Supermarket steaks vs. Ye Olde Butcher Shoppe

[MarketStEl]

BTW--while I was trying to find out what this mystery breed of cattle is, I found this interesting article on slate that gives an overview of the Angus explosion (perhaps mainly due to the fact that they fatten up quickly), exposes the myth of the well-marbled steak, and compares various steaks bought from various sources, and determines that the best tasting one was grass-fed and the least marbled: http://www.slate.com/id/2152674/

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And the least expensive to boot!

A fascinating piece, and after reading it, it seems that beef is like so many other foodstuffs we buy: In order to achieve consistency, we have bred flavor out of the product.

I found the cheese analogy apt in the Slate article, for I have become quite familiar with the variations in flavor you get when you produce foods according to the dictates of nature rather than industry via a Cheddar-style cheese produced in Lancaster County (which, if you haven't figured this out yet, is the fount of all that is right and good about Pennsylvania agriculture) from milk from grass-fed cows. The winter variety is noticeably different from the summer variety (it's sweeter). The Slate article noted that some producers of strictly grass-fed beef refused to provide steaks for their taste test because they could not guarantee consistency.

I think it would require a major educational effort to get millions of consumers to expect inconsistency when buying meat in order to get better tasting steaks. Not to mention that the consumers would then need a bunch of information at the store to make their choice (the labels would have to display where the beef was raised, how long the cattle were fed where, and what they ate). Something tells me that many consumers just don't want to put in that level of effort in order to pick a steak -- or a lot of other foods, for that matter.

[Baggy]

Don’t we want to rely on someone who has expertise and experience? The USDA grading system has proven itself to be a fairly good marker for the quality of a carcass, but as pointed out, the breed makes a big difference to taste and quality, as does the way the cattle have been raised and the food they have eaten. Identifying provenance helps, but is no better than a minimum standard (like USDA grading); and it still won’t help in the shop to spot a good steak from an average one.

So I would suggest that recruiting and training butchers in traditional skills has higher priority than education for consumers (except to create demand). I want a butcher that is consistent – if he/she tells me that the meat is ‘good’, I don’t care if that means average or spectacular provided I know how to interpret it (just like a critic, you don’t believe what they say, but you know where you stand on a relative scale). I also want a butcher who has the technical skill to cut meat to bring out the best eating quality, not someone who cuts everything with a band saw. And I want choice of butcher and competition to encourage standards.

We rely on the wine merchant to select/propose the estate and year from within a region, we rely on the cheese seller to tell us when a particular cheese is going to be at its peak, we rely on food critics to tell us which restaurants are good (or is it to help us avoid the bad ones?); and we should expect to rely on our butcher to select our meat.

If the butcher tells us that because of the season, beef is not at it’s best, first, that should be reflected in the price and, second, I can make an informed choice about buying it (or deciding how best to cook it). Inconsistency is not a problem in itself, only the lack of reliability – plain grilling a steak and finding that the taste is not good is too late; buying a steak and grilling it with split pepper because the flavour is not at its peak is OK.

[David Ross]

So I would suggest that recruiting and training butchers in traditional skills has higher priority than education for consumers (except to create demand).  I want a butcher that is consistent – if he/she tells me that the meat is ‘good’, I don’t care if that means average or spectacular provided I know how to interpret it (just like a critic, you don’t believe what they say, but you know where you stand on a relative scale).  I also want a butcher who has the technical skill to cut meat to bring out the best eating quality, not someone who cuts everything with a band saw.  And I want choice of butcher and competition to encourage standards.

We rely on the wine merchant to select/propose the estate and year from within a region, we rely on the cheese seller to tell us when a particular cheese is going to be at its peak, we rely on food critics to tell us which restaurants are good (or is it to help us avoid the bad ones?); and we should expect to rely on our butcher to select our meat.

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I would like to think that in a perfect world that your suggestion of recruiting and training butchers in the traditional meat cutting trade would be ideal. But I doubt that will ever happen in America.

I don't think we can ever break the economic reality of today's supermarket meat cases-it is cheaper to hire someone to unpack boxes of beef and put them in a meat case. At best, many of the people employed at the mass markets in the US-aka WalMart, unpack cases of meat in the back room, repack it, price it and put it in a case out on the floor of the store. They don't do much actual cutting of meat.

