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Onglet, Hanger Steak, Bistro Medallion


Doodad

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I am lucky in many ways. One of them is to have a wife in the hospitality business. And high end at that.

So, I have scored 8 pounds of hanger steak and 4 pounds of what they are calling "bistro medallion." Ok, I think I can figure the hanger and what to do, ie grilled with frites and braised in a Med sauce, but what the heck are the medallions?

The butcher said they are the end pieces of the hanger? That makes me think that (a) the hangers are trimmed and butterflied (b) and there is a piece trimmed that provides this piece? I have never seen hanger outside a pic or drawing so I am guessing big time.

Any info is appreciated.

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You are one fortunate Doodad!

I have never heard of a bistro medallion. Do they look naturally round like a Beefeater or tenderloin medallion?

The good people at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln have a marvelous site devoted to bovine myology: click. It is just about the coolest thing I have ever seen when it comes to beef. Its been referred to before in at least one other topic but certainly warrants another reference.

Peter Gamble aka "Peter the eater"

I just made a cornish game hen with chestnut stuffing. . .

Would you believe a pigeon stuffed with spam? . . .

Would you believe a rat filled with cough drops?

Moe Sizlack

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I am lucky in many ways.  One of them is to have a wife in the hospitality business.  And high end at that.

So, I have scored 8 pounds of hanger steak and 4 pounds of what they are calling "bistro medallion."  Ok, I think I can figure the hanger and what to do, ie grilled with frites and braised in a Med sauce, but what the heck are the medallions?

The butcher said they are the end pieces of the hanger?  That makes me think that (a) the hangers are trimmed and butterflied (b) and there is a piece trimmed that provides this piece?  I have never seen hanger outside a pic or drawing so I am guessing big time.

Any info is appreciated.

I've only gotten the whole hangar and the ends of it are kind of tapered. I imagine these tapered ends are cut off so they can make steaks out of them and that's what you've got. I would use them like you would use medallions of tenderloin, being careful not to overcook them.

josh

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I will take some pics when they arrive. Thanks for the link Peter. I think you posted that when I was looking for paleron as well. Which I have given up on. I "think" flat iron is as close as American butchers will get.

I plan to try both very quick cooking and slow braise on these. We shall see what produces the best usage.

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I wouldn't braise the hanger steak...it's pretty tender already and makes a nice flavorful steak. Sometimes has a few hints of a kidney type flavor, but I don't really mind and I think most people won't even notice.

There is only one per animal and I often have a hard time finding them for home use.

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I wouldn't braise the hanger steak...it's pretty tender already and makes a nice flavorful steak. Sometimes has a few hints of a kidney type flavor, but I don't really mind and I think most people won't even notice.

There is only one per animal and I often have a hard time finding them for home use.

Well since I have a gracious plenty, I thought I would try braising one just for kicks. I was going to do it in a tagine with a med type veg and sauce.

I could not find them anywhere either, so I am piggybacking on my wife's club order to their provider. And I got 'em for $1.50 a pound!

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I'm going to throw one into the mix here; is this the same as the french Bavette cut? I've been daydreaming about cooking this cut of beef at home ever since trying it at a restaurant. It was truly memorable, fibrous yet meltingly tender and very beefy. Doing a search on google brings some conflicting info. I kinda get the impression it's a small specialist french cut from somewhere around "hangar" or "skirt" region, can anyone shed any light? I would love tell my butcher (English) where to exactly find it on the carcass.

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I'm going to throw one into the mix here; is this the same as the french Bavette cut?  I've been daydreaming about cooking this cut of beef at home ever since trying it at a restaurant. It was truly memorable, fibrous yet meltingly tender and very beefy.  Doing a search on google brings some conflicting info.  I kinda get the impression it's a small specialist french cut from somewhere around "hangar" or "skirt" region, can anyone shed any light?  I would love tell my butcher (English) where to exactly find it on the carcass.

The french name is onglet. There is only one on the cow and it hangs at the end of the skirt between the kidneys from what I understand. Also known as the hanger steak or butcher's tenderloin.

Hope that helps. Not sure about the bavette thing.

