All Things MEAT Terminology

Question 1

What is American Wagyu?

Answer 1

Beef produced by breeding Japanese Black Wagyu + American Black Angus

Fed similar diets to Japanese Wagyu & takes up to 4 times longer than traditional US feeding practices but results in a highly marbled, tender product

Question 2

Method of Cooking: Barbeque

Answer 2

Meat, Poultry, or Fish are cooked in a pit/on a spit/on a grill using hot coals or hardwood as a heat source and basted with a highly seasoned sauce to keep moist

Question 3

Method of Cooking: Butter-Poached

Answer 3

A classic MINA Steak preparation!
Product is cooked in clarified butter with aromatics at a low temperature to produce a very tender, juicy piece of meat.

Question 4

What is Dry-Aging?

Answer 4

Dry-aging is the process in which large cuts of previously wet-aged beef are hung and kept in a temperature/humidity controlled refrigerator for several months to allow natural bacteria and molds to grow. Beef loses water weight to evaporation/drips out (+ beef shrinks) which allows for a more concentrated beefy flavor.

Flavors: nutty, mineral, funky, buttery, musty, and gamey

Just as juicy as wet-aged beef but better flavor

Question 5

What is Wet-Aging?

Answer 5

Large cuts of beef are sealed in airless/watertight bags and left in refrigerators for about 21 days. Enzymes naturally present in the cells leak out and break down the muscle structure of the meat, providing tender meat and flavor (not as much as with dry-aging).

99% of beef in America is wet-aged

Question 6

Japanese A5 Wagyu

Answer 6

Highest quality of beef in Japan, due to a controlled diet plan. Very high levels of monounsaturated fat with a very low melting point which means it’ll literally melt in your mouth.

Higher ratings = higher marbling & fat content

Question 7

What is Kurobuta?

Answer 7

Japanese black hogs (100% all-natural Berkshire pork)

High marbling content, darker color, richer flavor

Question 8

Masami Farms

Answer 8

A farm and meat producer of American style Wagyu

Question 9

Method of Cooking: Olive Oil-Poached

Answer 9

Product is cooked in olive oil with aromatics at a low temperature to produce a tender and juicy piece of meat

Question 10

Method of Cooking: Spit-Roasted

Answer 10

Product is prepared on the wood burning spit to produce a well-browned exterior with a moist center

Recommended for tender pieces of meat/poultry

Question 11

Cuts to Know: Bone-In Kansas City Strip

Answer 11

a.k.a. Bone-In New York Strip

From the short loin (tender section)

Equivalent of a porterhouse steak without the tenderloin (filet)

Question 12

Cuts to Know: Bone-In Ribeye

Answer 12

From the rib section (between the short loin and chuck)

Tender/flavorful & should be quickly cooked to keep its extreme tenderness

Question 13

Cuts to Know: Delmonico

Answer 13

a.k.a. Chuck eye/Chuck filet steak

From the chuck section (shoulder)

Traditionally a thicker cut

Question 14

Cuts to Know: “Eye” of Ribeye

Answer 14

Boneless, center portion of a ribeye

Well marbled and comparable cut to a filet mignon

Question 15

Cuts to Know: Filet Mignon

Answer 15

From the small end of tenderloin

Boneless and extremely tender, lacks in flavor

Question 16

Cuts to Know: Flatiron 4

Answer 16

a.k.a. Top blade steak

From top blade roast, cut horizontally to remove tough tissue

Small but flavorful, well marbles, relatively tender steak

Question 17

Cuts to Know: New York Strip

Answer 17

From the upper part of short loin

Can be bone-in or boneless cuts

Question 18

Cuts to Know: Porterhouse

Answer 18

a.k.a. New York Strip + Filet Mignon with bone
a.k.a. Porterhouses ARE T-Bones

From large end of the short loin (tenderloin + Top loin)