For those of us serious cooks and anyone serious about the beef we eat, I think we have to be resigned to taking a bit more time, effort and maybe drive a bit further to seek out a reliable butcher or good meat counter within the supermarket.

But you do have an interesting point and one that I think would be quite profitable-a traditional butcher who markets their shop much like a fine wine shop. It would a 'Beef Sommelier' if you will-someone who can choose beef at its peak of flavor from properly fed cattle and cut the meat to draw the greatest flavor out of each cut. That is something that would certainly sell in the U.S., albeit in a high-income demographic that would support that type of butcher shop.

[Prawncrackers]

This has been a fascinating thread to read and it’s clear that many of us here are passionate about keeping traditional butchers alive. Sadly the case in the UK, as discussed earlier, reflects that in the US. The advent of supermarkets has meant the decline in the number of traditional butchers.

The economies of scale that supermarkets operate in will always lead to cheaper and by my reasoning lower quality meats. If you give the majority of people the choice between ordinary beef and top-quality beef, the majority would naturally choose the better beef even if they couldn’t tell the difference between the two! However, this is not the choice most people have to make in a supermarket. It’s all about price. Folks just want their meat as cheaply and as conveniently as possible. I think there must be some truth with this price issue as the only locales with good traditional butchers are the middle-class or more affluent ones.

I believe there is a whole generation of people in the UK that have never stepped into a traditional butcher’s shop. There must be such an ignorance to them now that it must seem like a niche business to them, something to rank alongside pet grooming!

So, to get back to the point of the topic – yes, I think there is a huge difference between the quality of the beef in a UK supermarket and that of a good butchers. I’m lucky, there are two butchers near to me and beefwise one sells Angus, the other Hereford. I prefer the Angus, here is a pic I’ve posted before of some Angus rib-eye (more beef porn please ):

However, recently there has been a monthly farmers market that although there’s not as much choice in the cuts of meat, the Welsh Black Beef that one stall sells trumps both the Angus and Hereford in taste.

Just one final point: supermarkets will only have the cuts of meat that they know will sell. Although this maybe true for most businesses you can at least persuade your butchers to save you some of the good stuff like tripe and sweetbreads – try asking for those next time you’re in the supermarket!

[David Ross]

However, recently there has been a monthly farmers market that although there’s not as much choice in the cuts of meat, the Welsh Black Beef that one stall sells trumps both the Angus and Hereford in taste.

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If you get a chance, I would love to see a side by side comparison between your Angus steaks and a steak from on of the Welsh Black Beef Cattle that you refer to. That way we could see the difference in the marbling. Thanks for your insight into the issues of supermarket beef vs. butcher shop beef. Sounds like both the UK and US have seen a decline in traditional butcher shops. But I am glad that we both countries seem to be seeing a renewed interest in farmer's markets and good quality beef showing a resurgence.

We may never see the old days of butcher shops with sawdust on the floor here in the US, but I do think we will see more and more good quality beef in our supermarkets and an increase in the profitability of the remaining traditional butcher shops.

[MarketStEl]

This may sound like a tautology, but if you don't have a lot of money to spend on food, you're not going to buy expensive food, even if you would prefer it for its quality.

I'm not sure it's that people WANT their food to be as cheap as possible. For some, I think it's that they NEED it to be as cheap as possible.

Conversely, the producers also NEED it to be as cheap as possible in order to sell lots of it at a decent profit.

You might say the deck is stacked against quality, and you'd probably be right. Food isn't technology, thank God.

[Anna Friedman Herlihy]

Been away from the discussion for a couple days, so here's some thoughts related to several different posts:

1) More beef porn! LOL! In response, I just asked hubby to pull a few stills off of the video he shot of me cutting up a side of beef a couple months ago. I imagine that would qualify. Hopefully he will follow through so I can post...

2) Beef sommelier--fab title. Hubby keeps joking that if I go any further with my butchering hobby, I might not go into teaching history full-time once I finish my dissertation, but should open up a super high-end butcher shop.

