Cross rib roast steaks cooked sous vide - tasted "roasted"

[chris_s]

I cooked a cross rib roast for about 36 hours with no seasoning in bag, cut it into 1.5" slabs then seared it on grill with some steak rub

 

the meat was extremely tender and juicy, but had a very distinct "roast" taste to it. I can't quite describe it other than that, but it's the same flavor I'd expect if I'd done it in a slow cooker. 

 

Is this simply the way this section of meat tastes? Or is it related to cooking the roast whole and cutting afterward. My intent with that was to have the entire fat/collagen/whatever cook throughout the entire cut instead of in smaller steaks. 

 

I've had good luck in the past cooking nicer steaks sous vide then grilling, stuff like ribeyes and t-bones. But I was hoping to get the hang of turning cheaper meat into a good steak

 

thanks! 

[gfweb]

How does roast taste different than steak to you?

 

To me the difference is more about texture.

[chris_s]

maybe it was also a texture thing, yesterday's steaks had a very distinct grain to them on the plate. I wonder if I'm cutting it the wrong direction... 

[rotuts]

I steak  i.e. cross-cut slab has a different taste I think for me due to the larger surface area that is in contact w the heat  i.e. the pan, or the grill

 

and thus absorbs 'well-done' flavors on those surface's be it smoke'd fat or significant mallard reaction

[pbear]

FWIW, chris, my experience was the same trying to get steaks out of braising beef cuts.  To me, they came out as curiously pink pot roast.

[chris_s]

FWIW, chris, my experience was the same trying to get steaks out of braising beef cuts.  To me, they came out as curiously pink pot roast.

 

are you cutting them before or after SV? 

[Mendel C-k]

What temp did you SV at?

[chris_s]

What temp did you SV at?

oops missed that important detail

135f

[FeChef]

I feel the same way with chuck roasts. With a good au jus they can pass for a poor mans prime rib, but definitely not pass for a steak. London broil (top round) can pass for a cheap sirloin steak though but its hit or miss with with cheap cuts comming out dry even without salting, or med rare temps like 132F for as low as 6 hours.

 

When you think about it, just because its beef doesnt mean all beef from the same animal is going to have the same flavor or texture profile. Its like eating a chicken drumstick and complaining it doesnt taste like a chicken breast.

[chris_s]

 just because its beef doesnt mean all beef from the same animal is going to have the same flavor or texture profile. 

 

that was my thoughts, which is why I asked about it here

 

 

 Its like eating a chicken drumstick and complaining it doesnt taste like a chicken breast.

 

 

usually I complain about chicken breast tasting like chicken breast heh

[FeChef]

that was my thoughts, which is why I asked about it here

 

 

 

 

usually I complain about chicken breast tasting like chicken breast heh

Chicken breast has its place. I almost always salt water brine my chicken breasts and make either panko breaded chicken fingers or use for grilled chicken fajita's.

Soups i always use drumsticks and thighs and thighs for pretty much everything else, tonight im making chicken tikka masala with deboned skinless chicken thighs sous vide @ 155F for 4 hours then flash deep fried and mixed into the masala sauce to simmer.

Edited August 4, 2015 by FeChef (log)

[pbear]

are you cutting them before or after SV? 

 

Sorry, I don't remember, as this was years ago and I abandoned the strategy.  Don't think it matters.  Have done lots of low temp braises since then - for stews rather than steaks - and haven't noticed much effect from how the cut was prepped by the butcher, although different cuts certainly cook up differently.

 

BTW, I have successfully low temp roasted cross rib.  Eight hours at 55/131 works nicely.  Never thought about cutting it for steaks (instead, sear whole), but maybe it would work.

[Leigh Jones]

OK Chris, I am a home cook with literally over a thousand sous vide supper's experience. On first reading, I got the impression that your beef came out tasting like it was braised and this was a surprise to you. I take it that you believe your beef was of lower quality and hoped to turn it into something more palatable using a long cooking time to tenderize.

As one response above clearly states, with many cheaper cuts of meat it's hit and miss. This is my experience also. I buy supermarket beef from a store very local to me, it is an inexpensive store with a large display case fully stocked, butchers on duty in daytimes, lots of choice. Have very few complaints here except (1) they stock very little choice beef and what is there is expensive (2) they sell the beef in record time, meaning they do not age it in any manner as far as I can tell.

This means I can get extremely tough beef at a low price, but often it will not be possible to satisfy my wish to make it acceptably tender. And reiterating, I am extremely experienced cooking sous vide.

By comparison to my own experience, what you describe above is a remarkable stroke of luck: your complaint was not that the beef could not be chewed after 36 hours in the water bath! But, when I put it that way, it sounds like I must not be cooking right. Untrue, my experience has proven very useful, my sous vide beef is far more tender and flavorable than it would be if conventionally prepared. It's just that once in a while the results with sous vide London broil or round steak can border on the results conventional grilling or searing of dry aged tenderloin. But more often the round steak disappoints by comparison.

I still cook London broil sometimes to keep pursuing perfection with cheap cuts, but I've discovered ways to work with the round steaks that turn out tough. My favorite is to thin slice them to make sandwich meats out of them. When I want to be confident that the dinner will be splendid, I'll cook a 3-4 lb tri tip roast at 131F for 12 hours. When I want to reliably get the best results from a 3 lb London broil, I'll cook it for 3-4 hours at 130F. In each case, I'll avoid salt in the cooking bag, and will cool the meat before popping it into my backyard gas grill to produce grill marks, then I'll season and carefully slice against the grain.

[rotuts]

Leigh Jones

 

""   I buy supermarket beef from a store very local to me, it is an inexpensive store with a large display case fully stocked, butchers on duty in daytimes, lots of choice. Have very few complaints here except (1) they stock very little choice beef and what is there is expensive"

 

what sort of beef if not choice do they stock ?

 

"  This means I can get extremely tough beef at a low price "

 

would this not be choice if from an inexpensive store ?

 

in your area, what muscle group is 'london broil" 

 

I assume your 'round' is eye of the round from the leg ?

 

Ive more or less narrowed my beef to 'Sirloin Tips" from a large chain when on sale, but they cut this for me as a whole piece which is easier to make more

 

interesting pieces for SV.  this cut always comes out w/o surprises and is tasty for both sandwiches an as 'steaks' via SV.

 

Id like to hear more about your store and the cuts you use

 

thanks