The Cuts

Below you will find a handy guide to each of the cuts you could receive throughout the year as a Brasas Ranch Subscription Member. Click Learn More for compelling background, beautiful photography, and recipes that have been designed to showcase the best of each cut. Be sure to check back frequently as our master butcher and culinary team update this page regularly. Bon appétit!

New York Strip

This classic cut from the short loin is known by many names — the Ambassador Steak; Country Club Steak; Kansas City Strip; and the Delmonico, after the famous steakhouse in New York that popularized this cut (and also inspired the New York name). 

Hangar Steak

When a cut is also called butcher’s steak because it’s prized by the person who can choose from the whole cow, you know it’s a steak to look forward to. Hanger steaks are known for theirflavor — doubly so for those from our Wagyu herd!

Smoked Beef Bacon

Just like traditional pork bacon, our smoked beef bacon is made from the belly of the animal. This kosher bacon has less fat than the pork version, but just as much savory bacon flavor.

Chuck Tender

Chuck tenders (a.k.a. mock tenders, or calachel in kosher butcher shops) are cut from the supraspinatus muscle, which is located in front of the shoulder clod in the chuck primal cut. 

Osso Buco

These cross-cut beef shanks do a lot of work during the animal’s life, so they need long, moist cooking to get them tender and juicy. Enjoy them in long-simmered dishes like French pot au feu, or Italian osso buco (with Wagyu beef, you won’t miss the veal).

Boneless Shank

The shank is one of the beefiest, most collagen-rich parts of the animal, making these boneless pieces outstanding choices for your favorite braising recipes.

Top Sirloin Steak

Also called coulotte steak, the top sirloin steak is from the triangular muscle (biceps femoris) that crowns the top sirloin. Juicy, meaty, and tender, the sirloin cap really has everything you want in a steak.

Flank Steak

This thin, fan-shaped cut is the abdominal muscle of the animal. The long, course muscle fibers are flavorful and lean, yielding a delicious steak that can be prepared quickly and stand up to strongly flavored marinades.

Skirt Steak

For many years the skirt steak was discarded into the ground beef pile in the US. There are two different skirt steaks on the animal, called the inside and the outside.

Tri Tip

The Tri Tip is a cut that was rescued from the hamburger pile in the 1950’s US by an enterprising butcher. Popularized in the in Central Valley of California, the Trip Tip became the corner stone to what is know as Santa Maria-style BBQ.

Stir Fry Strips

Having a stash of good beef already cut for stir fries or stroganoffs is a great way to make a delicious dinner quickly.

Chili Ground Beef

Chili ground beef is a technical term for beef steak trimmings that are passed through a 3/4 inch plate only once. We also prefer that most of our chili ground beef comes from the chuck where the richest flavored beef comes from.

Soup Bones

Bone broth has recently seen a resurgence in popularity. Beside its health benefits, its also very comforting in the winter. The sound of a stock pot simmering is one of Florencia’s favorite sounds in winter.

Tomahawk

This caveman-sized steak is the most coveted cut on the animal. A tomahawk steak is essentially a thick-cut bone-in ribeye with a rib handle. Cooking the ribeye on
the bone slows the cooking down, yielding a tender juicy steak that won’t dry out easily.

Galeto

“Galeto” in Portuguese refers to a tender rotisserie chicken. You ask why we have named one of our favorite BBQ cuts of beef after chicken? I can’t answer that accurately myself other than chalking it up to local lore and cultural confusion.

Braising Steaks

Our braising steaks are cut from the chuck flap on the animal’s shoulder, yielding meat rich with marbling,
and intense beefy flavor. As the name suggests, braising steaks need low and slow cooking to help break down the connective tissue.

Eye of Round Roast

The eye of round is the most desirable of all the muscle groups in the round. The cylindrical “tenderloin shape” makes it the popular choice for roast beef and classic beef roast.

Cross Rib Roast

If you’re looking for the perfect pot roast, look no further. The cross rib roast (like nearly all cuts from the chuck) are best when slow cooked to bring out its tenderness and rich, beefy flavor.

Stew Meat

This is the most luxurious stew meat you will ever find — hand-cut from both the chuck and the loin for maximum flavor and tenderness.