3) Butcher shops for the elite vs. the poor: I'm actually not so sure that the main survival of butcher shops is only in richer areas. I think it is more of an urban phenomenon among two very different groups--the privileged gourmet and the ethnic consumer (often the low-income ethnic consumer). I've lived in several lower-income, mainly ethnic neighborhoods here in Chicago (Polish, Mexican, Puerto Rican, and African-American)--I like having a lot of space but not spending a lot of money for it. The neighborhood butcher has been a prominent feature of all those neighborhoods. I've shopped at all of them, and have to say that the quality was, in most cases, somewhat better than the supermarkets (certainly fresher), although you do find some products not available in the supermarkets (e.g. great sausages at the Polish butcher, freshly rendered lard at all of them), and the butchers have always been excited when I asked them to order particular things for me.

In our current neighborhood (mainly African-American with a range from very low income to middle income), just try getting in the door of the butcher on a Friday afternoon (payday for many). I think this particular butcher has the best quality of all the neighborhood ones that I've tried (maybe a 25 percent increase in quality over the supermarket). Before I started getting my meat direct from the farmers, if I didn't have time to make the long drive to Costco, I would often stop by this butcher (literally around the corner from us) for a pork shoulder for the smoker or some ribs or a couple of hand-cut porterhouses, and several times got to marvel at the crush of bodies packed into an area in front of the counter the size of a large bathroom (and got to answer lots of curious questions about how I found out about the butcher, since I stood out as the only white customer). I'm sure even now that I am getting the meat from the farmers, I will still stop in occasionally for certain things (a pig, or cow, or lamb only has so many of each part, after all, and specific recipe cravings do happen despite what might be lurking in the freezer).

As for people preferring low price and convenience over quality: I would say our current neighborhood butcher is slightly more expensive than the supermarket, and on busy days the wait can be very long, so I don't think people care about convenience--more like tradition, a chance to chat with neighbors, etc. I've had a lot of fun and met some great people huddled in the horde before the counter--reason enough to visit this butcher occasionally, even though I'm now getting most of my meat farm-direct!

Edited July 18, 2007 by Anna Friedman Herlihy (log)

[Baggy]

We have butchers in London who fit the same profile – Brixton and Ladbroke Grove come to mind. They are some of the very few places where it’s possible to buy goat (it’s not available in supermarkets). They sell other meat as well, but are absolutely part and parcel of the community.

Does your community African-American sell any types of meat not available at all in supermarkets?

[snowangel]

This has been a fascinating thread to read and it’s clear that many of us here are passionate about keeping traditional butchers alive.  Sadly the case in the UK, as discussed earlier, reflects that in the US.  The advent of supermarkets has meant the decline in the number of traditional butchers. 

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What's so puzzling to me is why I have such a plethora of great meat markets here in Minnesota, most of them breaking down the carcasses by hand, and doing their own version of charcuterie (more on the order of smoked and raw sausages which are not cured, but all them with their own bacon). I drive the 258 miles to our cabin up north, or go 100 miles south, and if I wanted slight detours, I could visit more butcher shops than one could count on the digits on my hands and toes, plus the digits on my family's hands and toew.

So, what's going on up here that isn't going on elsewhere?

Oh, and everyone of these butcher shops are lively and bustling with customers.

[David Ross]

This has been a fascinating thread to read and it’s clear that many of us here are passionate about keeping traditional butchers alive.  Sadly the case in the UK, as discussed earlier, reflects that in the US.  The advent of supermarkets has meant the decline in the number of traditional butchers. 

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What's so puzzling to me is why I have such a plethora of great meat markets here in Minnesota, most of them breaking down the carcasses by hand, and doing their own version of charcuterie (more on the order of smoked and raw sausages which are not cured, but all them with their own bacon). I drive the 258 miles to our cabin up north, or go 100 miles south, and if I wanted slight detours, I could visit more butcher shops than one could count on the digits on my hands and toes, plus the digits on my family's hands and toew.

So, what's going on up here that isn't going on elsewhere?

Oh, and everyone of these butcher shops are lively and bustling with customers.

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I'm wondering if it is because Minnesota and Wisconsin have a large Scandanavian and European population that supports so many good butcher shops and the tradition of sausages and wursts that go along with a good German shop?

[Anna Friedman Herlihy]

We have butchers in London who fit the same profile – Brixton and Ladbroke Grove come to mind.  They are some of the very few places where it’s possible to buy goat (it’s not available in supermarkets).  They sell other meat as well, but are absolutely part and parcel of the community.

Does your community African-American sell any types of meat not available at all in supermarkets?

