Which Cut - "London Broil" or Sirloin

[Porthos]

Without bringing other cuts of meat into the discussion which meat would you choose for grilling: "London Broil" cut from the top round or Beef Top Sirloin? I'm thinking the sirloin would bring a little more flavor to the table but I'm not sure.

[Dave the Cook]

Almost any cut has more flavor than round, so I'd go for the sirloin, and bite my tongue before suggesting other cuts.

[FeChef]

I'll chime in here and say that a good marinated "london broil" can be just as good as a sirloin and half the cost too. Providing you dont over cook it past medium rare.

[Jaymes]

Am I the only one confused about "London Broil"?

I don't think of it as round steak; I've only ever seen the "London broil" label on a flank steak.

Which is very flavorful indeed.

[Porthos]

Since I put up this question today I found out that a cut I've never seen here in southern Califonia has become available. When Snowangel used to post about family trips to the cabin she would sometimes mention Chuck Eye Steaks. Thank you all for your input but I'm going to gamble on this new-to-me cut.

[Dave the Cook]

Chuck-eye is a great cut -- lots of flavor and versatile as to doneness -- but because it's a collection of several muscles, it won't yield the nice even slices that are characteristic of London Broil.

ETA, shameless self-promotion department: more on the chuck-eye here.

[Porthos]

... because it's a collection of several muscles, it won't yield the nice even slices that are characteristic of London Broil....

This will be served as part of a renaissance feast and after grilling it will be cut up into bite-size eat-with-your-hands pieces. That let's me off the hook for making beautiful slices.

[FeChef]

Am I the only one confused about "London Broil"?

I don't think of it as round steak; I've only ever seen the "London broil" label on a flank steak.

Which is very flavorful indeed.

"london broil" is far from flank steak. Its a very lean cut that can be really tough if overcooked past medium rare. Its most commonly used for beef jerky since its cheap and lean.

[Baron d'Apcher]

Traditionally, "London Broil" is flank steak. Top round being passed as LB is a recent innovation of sorts.

A compromise between the two is to get the top round cap (gracilis) which has similar texture to flank and sirloin butt flap. The gracilis is sold as Santa Fe cut.

[Mjx]

I can't honestly say that I'd recommend/even consider either cut you mention in the OP, the flavour just isn't there. Flank steak is the traditional cut for London broil, but I usually go with the shoulder, since where I am flank steak is priced as though it were gold-plated, and the shoulder makes an excellent alternative.

[Charcuterer]

I love to grill Top Sirloin steaks as kebabs. I find that they need a good soak in a marinade or they have a kind of an off "liver" flavor.

[liuzhou]

I'd love to help, but I"m from London. No idea what a London Broil might be. .

I even believe what you call a sirloin isn't what we call a sirloin.

[Porthos]

After I got excited about trying the chuck eye steaks I went to the store that had them and they only had 4 pounds left. I needed twelve pounds so I opted for the sirloin tip steaks. Thank you all for you input.

[FeChef]

After I got excited about trying the chuck eye steaks I went to the store that had them and they only had 4 pounds left. I needed twelve pounds so I opted for the sirloin tip steaks. Thank you all for you input.

You are better off. In my neck of the woods "london broil" goes for around $2.47/lb. We use it for jerky but on occasion I marinate one and throw it on the searing burner for a few minutes per side. Its good if you dont go past medium rare but is carboard any more done then that. Sirloin is a more forgiving cut and more flavor too.

[Ann_T]

I'm not a fan of flank steak. But I recently grilled a Top Sirloin Cap, a cut I wasn't familiar with. It could quickly become a favourite.

It was almost as flat as a flank steak, but as soon as it went on the grill it seemed to puff up. Full of flavour and very tender.

[Kerry Beal]

Top sirloin cap (aka rump cap) - my favourite as picanha.

[Jaymes]

Am I the only one confused about "London Broil"?

I don't think of it as round steak; I've only ever seen the "London broil" label on a flank steak.

Which is very flavorful indeed.

"london broil" is far from flank steak. Its a very lean cut that can be really tough if overcooked past medium rare. Its most commonly used for beef jerky since its cheap and lean.

And I'm not arguing that that might be your experience.

But I repeat that I've only ever seen flank steak labeled as "London Broil."