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I'm going to throw one into the mix here; is this the same as the french Bavette cut?  I've been daydreaming about cooking this cut of beef at home ever since trying it at a restaurant. It was truly memorable, fibrous yet meltingly tender and very beefy.  Doing a search on google brings some conflicting info.  I kinda get the impression it's a small specialist french cut from somewhere around "hangar" or "skirt" region, can anyone shed any light?  I would love tell my butcher (English) where to exactly find it on the carcass.

I think "bavette" usually refers to a thin steak that is quickly seared. It comes from one of two primal cuts: the plate (in which case it is the skirt steak) or the flank (in which case it is the flank steak). I think "bavette" is translated as "bib," referring to the flap-like shape of the meat. The hangar steak, while similar in many ways to these cuts (it also comes from the plate), has its own name in French, the "onglet."

I'm pretty sure this is right--someone please correct me if I'm wrong.

josh

josh

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I don't have a good feeling about braising a hanger. Like most steaks it's lean and doesn't have much collagen. This is a recipe for a seriously dried out piece of meat.

I am starting to agree with both of you who said that after reading up on some who have tried.

Oh well, carne asada anyone? With jicama "frites" for that Paris in the Yucatan feel. :smile:

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  • 2 weeks later...

Well, my hangers came home on Friday. They are about the size of a sirloin steak and look just like the boneless short ribs I get from my butcher. So, I cut the middle connective tissue out and butterflied the two "wings." It is a somewhat marbled piece of meat and there was the slightest tint of kidney in the aroma. I don't like kidney, but it is not offputting at all.

I marinated for a half hour in soy, lemon grass and garlic. Made steak fries and put them in the oven. Steak went out to the grill and I made a quick sauce of wine, shallots, shitakes, garlic, stock and a shot of demi. While the steak rested following a quick 4 minutes a side grilling, I finished the sauce.

Very good piece of meat. It is as tender as a ribeye and as meaty tasting as a sirloin. Not tough at all nor stringy like a flank steak. No wonder the butcher would save it for themselves. Combined with the frites and a salad we were very happy at the Doodad compound.

:biggrin:

Edited by Doodad (log)
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  • 6 months later...

Hi!

Have in my fridge a piece of "Onglet" (hanger steak right?) from a French Charolais cow. Wikipedia page for Hanger Steak says the steak should be around 600g but the one I got is nearly 2Kg, could it be the skirt and the hanger? If it's just the hanger, does the "tough center membrane" need removing? Its sealed in a thick plastic bag so could I "mature" it for some days before using?

Never eaten hanger steak before (not popular here in hong kong), am I right to assume its flavour is strong and has "gameyness"? Is its structure full of collagen or fat or none?

I'm thinking of:

1. Beef tartar

2. Sous vide at ~ 130F for ? time

a) nothing added to bag, brown before serving (standard method)

b) use Keller's Bouchon's recipe for beef bourguignon (remove veg?)

3. Burger?

not very creative I know...I do want to grill it under hot charcoal w onion-marrow but living in an apartment prevents that...

Thanks!!

btw Joel Robuchon is in HK for coming week

~ Sher * =]

. . . . .I HEART FOOD. . . . .

Sleep 'til you're hungry, eat 'til you're sleepy. - Anon

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Hi Sher,

I'll tell you what I know.

Yes, "onglet" = hanger. Sounds like the Wiki page is describing a single serving size of steak; the weight you have is possible from a large animal. Also possible is more than one hanger in your bag. FYI, there is only one hanger per beast. It will not be both the skirt and the hanger, as they are actually on opposite sides of the abdominal cavity (hanger interior, skirt exterior).

You should make a cut along the center membrane, to wind up with two steaks. Remove any other gristly, membraney stuff. There is some fat in the structure, not too much to be greasy and not too little to require stewing. Enough to be moist and flavorful. It is not a tough cut.

The flavor is pretty deep, but I do not find it "gamey." It's a good, beefy flavor. Supposedly it gets its depth of flavor from its proximity to the organ meats. However, I have not had a hanger steak which I found to be organ-y tasting. There's a subtle richness and a lot of flavor, so you want a preparation which enhances that.

Hanger steak is excellent on the grill. Barring that, I would pan-sear it, basting with butter (add some oil to prevent butter burning). I would not stew it as for bourguignon- it's best cooked quickly. But a mushroom sauce might be nice.