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I know they sell rabbit (frozen though), and the local supermarkets do not (although the supermarket when I lived in an area with a large Hispanic population did in fact carry frozen rabbit, which was quite convenient). I've never thought of looking there for birds like guinea hen and the like. I don't think they carry goat (at least I don't remember seeing it there), but I'm sure they could order it for me. For goat, I always go down to Chicago's meatpacking district (Lake Street) where there are several wholesale places that will sell to the public (usually have to buy a whole goat though--which is not a problem for me as I just cut it up and freeze the extra cuts). [i love goat, btw., and in fact have a goat head, neck, and some offal in the freezer right now.] For rabbit, there are some great Mexican live poultry places that also have rabbit--those are the best places to go for rabbit. As a rule, most Chicago-area supermarkets usually have a pretty large selection of different species, especially if you don't mind frozen product (usually beef, pork, lamb, veal, chicken, turkey, cornish game hens, duck, quail--although not necessarily all the cuts you would want, especially with lamb and veal).

Also I realized that I neglected to mention that Chicago also has lots of great halal and Asian (mainly Chinese and Vietnamese) and some kosher butchers too (just have never lived in those neighborhoods, so have not purchased at them except for the meat counter at one large pan-Asian market that I frequent).

But I digress...off the topic at hand which is beef!

I guess what can be gleaned from my digressive post is that there are many more options for butchers (as well as availability of a wider variety of species of meat) in large urban areas with diverse populations.

[Anna Friedman Herlihy]

Prawncrackers, more beef porn for you

For others, some pics that might encourage you to buy a whole or half animal and butcher it yourself! All you need is a large cooler, a couple of good knifes (a boning and scimitar knife is what I use), a bone saw (or sterilized hacksaw), a decent amount of kitchen space, and lots of towels, paper towels, and bleach water to keep everything sanitary. Bonus tool is a vacuum sealer, so you can keep the meat longer in the freezer.

First--showing off how the half a cow (cut into primals) fits into one of the giant coolers they sell at Costco (remember the Dexter beef I'm getting is two thirds the size of a normal cow--there's also three bags of ice in there with it). BTW--next time I don't think I'm going to have it cut into primals, just forequarter, hindquarter, and center; with the pork I just get the animal cut in half down the backbone.

Next, butchering the short loin (the only section hubby filmed--the stills were his selection since he was kind enough to pull them from the video for me). Yes he promised he would edit for You Tube someday! We love our steaks, so I just cut the short loin into a bunch of steaks (this is the section you get porterhouse and t-bone steaks from, for those not familiar with the primal cuts).

Using the bone saw to cut through the last of the steaks. Note that you use the scimitar or other large knife to cut through the flesh and the saw just to cut through the bone, carefully trying to keep the flesh away from the blade of the saw (or you tear up the meat):

Look at how many steaks you end up with!

And, last but not least, some silliness (note the "Basic Butchering of Livestock and Game" book in the background and my laptop on which I had lots of helpful butchering pics cued up; also note the relative leanness and lack of marbling in these grass-fed, grass finished steaks--but so tender and flavorful at a perfect rare):

Hope that this might encourage some of you out there to buy farm-direct and try to tackle the butchering yourself (it's loads of fun!).

[David Ross]

Fantastic photos and thank you for the insight into the butchering of Mr. Beef.

I've been searching some websites that sell purely grass-fed beef. I may break down and buy one of the beasts and do a bit of my own butchering. I may need to call you if I get to a part of the animal that I can't figure out how to cut!

[Anna Friedman Herlihy]

Fantastic photos and thank you for the insight into the butchering of Mr. Beef.

I've been searching some websites that sell purely grass-fed beef.  I may break down and buy one of the beasts and do a bit of my own butchering.  I may need to call you if I get to a part of the animal that I can't figure out how to cut!

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David, PM me a week or so before you get your beef, and I'm happy to help in any way! I've got lots of resources to share (keep meaning to write an article or start up a blog or something). Keep in mind, you will have some sections where you are completely clueless (especially for me with it cut into primals: the round--what's top?, what's bottom?, although the eye was pretty easy to figure out--but I did eventually get it all figured out). You just need to get your hands dirty so to speak. And as Mettler's Basic Butchering book states, to paraphrase: it will still taste good, even if your first attempt is not necessarily beautiful! I've certainly made mistakes (I like to call it "inventing new cuts"), but it's all still edible. Although most of the butchering went far smoother than I ever anticipated. Sometimes also you just have to trust the cutting directions--it may not seem right while you're cutting, but afterwards it looks just like the butcher!

