Sometimes, there's nothing I crave more than a quality steak. Unfortunately, great cuts of meat are pricy, and I just can't afford to have it very often.
But did you know? It's possible to make cheaper, tougher cuts of meat like flank steak more tender by thinly slicing against the grain, or perpendicular to the orientation of the muscle fibers. America's Test Kitchen is back with a brand new video that proves how properly slicing steak — especially cheaper cuts like flank steak — can make all the difference. In fact, slicing a flank steak properly can make it tender enough to rival premium steaks!
Flank steak contains wide muscle fibers and a relatively high proportion of connective tissue that make it chewy. Slicing it against the grain shortens those muscle fibers, making it easier to chew.
In the tutorial below, Dan uses a fancy CT3 Texture Analyzer to test how much force is required to "bite" into the slices. Flank steak sliced with the grain was nearly 200 percent tougher than strip steak sliced with the grain, but that difference dropped to just 16 percent when both types of steak were sliced against the grain.
Watch the video below to find out more, and please SHARE this great kitchen tip with your friends on Facebook!