Suppose you could make tartare with it, but the cut is not as fatty as the stuff most tartare is from, so you would need to add some butter or something.

Here in NYC, hanger is part of many restaurants' house burger mix, as in 40% hanger, 40% chuck, 20% fat. You could do that, too.

I would recommend trying a simple preparation such as pan-searing first, to get a good idea of the flavor and other qualities of the meat. Then you could play around with it from there.

Enjoy and let us know how it turned out!

-Scottie

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Sher, the first question is, where in HK did you find Charolais hanger???

I agree with what Scottie said. I'd add:

- There's no need to let hanger mature in the bag; it doesn't benefit much from aging. It doesn't have much collagen other than that centre membrane, which you should butcher out as Scottie says. You should end up with two lobes that look something like motley tenderloins. One lobe is always bigger than the other.

- The classic, and easiest, method is sear or grill rare (if you take it past med-rare, it gets tough, and well-done is inedible), then rest, then serve sliced across the grain. In this case, "across the grain" isn't at right angles to the lobe. Good slicing makes a huge difference to this cut of meat. Properly sliced, hanger can be as tender as rib-eye; but improperly sliced it can be send-it-back chewy.

- Hanger is very good at soaking up marinades. Something like red wine, oil, garlic and rosemary works well, as does a Korean kalbi style marinade (especially for the bbq).

- The meat is a little grainy for tartare, but if you have a rotary slicer it makes great carpaccio.

Hong Kong Dave

O que nao mata engorda.

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Hi,

Sometimes hanger steak has a slight livery taste. This is the result of cooking times. The shorter the time the less chance of liver flavor.

The best way is to bring the steak to room temperature before cooking.

Tim

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Took some pics of it!

gallery_53057_6186_57362.jpg

gallery_53057_6186_256802.jpg

gallery_53057_6186_222442.jpg

gallery_53057_6186_124794.jpg

gallery_53057_6186_159717.jpg

Tim: If the livery/kidney flavour is wanted, are you saying cooking it longer (i.e. sous vide not grilling) will increase the flavour?

HKDave: GF is chef at L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon HK, so she ordered it from a supplier ($400HKD ~ $50USD / 2Kg).

After removing the center membrane, are the resulting two lobes from the "left and right" sides of the cow or "up and down" because if left and right they should be the same but if "up and down" there could be differences?

1.9Kg of beef is a lot for 2 ppl so I can afford to experiment, so far I plan to:

50g - Carpaccio

200g - Grill over cast iron

200g - SV at 53C (medium rare) for 1 hrs, chill, brown one side in butter

200g - Marinate in red wine (overnight?), grill

200g - SV w Red wine glaze (wine, mushrooms, onions) at 53C for 1 hrs

400g - Burger

Still leaves ~600g!

Thanks everyone!

Edited by Sher.eats (log)

~ Sher * =]

. . . . .I HEART FOOD. . . . .

Sleep 'til you're hungry, eat 'til you're sleepy. - Anon

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Hangar also makes great southwest/Mexican preparations. Rub the meat down with a thick mixture of vegetable oil, chili powder, cumin, salt, pepper and let it marinade overnight. Grill over high heat until about medium rare. Slice it fairly thin and serve with tortillas, fresh salsa, cilantro and lime wedges.

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Tim: If the livery/kidney flavour is wanted, are you saying cooking it longer (i.e. sous vide not grilling) will increase the flavour?

After removing the center membrane, are the resulting two lobes  from the "left and right" sides of the cow or "up and down" because if left and right they should be the same but if "up and down" there could be differences?

Thanks everyone!

Sher,

I'm not sure about sous vide. I do know that cooking if right from the fridge will increase the chance for that livery taste.

The hanging tender muscle hangs from the back bone and drapes across the diaphragm. The diaphragm hangs vertically, running across the chest cavity, just behind the ribs. The two lobes are from opposite sides (front and back) of the diaphragm. I don't know which is the larger lobe.

This is a wonderful cut and traditional for steak frites.

Good eating.