[MarkIsCooking]

Anna -

You rock! Love the 'beef porn' as you put it. I'm thinking we don't use enough beef in my house to warrant buying a half-cow, but I'm not sure.

Could you and other beef experts take a stab at these few questions??

>> If butchered and vacuum sealed, how long do you think the meat can be held in the freezer before quality starts to deteriorate??

>> What is the best method for finding a "local" farmer who sells high quality beef? I live just outside Boston, by the way.

Thanks again for the pics and info!

-Mark-

[David Ross]

Right now I am in the midst of cooking 4 ribeye steaks.

Tommorrow I will post some photos and give you a detailed recap on the results of my cooking and taste test of 'Supermarket Steaks vs. Ye Olde Butcher Shoppe Steaks.' I think you'll find the results interesting but not surprising.

[Anna Friedman Herlihy]

Could you and other beef experts take a stab at these few questions??

>>  If butchered and vacuum sealed, how long do you think the meat can be held in the freezer before quality starts to deteriorate??

>>  What is the best method for finding a "local" farmer who sells high quality beef?  I live just outside Boston, by the way.

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Mark,

Try the eatwild.com website (don't forget to look in the surrounding states too, since MA is so small).

As for vacuum sealing, the guidelines that came with my sealer say 2-3 years for beef cuts (1 year for ground). I've never let it go that long, but have had things after a year frozen, and they were fine.

[David Ross]

Since I started this topic, I figured I had an obligation to everyone by following through to answer my initial question of "Supermarket Steaks vs. Ye Olde Butcher Shoppe" with an actual taste test.

A taste test is subjective because it only reflects the personal tastes of the person eating the steak-two people might take bites out of the same steak and come up with totally opposite remarks about the texture and flavor of the steak. John may like the supermarket steak and Jane may prefer the butcher shop steak.

And as we've discussed here, John may prefer grain finished cattle while Jane prefers the earthy taste and texture of cattle fed a pure diet of meadow grass.

But in order to at least resolve in my own mind where I should buy steak and the grade of steak I should buy, last Friday I set out on a shopping trip to two supermarkets and one traditional butcher shop with the intent of buying 4 Ribeye Steaks and then taking them home, cooking them exactly the same, then tasting each steak. I'll have to leave the questions of animal husbandry, (how the cattle are raised) and the issue of grass-fed vs. corn-finished, on the "to do in the kitchen" shelf.

The first supermarket I went to was Albertson's. Albertson's markets their beef as "Blue Ribbon." Their website says that "Albertson's Blue Ribbon Beef is hand-selected and trimmed to be juicy and delicious.....Our expert butchers will be delighted to cut it your way." Well, not exactly. I saw a customer approach the teenager who was unpacking boxes of packaged steaks and asked him if he could cut a steak for him. The poor kid was very apologetic to the customer, but he couldn't oblige because he wasn't able to cut meat. The guy who cuts meat apparently doesn't work on Friday mornings at 10am, although it's a busy time at the store.

Albertson's website goes on to say that "all of our Blue Ribbon steaks are carefully naturally aged using our exclusive aging process so they're the most tender, mouth-watering steaks you've ever had." OK, but what exactly is your exclusive aging process? And by the way, if your beef is so good, why don't you tell the customer what grade it is? Is your beef USDA choice? I didn't seem to find that on your website or on the package of the steak I bought.

Here's the Albertson's "Blue Ribbon" Beef Ribeye Steak, Bone-In. It was only $5.49 per pound, by far the cheapest of the 4 steaks I tested:

Here is the Albertson's steak unwrapped. It had an odd smell, like the smell of hamburger past its 'best before' date. There were grayish brown spots running throughout the steak.

Next up was a trip to Walmart. Now Walmart doesn't seem to post information on their website about the beef they sell. And one of the 'beefs' I have with Walmart is the same 'beef' I have with Albertson's in terms of the labeling of their meats. Walmart, like Albertson's, doesn't always put the grade of steak on the label. Shouldn't that be law? I couldn't tell if the Ribeye I was buying was USDA Choice or Select. The only indication that the meat had been inspected by the USDA was a small circle that said "inspected and passed by Department of Agriculture." That's it. No indication on any label of the USDA grade of meat.Here is the basic Walmart Ribeye at $8.38 a pound.

