Cheap cuts of meat

[Brad Ballinger]

Recently, I braised a pork shoulder. The price per pound was pretty low, and it was even on sale to the point where a 3.5 roast came to a little over $5.00. But shoulder is something that needs to be slow cooked in liquid with a bunch of other stuff. So after I add up shallots, carrots, celery, garlic, beef stock, port, red wine, fresh herbs, etc., I can't help but wonder if my cost came to the same as if I had started with a less humble cut of meat to which I could've added less and still enjoyed it as much.

This question surfaces after the pork shoulder, but fueling it are oxtails before that, short ribs before that, veal shanks before that, you get the idea.

What thoughts do you have on this? Go with a more expensive cut of meat, do less to it; or go with a cheap cost of meat and do more to it?

Note: I'm not looking for other braise ideas. Yes, I know some other braises would be cheaper, but that's not the point of this post. My question is more of a general one about the overall cost being more of a wash than one might think.

[Timh]

I think the generalization of the term "Cheap Cuts" needs to be defined. What was once under utilised and therefore inexpensive is today mainstream and price reflective. Cuts that I utilized with great price points once were flank, veal shanks, shoulder cut steaks, hangar , and tri-tip. The price has risen as these cuts became more popular, I'm using beef shanks now ,in place of the veal, beef sirloin in place of the hangar, etc. And beef cheeks? they were practically give aways back in the old days, but thanks to Mario at al, no more...

[Pallee]

I think there was a time when these cuts were a great deal less expensive. "Underutilized" was the term. I remember when tri tips and hangar steaks were in that class and cheap. Hangar steaks used to be called "Butcher" steaks because the butcher couldn't sell them and always took them home. The last oxtails I bought were about 10$ a pound, and there's alot of waste in the bone. Not cheap - but the flavor the bone gives is so good! It comes down to supply and demand.

Pork butt (shoulder) still seems cheap to me as it is so versatile. I can grind it into sausage, cure it for tasso, cut it into boneless pork ribs (around here, that's what boneless pork ribs are), cube it up for adobo or chili and so much more.

[jayt90]

I don't find pork shoulder much of a bargain, even on sale. There is a lot of waste,skin, and a large inconvenient bone structure. But I still buy it, for the flavour and texture, though it is somewhat unrefined, like lamb shanks or veal breast. Then there is a smoked pork shoulder from Quebec, Lafleur, that is a revelation at $1/lb.

As awkward as some of these cuts may be, I won't stop buying them, for the challenge and the reward.

[Susan G]

I think everyone will have a different way to answer this, Brad, based upon how much they enjoy the process versus noticing the time spent at the project.....

Me? I'll take a day spent braising a cheap cut of meat in a slow-cooker while I'm doing other projects (quilting, say) and call it a day well spent!!

[Mottmott]

Good question. But it's the old apples and oranges issue, I think.

Meats are distinguished less by price these days than by their use. Even bones, which were once give-aways, have a substantial price. I saw them in WF at nearly 2/lb!!! Nevertheless, well marbled boneless steak can be 15-35/lb and good quality shank, shortribs, oxtails, etc. can be had for 5/lb. (Note, I only by non antibiotic, non hormone meats; supermarket specials might be better priced.)

It's a question of what you want to eat. Braised short ribs is a totally different dish than steak. I wouldn't want to eat only one or the other. Keep in mind that when you compare a steak with a stew, the stew is a complete meal but the steak requires side dishes that drive up both work and cost. The one can be made ahead, the other requires lots of last minute attention. A braised dish can be doubled and frozen for future use as is. Leftover roasts, though, require a good bit of work to serve up again unless you're content with sandwiches and wraps instead of empanadas and shephard's pie.

Also, I find that when I do a braised dish I sometimes willfully drive up the cost. Instead of a simple stew of beef, veggies, and potatoes in water, I drop in wine and stock, dried and/or wild mushrooms, fruits, etc. If I'm going all out I may go so far as to discard the veggies that are braised with the meat and add roasted vegetables to simmer and marry with the meat for awhile before serving.

I eat a lot less meat now than I did 20-30 years ago when no dinner was complete without meat of some sort. When I do eat it now, I want it to be particularly good and don't compromise on the either the quality or the amount of work to prepare it.

An extra price advantage that the "lesser" cuts have for the budget conscious is that a relatively small amount of meal can spread its flavor over all the other ingredients in a dish so that 3-4 oz serving of meat might be more satisfactory than a 3-4 oz serving of steak, chops, etc. A ham bone with a little meat left on it can make a big pot of bean soup. Try that with a chop.

[snowangel]

I'm laughing right now, Brad, because tomorrow night will be a venison with rhubarb braise. The venison was a gift, and the rhubarb was from the garden. There was an onion, a smattering of herbs and a little dry vermouth, but this dish will be as inexpensive as they come.