Considered the best and most expensive

Question 19

Cuts to Know: Ribs

Answer 19

Cut from between short loin and the chuck

Chops, steaks, and roasts are from the rib section

Very tender

Question 20

Cuts to Know: Short Ribs

Answer 20

2”-3” cuts usually from the chuck

Layers of fat and meat with rib bone

Tougher but becomes tender and flavorful after long, slow, moist-heat cooking

Question 21

Cuts to Know: Skirt Steak

Answer 21

From the beef flank (diaphragm muscle/”low belly” right above the utters)

Long flat piece that’s flavorful but tough; if properly cooked will be tender

Question 22

Cuts to Know: Tomahawk

Answer 22

From rib section (cut includes ribeye cut + 5 inches of rib bone)

Question 23

Cuts to Know: Washugyu Ribeye

Answer 23

Crossbreed of American Black Angus + Japanese Black Wagyu

From the rib section

Fat is very rich

Question 24

Porterhouse vs. T-Bone

Answer 24

Porterhouses ARE T-Bones, but T-Bones are NOT Porterhouses

Porterhouses = filet is at least 1.25” thick from the bone to the widest point

T-Bones = filet is shorter/less than 1.25” thick from the bone to the widest point

Question 25

Top 3 American grading labels from highest to lowest

Answer 25

Prime
Choice
Select

Question 26

Top 2 American breeds of cows and why?

Answer 26

1: Angus Breed

Easy to breed
Known for its fine-grained flesh/beefy flavor and propensity to marble well

Easy to breed
Good flavor/juice
Lacks in intramuscular marbling

Question 27

Wagyu or “Kobe” Breed

Answer 27

Kobe is not a breed, it’s a marketing term
Wagyu means Japanese Beef (in Japanese)

Wagyu is graded on a scale A1-A5; A5 being the best

This beef is made from a select 6 Japanese cattle breeds similar to the Angus breed. Incredibly marbled so much that the intramuscular fat can outweigh the percentage of lean meat and very flavorful/tender!

Fun Fact: Cross breeding Angus cows + Japanese breeds = American Wagyu

Question 28

Meat Temperatures

Answer 28

Blue
Rare
Medium Rare
Medium
Medium Well
Well Done
Very Well Done

Question 29

Describe a BLUE Steak

Answer 29

The rarest of rare. A steak cooked “blue” will have only a char around the outside, and will have a raw, cold center

It’s called “blue” because raw meat often has a blueish tint

Question 30

Describe a RARE Steak

Answer 30

Rare is raw, red, cool center. Soft.

Question 31

Describe a MEDIUM RARE Steak

Answer 31

Cooked exterior, red, warm center

Most common temperature/Chef preference

Question 32

Describe a MEDIUM Steak

Answer 32

Cooked exterior, warm, pink center

Question 33

Describe a MEDIUM WELL Steak

Answer 33

Only a bit of pink remains, hot throughout

Question 34

Describe a WELL DONE Steak

Answer 34

No pink remains, hot throughout

Question 35

Meat Cooking Terms: Pittsburgh

Answer 35

Heavily charred exterior, rare center

Question 36

Describe a VERY WELL DONE Steak

Answer 36

Charred exterior, no pink remains, almost no moisture remains

Question 37

Meat Cooking Terms: Black and Blue

Answer 37

Heavily charred exterior, raw interior

Question 38

Meat Cooking Terms: Butterflied

Answer 38

A steak sliced almost in half, but is held together by a thin strip of meat in order to cook steak quickly while also allowing more surface area to caramelize

Typically this means a guest wants it very well done

Question 39

Meat Cooking Terms: A Point

Answer 39

French for “just so”
It corresponds to Medium Rare

Question 40

What is Marbling?

Answer 40

Refers to the visible white streaks of intramuscular fat that runs throughout any particular cut

The intramuscular fat liquifies during the cooking process and provides a self-marinating effect – adding incredible flavor, tenderness, and texture that can be described as buttery