Tim

Edited by tim (log)
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Good info here, but I disagree that there's no benefit to letting the hanger age in the bag. As with any meat, enzyme action will tenderize it a bit. This has nothing to do with collagen in the cut. I wouldn't go crazy; there's a risk of spoilage if you don't have the temperature low enough or if you go too long. A couple of days would be reasonable.

You won't get any of the flavor benefits of dry aging. As far as I know, hanger isn't dry aged, but this is because it's a small cut, independent of any bones or larger primals. If you dry aged enough to make a difference, there'd be nothing left after you trimmed the dessicated meat!

Also, someone mentioned mixing oil and butter to raise the burning point of the butter. This is a kitchen myth; it doesn't work. The milk solids in the butter will burn at the same temp no matter what you cut the butter with.

For buttery goodness with seared meat, you can use clarified butter, or better yet, sear with a high heat oil and then finish with butter on lower heat.

Notes from the underbelly

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Paulraphael: I agree on letting it age a bit in the bag, the meat was bagged on the 21st Aug so its been inside for a week already, enough you think? Sticker says consume by 18th Sept, ~ a month from bagging.

I usually use 2 pans: brown the steak in a v. hot cast iron, meanwhile noisette some butter in another pan under low heat, when steak is browned transfer over and start basting, keeping temp just hot enough to keep the butter foaming. This way I can use non clarified butter.

Tim: Thanks for that anatomical description, I guess I'll assume the two lobes are alike.

DTBarton: That Mexican recipe sounds great, by grill I'm guessing you mean like a barbecue? Don't have access to one and I'm thinking the chili powder might burn in a hot pan?....

Thanks!!!!!

~ Sher * =]

. . . . .I HEART FOOD. . . . .

Sleep 'til you're hungry, eat 'til you're sleepy. - Anon

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Took some pics of it!

gallery_53057_6186_57362.jpg

gallery_53057_6186_256802.jpg

gallery_53057_6186_222442.jpg

gallery_53057_6186_124794.jpg

gallery_53057_6186_159717.jpg

Tim: If the livery/kidney flavour is wanted, are you saying cooking it longer (i.e. sous vide not grilling) will increase the flavour?

HKDave: GF is chef at L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon HK, so she ordered it from a supplier ($400HKD ~ $50USD / 2Kg).

After removing the center membrane, are the resulting two lobes  from the "left and right" sides of the cow or "up and down" because if left and right they should be the same but if "up and down" there could be differences?

1.9Kg of beef is a lot for 2 ppl so I can afford to experiment, so far I plan to:

50g - Carpaccio

200g - Grill over cast iron

200g - SV at 53C (medium rare) for 1 hrs, chill, brown one side in butter

200g - Marinate in red wine (overnight?), grill

200g - SV w Red wine glaze (wine, mushrooms, onions) at 53C for 1 hrs

400g - Burger

Still leaves ~600g!

Thanks everyone!

Sher, you definitely have hanger steak. There is a large Latino groecery near Houston which sells it as "arrachera", and I can tell you it tastes particularly good at $1.99 per pound! I genrerally use a variation of the Mexican version mentioned above to make fajitas, and yes, the open grill is the way to go. THis cut is much more flavorful and "beefy" than skirt steak.

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Hanger is excellent prepared sous vide, and 53C is what I have done in the past. Hanger can be somewhat chewy, so you may want to consider cooking longer than 1 hour. I will routinely go for 4-8 hours, depending on the quality of the meat (the better the quality, the shorter the cook time).

One interesting thing about cooking hanger CSV is that it's the only preparation where you could get away with not cutting out the center membrane: I tried that this weekend because I was lazy. At 8 hours, the connective tissue is essentially broken down, and is not unpleasant to chew through. That said, if you have the time, you might as well cut it out for appearances sake.

---

al wang

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  • 3 years later...

I finally found some hanger at the Seaport Market on the weekend, grass-fed grass-finished dry-aged organic. After reading this topic I went with 50C for 2 hrs sv. I was not disappointed! One half got a dry rub but it didn't really make much difference. Both were crisped up in an iron pan with butter - an important step.

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Peter Gamble aka "Peter the eater"

I just made a cornish game hen with chestnut stuffing. . .

Would you believe a pigeon stuffed with spam? . . .

Would you believe a rat filled with cough drops?

Moe Sizlack

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