Know Your Food: Steaks | OpenRice Singapore

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Photo courtesy of allfoodconsidered.com

We feel for you! So, we sought the help of an expert to share his knowledge on the basic cuts of steaks — Morton’s Steakhouse, one of the restaurants which serves the best steaks. Lucky us, Executive Chef Derrick Poh took the time off from his busy schedule to educate us about them. But first, he said that for you to understand steaks and these cuts, you need to know what marbling means. If you look at a raw piece of steak, you see those white lines. Well, those are streaks of fat aka marbling. When the meat has been “richly marbled”, there are a lot of these thick white lines.

For a clearer picture, there’s a 12-point marbling score scale. Obviously, the higher the grade, the better, and for the top grade stuff, grade 12, it tells you that the beef is 90% fat and 10% meat.

As for how to cook the steak, Chef Poh mentioned that this is referred to as doneness. The types are: 1. Rare - Cooked in very high heat for about 2 minutes. The sides are browned but the middle part is still reddish. 2. Medium Rare - This is the recommended doneness by Morton’s Steakhouse for it brings out the tenderness and real flavours of the meat. This is cooked in high heat for about 2 to 3 minutes per side making the sides brown and firm. The centre, though, remains tender and pinkish. 3. Medium - This is cooked in very high heat for about 5 to 6 minutes per side. As such, the sides are brown but not charred. The meat inside is also more brown than pink.

Executive Chef Derrick Poh of Morton's Steakhouse

4. Medium Well - This is cooked in very high heat for 1 minute on each side, then on medium heat for about 5 to 6 minutes per side. The prolonged cooking time really cooks the meat up to the centre, so there isn’t much pink colour left. 5. Well Done - This is cooked on medium heat for about 10 to 12 minutes each side. As a result, the meat is firm and brown in the centre. Take note: being brown is not the same as being burnt. And now, the basic cuts of steak:

1. Filet Mignon Known as the ladies’ steak, the filet is taken from the smaller end of the tenderloin. This part of the cow doesn’t really do much work so there’s not much fat in it and is very tender. For those who want a healthier option, this is your best bet!

2. Rib Eye Most people would agree that this cut from the cow’s fore rib is the best part. It has a central piece of fat which is richly marbled; hence, it is very tasty.

3. New York Strip Found at the cow’s short loin, the New York strip is one of the most flavourful cuts. It has a rich marbling so you can expect this part to be very flavourful.

4. Bone-in Ribeye This meat, which is closer to the ribs, is actually more flavourful. Why? Because when it’s grilled, the bone gives an additional flavour to the meat. Aside from that, it is richly marbled so you can expect the meat to taste really good.

5. Double Porterhouse Steak This is quite a special cut because it has the best of both worlds—the filet mignon and the New York strip.

6. Sirloin Steak This cut is found between the short loin and rump steak. Though it is tougher than the short loin, it is still quite flavourful due to the tasty fats or rich marbling found in this area. (Photo courtesy of Well Hung Meat)

7. Hanger Steak One of the most expensive cuts is the Hanger steak. This is found in the cow's underside and 'hangs' between the rib and the loin. Though it has a grainy texture, it is still flavourful if cooked correctly. (Photo courtesy of Culinary Society)

If you check out the cow photo above, there are many more cuts of steaks available. These are just some of the most basic and popular ones with the most flavour. OPENRICE GIVEAWAY! Which are your top 3 favourite steak restaurants? Tell us and you could win a pair of Cathay Movie Vouchers! To join the contest, just follow these simple steps: Step 1: Like the OpenRice Facebook Page Step 2: Like this article (just look for the FB like button below the article) Step 3: Leave a comment below telling us which are your 3 favourite steak restaurants Contest has ended. The 3 winners who have won a pair of the Cathay movie vouchers are: 1. kyriehosanna 2. justin.chong 3. d3vtw We will drop you an email on how you can claim your prize. Thanks for joining! Special thanks to Morton's Steakhouse and June Chow of Grebstad and Hicks Communication (GHC) for this feature See Also: Stand a chance to win attractive prizes here Check out more Western food options here