Here is the basic Walmart Ribeye unwrapped. It was a beautiful red and smelled of nothing, which is good.

Now if you are so inclined, Walmart also sells "Genuine Steak House Choice Beef." These are steaks that are "hand-selected, hand-trimmed and packaged using our signature fresh-sealed process to give you the ultimate steak house restaurant experience." Not exactly. I don't work for Walmart so I can't argue that these steaks are or aren't hand-selected and hand-trimmed. I know they aren't hand-trimmed at my store. I bet they are trimmed and packed back at the home-base in Arkansas but I really don't know. What I do know is that the "fresh-sealed process" did not give the finished cooked steak a "ultimate steak house experience." More on that later. This Ribeye sold for $10.15 a pound.

Here is the second, supposedly 'better,' Walmart steak unwrapped. It had a clean smell but wasn't as red as the other steak. Maybe the other Walmart steak got more 'gas' before it was packaged. Most supermarket meat is 'gassed' before it is packaged so that it has staying power in the meat case. The "fresh-sealed process" that Walmart used on this steak seemd to shape it into a softball of meat-it didn't have clean, sharp edges or streaks of fat running through the steak.

Finally, I took a drive up to the 'South Hill' area of Spokane. The South Hill was traditionally the home of the old-money families of Spokane. And while the character of the area has slowly changed to a more general demographic, some of the traditional shops and stores have remained-including Egger's Better Meats-one of the few traditional butcher shops in Spokane.

I had not been up to Egger's in about seven years-a horrible mistake on my part and one that I will only get over in the coming years when I regularly patronize Egger's for my meat.

Their website gives you a glimpse into the history of this traditional butcher shop:

"Started by our uncle John, Egger’s Better Meats has been family owned/ran since 1935. There are currently four Egger’s meat markets in Spokane and Deer Park. Each individually owned and operated, and each having its own unique characteristics. All the Egger’s meat markets strive for the best in customer service, quality meat, and the best smoked products, home made the old fashioned way in our own smoke houses.

Egger’s Better Meats and Seafood was started by our father (Bob Egger) in 1962, and is located on the South Hill in Spokane, Washington. Today dad still owns the market, however, I, Jeff Egger (smoker, sausage maker), and my brother Steve Egger (butcher), still run the show with the rest of our family."

When I walked into Egger's I was immediately greeted by Steve Egger who was behind the counter cutting up meat on a huge wooden cutting table. Steve was directing four or five other guys around the shop. The first clue that Egger's was going to be the answer to my quandary over supermarket steak vs. ye old butcher shoppe were the hand-written signs hanging from the ceiling-"we cut and wrap your wild game, venison, elk and other game." And I especially liked the sign that said "we make our own bologna, salami and three kinds of bacon-regular, pepper and maple." Now trust me when I tell you any butcher who still cuts and wraps a mule deer harvested in the hills out of Spokane probably knows what he's doing when he makes his own bologna, smokes sides of pork belly or cuts you a ribeye steak.

The moment I saw the 'Prime' label on the steaks in the meat case Mr. Egger piped up to tell me he was the "only guy in town who carries Prime steaks." He went on to tell me that he doesn't even have to advertise he carries prime beef. His customers instinctively know it's always available and he never has to worry about selling his prime cuts.

I didn't ask him where the prime beef was raised, what breed of cattle it was or how it was fed. One look told me it was probably a great steak.

I bought a prime ribeye for $16.99 a pound. So for just under twenty bucks I got a prime ribeye. That's actually a value compared to what prime steaks cost in one of the high-end steakhouses in Las Vegas. Expect to pay about $50 for a prime ribeye at Craftsteak at the MGM.

A beauty for sure. It was a deep red color with clean white fat. There wasn't a hint of odor in the meat.

My God-doesn't it just look delicious? The picture of this perfect steak makes me think back to those days in the 60's when I would go with my Dad to the 'Red Steer' steakhouse at the Portland Stockyards. They served delicious, fresh steaks on sizzling platters and I especially liked the little wooden stake in the shape of a steer that told you your steak was 'medium-rare.'

This is the Albertson's ribeye in the skillet. The four steaks were all prepped and cooked exactly the same:

1-rubbed with olive oil and seasoned with sea salt, fresh ground black pepper and a dusting of Cajun seasoning.