But, I think that to a certain degree you are right -- depending on the ingredients, but I also appreciate Mottmott's point. A braised dish, and a hunk of meat that doesn't require braising (be it a steak or a prime rib roast or whatever) are not the same type of dish whatsoever.

What I really appreciate about braised dishes, and why I make them so often is that they are so fast to get on the table! I can make the braise ahead of time, reheat it, and the window during which they are good is huge! The braise for tomorrow night is made, and will only require a reheat, which give me a lot of time leeway at which time to serve dinner.

[Anna N]

I find that many meats once considered bargains are now right up there with expensive steaks and such. Oxtails, shanks, pot roasts and especially chicken wings now rival steak in price if you factor in servings per lb. But, like others on this thread, its about the FLAVOUR. So many of the once cheaper cuts deliver so much flavour that I am willing to pay the price.

[Chris Amirault]

My sense is that Brad's initial post infers that the cost of preparation offsets the initial savings. As someone who always keeps a bottle of red wine around for braising chuck, venison, or lamb, I can see where he's going. But even if you add that expense (I just grabbed a $10 chianti on sale yesterday for this purpose), I think that cheaper cuts offer savings.

Let's compare a daube and a couple of rib eye (entrecote) steaks. The two or three pounds of chuck for a daube would cost about ten, maybe twelve bucks. The wine plus other flavorings (onion, shallot, garlic, leek, mushrooms, spices, pepper) wouldn't total more than $12, and that's pushing it. So, $24 max for the daube -- which is, minimum, what the two steaks would cost.

Sounds even but here's the catch: I'm going to have leftovers of that daube, probably twice, for sure.

[Timh]

Exactly. the cost of the braise dfefinitly goes down as the # of portions goes up, as opposed to the single portion primary cut.

[Marlene]

I would normally have most of the ingredients on hand anyway for a braise. Carrots, onions shallots and herbs are stuff I'm going to buy anyway. Beef stock I always have on hand, So unless these are things you wouldn't purchase except to braise, then brasing still comes out cheaper I think.

[Busboy]

I laughed reading the original post because I've always thought that Thomas Keller -- Titan that he is -- was a little disingenuous when he goes on about the brilliant alchemy that turns a cheap cut of meat like short ribs into a brilliant dish. Not that his short ribs aren't brilliant, but after the wime marinaed and two quarts of stock you throw in, I thin a decent Steak Bernaise might be the cheaper alternative.

[Shalmanese]

I think the generalization of the term "Cheap Cuts" needs to be defined. What was once under utilised and therefore inexpensive is today mainstream and price reflective. Cuts that I utilized with great price points once were flank, veal shanks, shoulder cut steaks, hangar , and tri-tip. The price has risen as these cuts became more popular, I'm using beef shanks now ,in place of the veal, beef sirloin in place of the hangar, etc. And beef cheeks? they were practically give aways back in the old days, but thanks to Mario at al, no more...

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Hrmm... interesting. I only ever seem to read about previously cheap, wonderful cuts becoming trendy and shooting up in price due to excess demand. Which raises the question, whats started dropping in price and is now becoming a great buy? Are people grilling less ribeyes in lieu or oxtails? Could I get a filet mignon instead of flank now? Surely something has to becoming cheaper.

[BarbaraY]

For some reason, it doesn't work that way. I haven't seen anything drop in price even though the formerly inexpensive cuts have gone up in price.

Pork is the only meat that I find to be relatively expensive in this area.

I want some beef shanks but can't bring myself to pay the price now being asked for them. These, I used to get for .19 per pound when I first learned to cook them.

[Timh]

I think the generalization of the term "Cheap Cuts" needs to be defined. What was once under utilised and therefore inexpensive is today mainstream and price reflective. Cuts that I utilized with great price points once were flank, veal shanks, shoulder cut steaks, hangar , and tri-tip. The price has risen as these cuts became more popular, I'm using beef shanks now ,in place of the veal, beef sirloin in place of the hangar, etc. And beef cheeks? they were practically give aways back in the old days, but thanks to Mario at al, no more...

←

Hrmm... interesting. I only ever seem to read about previously cheap, wonderful cuts becoming trendy and shooting up in price due to excess demand. Which raises the question, whats started dropping in price and is now becoming a great buy? Are people grilling less ribeyes in lieu or oxtails? Could I get a filet mignon instead of flank now? Surely something has to becoming cheaper.

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I don't think anything will become cheaper. Once unleashed on the public in a delicious fashion, its cost goes up. So its on to the next unknown or unused portion. Fergus is light years ahead of us, in a retro sort of way.