Re:Experiment #4: semi-boneless leg of lamb

[Scott Mark]

aiki wrote:

quote :

You were trying to free up freezer space!
I am wanting to get a really good aged ribeye to celebrate my father’s 94th birthday in April, so the one in the refrigerator is a first run!! He has always loved the fat in the meat (guess that shoots down a longevity theory)…..

Thanks for the info. It really has helped.

I just want to point out, in case it helps. In meat discussion, we often mention intramuscular fat. This stuff is generally considered to be a good thing for flavor and texture. I’m sure that there are people who prefer less intramuscular fat and as far as I’m concerned they are welcome to eat chicken. Anyway, large amounts of intramuscular fat creates choice and prime cuts of beef.

Extramuscular fat is _delicious_ if treated properly. But, in general, it is discarded in the United States. Traveling abroad, I was taken aback when I had a steak with a local – I trimmed certain fat and gristle, he ate the whole thing.

Getting back to the sub-primal: I pulled as much of the extramuscular fat away and gave the guests only the “lean” of the sub-primal. In USA, I think that the extramuscular fat would have been waste in either case: I pulled it before creating steaks, or the guests would have left it on their plates if I’d not pulled it.

Maybe the next test is to direct-compare an aged sirloin to an aged ribeye or strip loin, started on the same day. Even though the sirloin will be cheaper.