Tenderloin Tip & Chain

This package combines two delicious and under-appreciated parts of the tenderloin that are only available when you’re working with a whole animal. 

Brisket

The brisket is cut from the pectoral muscles of the cow
and are responsible for carrying almost 60% of the animals weight. As a result this cut of meat contains large amounts of connective tissue making this one of the tougher cuts of meat on the animal.

Flat Iron

In 2002, this cut was discovered and rescued from the ground beef pile. Within a decade it went from total obscurity to become the 5th most popular steak in America.

Tenderloin Filet

The crown jewel of beef, the tenderloin sits beneath the ribs along the backbone and is prized for its fine grain, and tender bite. Also known as the Filet Mignon, these steaks come from the peeled tenderloin with the side chain removed and then cut into steaks. 

Smoked Beef Sausage

In the Palmaz family we have a saying, “A family that grills together, lives well together.” Sunday Asados are a tradition for us, and they always start with a grilled sausage, breads and various condiments.

Ground Round

Ground Round is a fine ground beef made from the trimmings of the round or rump only. The meat cut from this primal is a lighter colored, mild flavored lean beef.

German Bratwurst

So when we started processing our own Wagyu beef we immediately began developing a signature smoked sausage for our table. After two years of delicious research, we found an artisan smokehouse on the Mendocino coast of California that specializes in small batch authentic smoked and cured meats.

Ball Tip Steak

The ball tip is found in the bottom sirloin, along with the tri-tip and flap. The ball tip is a cut that does well with cooking methods which provide extra tenderization.Think marinades or cooking with moist heat. If we are going to grill, we use a rub or marinade the ball tip steak, and slice thinly before serving.

Rib Lifter

Also known as the Blade Steak or the Oyster Steak, this cut comes from the tender meat found above the ribs. Similar to the flat iron, this well marbled and relatively tender steak is perfect for a quick grill or week night pan seared steak for two.

Chuck Eye Steak

Cut from the head of the ribeye in the animal’s shoulder area, chuck eye steaks are fast becoming the new hanger steak.Their rich, beefy flavor and moderate tenderness make a great substitute for ribeye at half the cost.

Petite Tender

The petite tender is the smallest muscle in the shoulder clod: the teres major. It is nicknamed butcher’s steak because it requires some skill to extract, and is (deservedly) popular among true beef aficionados.

Sirloin Steaks

The word “sirloin” originates from the Middle French surlonge, with sur meaning “over” and longe meaning “loin.” Sliced from the top sirloin butt subprimal cut, these top sirloin steaks really are the jewel in the crown of the sirloin primal.

Bavette

The sirloin bavette steak, also called (less flatteringly) the flap or bottom sirloin butt, is the obliquus abdominus muscle.

Center-Cut Marrow Bones

Marrow bones are one of man’s oldest food sources—dating back to when we were more scavengers than hunters. In the 1680s, well-mannered Europeans invented a special elongated spoon to extract the rich, buttery marrow with grace.

Bottom Round Cubed Steak

The bottom round is a large ball shaped muscle on the rump of the animal. This lean long-grained muscle can be tough and hence is most commonly sliced thin and tenderized.

Tira de Asado

After several conversations, photographs, and even drawings we were able to instruct our master butchers in California how to cut this popular Argentine steak.

Zabuton Slices

Considered one of the most coveted pieces of Wagyu beef in Japan. “Zabuton” means cushion in Japanese referencing the small square cushion shape of this cut. This tender and well marbled cut comes from the eye of the chuck in the shoulder.

Ground Sirloin

Our ground Wagyu sirloin is indisputably the best of all ground beefs. Because it’s made from the sirloin, which does far less work than the rump, it has more fat than ground round.

Ground Hamburger

In the spirit of using the entirety of each cow, our hamburger is made of trimmings from the primal cuts that you receive in your Brasas Wagyu beef subscription.

Corned Beef

This cut gained its popularity during WWI and WWII when fresh meat was rationed and salt-curing was the preferred method of preservation. Now with modern refrigeration, salt curing is no longer necessary but we like to keep the tradition of corned beef alive. Our’s is brined with a variety of herbs and spices and some wine (of course!) - typical of the Northern European style.