Impact Magazine - Spring 2008 - (Page 24)

Flat-Out Great for the Grill! news updates ales of a new flat-iron steak — which has carved out a growing portion of the nation’s $74-billion beef market over the past two years — now top 90 million pounds a year, elevating the valuepriced cut to the fifth best-selling steak. “It’s flat-out great for the grill,” said Dwain Johnson, a professor of meat science with UF’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences who helped develop the steak in 2002. “The cut is as tasty and tender as more expensive steaks, yet affordable enough for the average family to enjoy on a regular basis, and it costs a lot less than a choice filet or strip steak. Some people say it tastes better than a New York strip.” Steve Wald, director of new product development for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association in Centennial, Co., said 47 million pounds of flat-iron steak were sold in S FlAT-ouT greAT for the grIll! “Supposedly named because it looks like an old-fashioned metal flat iron, the flat-iron steak is uniform in thickness and rectangular in shape,” Johnson said. “The only variation is the cut into the middle where the connective tissue has been removed.” Johnson said the research to produce leaner and more convenient beef products was initiated when demand for chuck, round and “thin cuts” — which make up 73 percent of total beef carcass weight — declined by more than 20 percent from 1980 to 1998. “The Cattlemen’s Beef Board realized that a more concentrated effort was needed to study the cause for the decreased demand in products from these carcass locations,” he said. “They also wanted to find out what could be done to reverse the trend and increase the demand for the chuck and round cuts.” He said other “value cuts” such as the Petite Tender and Ranch Cut are starting to be used by the food service sector. Muscle profiling has also recently been expanded to dairy cow beef and veal to find new opportunities for this segment of the beef market. The research resulted in a publication by the cattlemen’s association entitled “Muscle Profiling” that serves as an encyclopedia of information for meat packers, processors and purveyors, Johnson said. The 100-page document, available in six different languages, is available on the Bovine Myology Web site maintained by the University of Nebraska: http://bovine.unl.edu n – chuck woods For more information, contact: dwain johnson (352) 392-1922 steve wald dwainj@ufl.edu (303) 850-3315 swald@beef.org 2005, increasing to 92 million pounds in 2006 and 2007. He said the sales data was compiled by Technomic Inc., a Chicago-based research firm. “In the food service industry, which includes restaurants, the flat-iron steak outsells T-bone and Porterhouse steaks combined, making the new cut the nation’s fifth best-selling steak — after sirloin, filet, ribeye and strip steaks,” Wald said. “Strong consumer demand prompted several national retailers to introduce the steak during the summer of 2007.” Johnson, who developed the steak in cooperation with the University of Nebraska and the cattlemen’s association, said their research was aimed at identifying undervalued portions of the beef carcass. In the largest “muscle profiling” study of its kind, the researchers evaluated more than 5,600 muscles for flavor and tenderness. He said the flat-iron steak — also known as the top blade steak — is cut from deep within the shoulder muscle known as the chuck, which traditionally is used for roasts or ground beef. “Although the cut is flavorful and relatively tender, the flat iron steak has a serious flaw in the middle of it,” Johnson said. “There is a tough piece of connective tissue running through the middle, but it can be removed to create an amazing cut of beef.” By developing a method for cutting the connective tissue — similar to filleting a fish — the researchers created a steak that has the tenderness of a ribeye or strip steak with the full-flavored character of a sirloin or skirt steak. It’s also perfect for grilling over medium-high heat, he said. Dwain Johnson selects beef cuts at the University of Florida’s meats laboratory in Gainesville. He said the goal of their research was to find better, more efficient cuts from the chuck and round for both retail and food service uses. photo by thomas wright 24 IMPACT | Spring 2008 http://bovine.unl.edu

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Impact Magazine - Spring 2008

Impact Magazine - Spring 2008 Contents A Big Boost for Biofuels Top Priority Partnerships for Sustainable Agriculture Eliminating the Evil Weevil Invasive Pest Defeating Resistant Roaches Biodiesel Boon User-Friendly Updates for FAWN Flat-Out Great for the Grill! Laser Labeling Cashing in on Caviar Saving Water with Soil-Moisture Sensors Spotlight IFAS Development News

Impact Magazine - Spring 2008

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