2-seared for exactly 4 minutes per side in a hot, old-fashioned cast iron skillet.

3-the skillet with the steak put in a hot, 550 degree oven and the steak roasted for an additional 2 minutes per side.

4-the steak taken out of the skillet and rested on a rack for 2 minutes before tasting.

Here is the Albertson's ribeye on the plate. It got a nice, crusty char on the outside. The steak was only about an inch thick so it cooked a bit beyond my desired medium-rare doneness (emphasis on the rarer side of medium-rare).

Here is a close-up of the Albertson's ribeye. It was juicy and beefy but the off-putting odor I had smelled when I opened the package remained after the steak was cooked. I'd give it a grade of B-.

Here is a photo of the Walmart ribeye #1, the cheaper of the two ribeye's from Walmart. Even though this steak was seared in a cast iron pan and cooked exactly the same as the Albertson's steak, look at the results-the steak is grey and there is barely a hint of a nice, black char on the outside of the steak. Maybe the 'gas' treatment on pre-packaged steaks prevents them from getting a good sear?

This is Walmart #1 cut. Oh God that looks awful-grey, yellowish, sick, sick. The steak was actually tender and juicy and had a fair amount of beef flavor. It just looked sick. Grade C-.

This is Walmart #2, the steak they call "Genuine Steak House Choice." Yes, believe it or not this steak was cooked using the exact same method as the two previous steaks. It was by far the worst of all 4 steaks I tested. It looks like globs of beef muscle from a chuck roast. Like it's Walmart brother #2, #2 did not come close to getting a nice crusty outer char.

#2 cut. The taste was pretty much the same as Walmart #1, tender, juicy and decent beef flavor. You just had to take each glob of meat separately. Both Walmart steaks had a soft, almost gel-like texture, not the strong fibers you'd find in a good steak. Both Walmart steaks left about 2 tablespoons of what I'd call 'juices' in the pan. I imagine it is that 'nine percent solution' I read on the label that was drained into the pan. Sorry Walmart, another C-.

This is the prime ribeye from 'Ye Olde Butcher Shoppe.' The prime grade steak cooked the best-it got an incredibly crusty char on the outside very quickly and didn't leave any accumulated juices in the cast iron skillet.

The prime steak proclaimed "Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up now!" (excuse me Ms. Gloria Swanson for stealing your line). And what a closeup-a juicy, peppered, prime ribeye that looks so delicious you can't stand it.

The cut prime ribeye. This was by far the best of the 4 steaks-it cooked better than the other 3 steaks and got a nice, black crust the quickest. The prime ribeye didn't leave behind a cloud of yellowish juices in the skillet like the Walmart steaks. The prime steak had a stand-up, firm texture and fiber, yet the meat was juicy and tender. And finally, the flavor. It was that same flavor that I remember from steaks my Grandmother used to grill on the family ranch in Prineville, Oregon-steak that tasted like beef. It's hard to describe a good steak like a fine wine. If steak can be rated like a fine Merlot and it has 'bouquet' and the taste of 'chocolate and spice,' then this steak would rate in the 90's. I'd give the prime ribeye from the traditional butcher shop an A+.

And so it goes.

If I buy steak, I go to the old-fashioned butcher shop. Will I ever buy a supermarket steak again? Maybe. I cooked a fine choice grade New York a week ago that I bought at the meat counter at a nice supermarket in town. But I certainly won't be buying any pre-cut and pre-wrapped supermarket steaks again.

If I want bacon that tastes like it came from jolly old fat pig, sliced bologna to slather with mustard on white bread or a prime New York strip, I'll go vist Egger's Meats on the South Hill.

[MarketStEl]

Albertson's "Blue Ribbon" = Acme "Lancaster Brand." (Albertson's [now part of Supervalu] tried introducing the "Blue Ribbon" label in its Philadelphia operation, but apparently it didn't take.)

Maybe it's a Philadelphia thing, but you can in most cases still find the grade printed on the supermarket beef labels hereabouts. In general, regular Lancaster Brand meats these days are USDA Select, while the "Lancaster Brand Steakhouse Choice" cuts are USDA Choice Angus beef.

Frankly, it was hard to tell whether your supermarket steaks were Select or Choice; even the USDA Choice steak you got from Wal-Mart didn't look all that much more marbled than the non-Prime steaks, that rectangle of fat at the center right of the cut notwithstanding. But beef "enhanced with a...solution" of any percent would automatically be suspect in my book.

