Chuck steak is a

cut of beef During butchering, beef is first divided into primal cuts, pieces of meat initially separated from the carcass. These are basic sections from which steaks and other subdivisions are cut. Since the animal's legs and neck muscles do the most work, ...

and is part of the sub-prime cut known as the chuck. The typical chuck steak is a rectangular cut, about 2.5 cm (1 inch) thick and containing parts of the shoulder bones of a

cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, bovid ungulates widely kept as livestock. They are prominent modern members of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus '' Bos''. Mature female cattle are calle ...

, and is often known as a " 7-bone steak," as the shape of the shoulder bone in cross-section resembles the numeral '7'. This cut is usually grilled or

broiled Grilling is a form of cooking that involves heat applied to the surface of food, commonly from above, below or from the side. Grilling usually involves a significant amount of direct, radiant heat, and tends to be used for cooking meat and v ...

; a thicker version is sold as a " 7-bone roast" or "chuck roast" and is usually cooked with liquid as a

pot roast Pot roast is a beef dish made by slow cooking a (usually tough) cut of beef in moist heat, on a kitchen stove top with a covered vessel or pressure cooker, in an oven or slow cooker. Cuts such as chuck steak, bottom round, short ribs and ...

. The bone-in chuck steak or roast is one of the more economical cuts of beef. In the United Kingdom, this part is commonly referred to as "

braising Braising (from the French language, French word ''braiser'') is a combination-cooking method that uses both wet and dry heats: typically, the food is first Browning (cooking), browned at a high temperature, then simmered in a covered pot in cook ...

steak". It is particularly popular for use as

ground beef Ground beef, hamburger, hamburger meat (North American English), minced beef or beef mince (Commonwealth English; often just generically referred to as ground meat, ''mince'' or ''mincemeat'') is beef that has been finely chopped with a knife or ...

for its richness of flavor and balance of meat and fat.

Variations

Other boneless chuck cuts include the chuck eye (boneless cuts from the center of the roll, sold as ''Delmonico steak'' or ''chuck eye steak''), chuck

fillet Fillet may refer to: *Annulet (architecture), part of a column capital, also called a fillet *Fillet (aircraft), a fairing smoothing the airflow at a joint between two components *Fillet (clothing), a headband *Fillet (heraldry), diminutive of the ...

(sold as ''chuck tender steak'' or ''mock tender steak''), cross-rib roast (sold as ''cross-rib pot roast'', ''English roast'', or "the bread and butter cut"), top blade steak or chicken steak, under-blade steak (otherwise known as the "Denver cut"), shoulder steak and shoulder roast, and arm steak and arm roast. The average meat market cuts thick and thin chuck steaks (often sold as ''chuck steak'' or ''chuck steak family pack'') from the neck and shoulder, but some markets also cut it from the center of the cross-rib portion. Short ribs are cut from the lip of the roll. Some meat markets will sell cross-rib pot roast under the generic name ''pot roast.'' The difference between a pot roast and a cross-rib pot roast is the vertical line of fat separating the two types of chuck meat; the cross-rib pot roast contains the line of fat. This is what creates richness of flavor in the roast.

Common uses

The chuck contains large amounts of connective tissue, including collagen, which partially melts during cooking. Meat from the chuck, once divided, is usually used for stewing, slow cooking,

, or

ing and is ideal in a one-pot cooker. The top blade part of the chuck is preferred for grilling because it is the second tenderest steak once the gristle is removed. The fifth rib taken from the chuck can also be used as an alternative to the prime rib roast, which is usually from bones 6–12. They are similar in terms of the proportion of meat and bone, although the fifth rib exceeds the prime rib in the amount of lean meat. The cross-cut or cross rib, which is the last part of the chuck located between the

brisket Brisket is a cut of meat from the breast or lower chest of beef or veal. The beef brisket is one of the nine beef primal cuts, though the definition of the cut differs internationally. The brisket muscles include the Pectoralis major, superficial ...

point and the short rib, can also be used as an alternative to the blade when cooking steaks. The chuck part cut from the shoulder clod is also used in place of

sirloin In American butchery, the sirloin steak (called the ''rump steak'' in British butchery) is cut from the sirloin, the subprimal posterior to the short loin where the T-bone, porterhouse, and club steaks are cut. The sirloin is divided int ...

since it has a very beefy taste.

Classification

In the United States, chuck has the meat-cutting classification NAMP 113.

Notes

External links

Sources