese melts. Serve asap.

The Starter: Jefe Dave woke up early rocked out an amazing gazpacho from Le Cordon Bleu’s Professional Cooking Fourth Edition by Wayne Gisslen. He used 2.5 pounds of farmers market (and some store bought) tomatoes, 1 pound of cukes, 8oz of onions, 4oz of green peppers-seeded, ½ tsp of crushed garlic, 2oz of fine bread crumbs, 1 pint of tomato juice, 3oz of red wine vinegar and 4oz of olive oil. He blended all the ingredients until liquefied and chilled it in a clay pitcher. Right before serving he barbequed some shrimp and fried prosciutto slices to accompany this great chilled dish. 

Side #1: Coleslaw

The saloons recipe recommended serving with slaw so we chose a vinegary recipe since so many friends of ours have mayonnaise (and other white, creamy food) issues. The Carolina coleslaw recipe from about.com was a bust so we will not share it with you. On a whim Karrie, who hates to follow recipes anyway, whipped up a much tastier slaw on her own. She combined cabbage, carrots and onions in the food processor then added rice wine vinegar, olive oil, 2 tbs of mayo, celery seed, sugar, salt, pepper to taste. It tasted even better on day #2. Not bad in a pinch.

Side #2: Les Halles Fries from Anthony Bourdain’s Les Halles Cookbook, Jefe Dave’s favorite cookbook. Chef Bourdain was so impressed with the filth and wear of this book when it was signed. (The following “recipe” is the short version. You gotta buy the book to get the good stuff!)

We recommend this recipe to anyone who has never made frites at home. In fact, it is the only one we use!!! Bourdain not only gives you his recipe, but teaches you how to not F up your frites! He talks you through the amount of oil to use (lots of it!), the right potato (Idaho), blanching then frying then draining and seasoning.

Ingredients: 4 big long potatoes, 2 quarts peanut oil (We used some crazy Japanese oil left over from a sushi party. Won’t be using that again as it was too hard to keep the oil up to temperature.) And salt (Bourdain says table, but we only had sea salt)

Peel potatoes, cut into ½ inch/1 cm thick sticks. Put in bowl of ice water for a minimum of 30 minutes. Rinse with cold water to remove starch.

Heat oil to 280% F. Cook potatoes in batches, about 6-8 minutes until soft and semitranslucent white. Don’t get impatient and yank out early! Remove from the oil with a skimmer, spread evenly on a baking sheet and let rest for 15 minutes.

Bring oil to 375% F and fry blanched potatoes in batches for 2-3 minutes or until crispy and golden. Remove from oil with skimmer, shake off excess oil and serve IMMEDIATELY in a large bowl lined with a clean, dry towel. Add salt to taste and whip out the towel. Toss fries around in bowl and serve while still hot.

We had 12 big potatoes which Jefe Dave taught Jen P. how to cut and poor Mary was suckered into frying our spuds for at least an hour. But like Mary said when the rest of us wimpy girls passed on the fry job, she’s Irish--they’re used to frying things! We had some issues getting the oil hot enough. We think it may have something to do with the fact that you know who doesn’t read recipes and substituted some random Japanese oil (seriously, not a word in English) versus Bourdain’s peanut oil recommendation. Despite this difficulty, these fries were so good, the first few batches never even made it to our serving plate.

To drink: Lizz gifted us with a great Napa Valley claret from Newton Winery and bottle #2 was a red zinfandel from the Russian River Valley . Since we were downing steak sandwiches and it is footie season, we tore into some Fat Tires, Stellas and the old Chicago standby, Miller Lite. Don’t remember much after that. Except maybe….

Dessert! Grilled peaches and vanilla ice cream

Peaches are in season at the farmers market so we picked some up from the one in Lincoln Square . We halved the peaches, grilled them on both sides long enough to get grill marks, drizzled with unfiltered honey Dave and Karrie found at the Atwater Marche in Montreal, and topped with ice cream. At some point, we decided to crumble salty pretzels on top. I guess in our buzzed state we thought we were the real Ben and Jerry. Delish!

The Perspective of a Home Chef by Jen P.

Ah, the strip, NY strip steak.  It was all I could think about when I left to volunteer with KEEN and it kept me preoccupied ‘til I could return to our first “When the Weather Turns” Cooking Project...

My goal for this class was to get comfortable with and get me some meat!  Now I believe I can to go to a meat counter, armed with my own knowledge and confidence (with “what would Jefe Dave do (WWJDD)” in mind) and know that I can choose a great cut of meat and cook it when I get home.  Class one taught me a few things, even if I still feel like I need Dave or Karrie’s help choosing meat: 1) Steak is great. 2) Wine is fantastic in moderation (and someday I will figure that one out). 3) Dave is a great teacher.

Next time, I cut the meat!

Cooking project #2: Jefe Dave’s birthday dinner on 10/4. We’re thinking short ribs so we can feed the masses joining us to watch the Cubbies playoff game. sdsadasdsadsadasds