But I wonder: Would following the label instructions and marinating the steak in an herbed balsamic vinaigrette have made that Wal-Mart steak any better?

[Sony]

Great play-by-play, Mr. Ross. Thank you. Even after seeing the yechy steaks, that last prime one has me craving beef.....

[David Ross]

Albertson's "Blue Ribbon" = Acme "Lancaster Brand."  (Albertson's [now part of Supervalu] tried introducing the "Blue Ribbon" label in its Philadelphia operation, but apparently it didn't take.)

Maybe it's a Philadelphia thing, but you can in most cases still find the grade printed on the supermarket beef labels hereabouts.  In general, regular Lancaster Brand meats these days are USDA Select, while the "Lancaster Brand Steakhouse Choice" cuts are USDA Choice Angus beef.

Frankly, it was hard to tell whether your supermarket steaks were Select or Choice; even the USDA Choice steak you got from Wal-Mart didn't look all that much more marbled than the non-Prime steaks, that rectangle of fat at the center right of the cut notwithstanding.  But beef "enhanced with a...solution" of any percent would automatically be suspect in my book.

But I wonder:  Would following the label instructions and marinating the steak in an herbed balsamic vinaigrette have made that Wal-Mart steak any better?

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I know, I thought the same thing about the Walmart steak, i.e. 'marinating it in an herbed balsamic vinaigrette.' Hmm, a poor grade steak doused with vinegar? I actually thought it was funny when I saw that cooking suggestion printed on the label of the Walmart steak. Do most people who buy steaks at Wal-Mart also buy fresh herbs and balsamic vinegar? Do they know what balsamic vinegar is and how to use it in cooking? It's sort of like asking a guy who welds pipes if he wants a Bud Lite or a vintage, first-growth red wine from Bordeaux with his cheeseburger. I shop at Walmart for certain things so I'm certainly not a Walmart snob, I just won't buy a steak there again.

[mrsteak]

"The prime ribeye didn't leave behind a cloud of yellowish juices in the skillet like the Walmart steaks"

Well, now I'm feeling sick.

A good comparison report - there's nothing like doing "Ribeye Research" is there? Ribeye for $5.49 per pound? That's downright scary, but so is Albertsons. I shop sometimes in Walmart, never for food, but I have looked at their meat and it looks like it was possibly packaged in some undisclosed location and embalmed for your dining pleasure. That Albertsons "Blue Ribbon" beef is Select. Yes, there is a law about the grading of beef, but only for the inspectors grading it on the wholesale side - the stores do not have to disclose that to shoppers. Respectable stores will, and, to me, Albertsons and Walmart do not fall into that catagory when it comes to meat.

When one of the mini-chain, family owned supermarkets that have real butchers and sell both Prime and Choice Angus that I mentioned earlier in this thread opened near us the Albertsons that was a mile away only managed to chug along for about a year before it closed down. I pay $12.99 - $13.99 for prime ribeye but the family raises their beef locally and this is cattle country so I know we get somewhat better of a price here. Their filets are $17.99 - $18.99 but although that cut works well in some dishes I still believe a ribeye has the best flavor and texture.

Now I'm hungry for steak again but there are some chicken breasts that need to be eaten tonight. Oh, well.

[Anna Friedman Herlihy]

David,

Excellent post about your comparison!

Makes me want to do my own out of curiosity. Although I would probably do t-bones (mine and hubby's fave).

[David Ross]

David,

Excellent post about your comparison!

Makes me want to do my own out of curiosity. Although I would probably do t-bones (mine and hubby's fave).

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Your juicy, red, hand-cut steaks have the supermarkets beat hands-down. Did you mention that your beef is purely grass-fed? Do you notice a taste difference with the grass-fed beef?

I chose the ribeye because it happens to be the popular steak of choice in Eastern Washington. I personally prefer the rib as a prime rib roast and not a steak.

My first choice for steak is New York and Tenderloin second.

It was really intriguing doing the actual taste test and I just knew the photos would tell a good tale of the tape so to speak.

[chappie]

Speaking of "beef porn," I always thought someone should do a racy, meat-enthusiast glossy mag, filled with ... um ... juicy? photos entitled ... wait for it ... "Carniwhore."