And I've been buying it for some 40 years, and flank steak is pretty easy to recognize, and it's a cut I use for several family favorite recipes, and I'm positive I'm not confused when I say that that is my experience.

[rotuts]

London Broil is a marketing term, not a muscle group, which creates the confusion. In my area its a medium sized slab of meat

meant for the broiler or the bbq, cut across the grain. sometimes from the shoulder, sometimes from the round. not exceptional in

any way, and frequently on sale.

[Joe Blowe]

From The Cook's Thesaurus: Beef Round Cuts:

London broil: This is the name of a finished dish, not a cut of meat, but butchers sometimes assign the name "London broil" to the following cuts: flank steak, top round steak, or top blade steak. Each would work well in a London broil recipe.

[Jaymes]

From The Cook's Thesaurus: Beef Round Cuts:

London broil: This is the name of a finished dish, not a cut of meat, but butchers sometimes assign the name "London broil" to the following cuts: flank steak, top round steak, or top blade steak. Each would work well in a London broil recipe.

Thanks.

It seems to be much like the current fashion of labeling something "fajitas." Fajitas, which is a Spanish word meaning "little sashes" or "girdles," or even, "belts," originally was only seen on skirt steak. Which pretty-much fits that description.

Now you see it on any sort of thing that can be, or has been, cut into strips.

[Dave the Cook]

Yeah, but I think it's related to fashion only in the sense that the dishes -- London Broil and Fajitas -- have become popular dishes to cook at home. This creates pressure on the supply of the cut traditionally used for the dish. The price goes up (remember when flank was cheap, Jaymes?) and people start looking for substitutes. Butchers and supermarkets are happy to offer them up. Sometimes these are pretty good; flap meat subbing for skirt is a decent solution, as is something like tri-tip for London Broil. Often, they're not; if you're used to flank, a top-round London Broil is pretty disappointing.

[FeChef]

Yeah, but I think it's related to fashion only in the sense that the dishes -- London Broil and Fajitas -- have become popular dishes to cook at home. This creates pressure on the supply of the cut traditionally used for the dish. The price goes up (remember when flank was cheap, Jaymes?) and people start looking for substitutes. Butchers and supermarkets are happy to offer them up. Sometimes these are pretty good; flap meat subbing for skirt is a decent solution, as is something like tri-tip for London Broil. Often, they're not; if you're used to flank, a top-round London Broil is pretty disappointing.

In my area you cant even find Flap or Hanger steaks. Im almost certain that by the time we see them in grocery stores in my area they will be as expensive as skirt and flank which goes for on average $8.99/lb for select and choice grade.

[Jaymes]

Yeah, but I think it's related to fashion only in the sense that the dishes -- London Broil and Fajitas -- have become popular dishes to cook at home. This creates pressure on the supply of the cut traditionally used for the dish. The price goes up (remember when flank was cheap, Jaymes?) and people start looking for substitutes. Butchers and supermarkets are happy to offer them up. Sometimes these are pretty good; flap meat subbing for skirt is a decent solution, as is something like tri-tip for London Broil. Often, they're not; if you're used to flank, a top-round London Broil is pretty disappointing.

I do remember when flank was dirt cheap. And I was raising a big family on a tight budget. We used flank a lot - tenderized and sliced and marinated for bulgogi; frozen and shaved for Asian beef & peppers; and, of course, for London Broil - tenderized, rolled, cut cross-grain into strips (pinwheels), thread onto skewers, marinated overnight, and then either broiled in the oven or grilled outside on the barbie.

And we ate a lot of skirt steak, too, also so cheap they were labeling it as "butcher steak" and practically giving it away. In fact, often it wasn't even in the display case and you had to ask for it.

Boy, them days are long gone...

Sigh.

Edited May 17, 2013 by Jaymes (log)

[patrickamory]

I'd love to help, but I"m from London. No idea what a London Broil might be. .

I even believe what you call a sirloin isn't what we call a sirloin.

That is correct. What Americans call sirloin, the British call rump.

British sirloin is more or less equivalent to American short loin, which yields strip, shell, T-bone, porterhouse and part of the tenderloin (filet).

[ojisan]

+1

Boy, them days are long gone...

Sigh.