Beef Teriyaki question

[greg928gts]

I did a search on what type of beef to use for making Asian beef Teriyaki steak, and I could not find a consensus as to what cut of beef to start with.

I'd like to make my own beef strips on wooden skewers like the kind you get at Chinese restaurants. I have an indoor grill to cook them on.

I can see that the beef is cut fairly thin, maybe 3/16" - 1/4" inch, and across the grain. It also might be cut at an angle.

What cut of beef should I start with and what thickness?

Greg

[CECAA850]

Pekingese, but you'll need several, they don't have much meat on them.

[JerolW]

Flank or skirt.

Skirt has more fat, more char.

jerol

[Mallette]

Not really a question to me. I'll take some...

Dave

[chuckears]

JerolW got it right; I would probably go with the flank, although you will need to trim off the silver skin if it hasn't been trimmed already, and try not to get too thick of a piece - those tend to have more fat and silver skin in the layers.

[oldtimer]

Sirloin works for me, more traditional might be an asian style rib cut (cross cut and thin) taken off the bone.

[Gilbert]

I've never done them either, but sirloins the first thing that pops into my head. Definitely not flank or fajita type cuts, not for skewering anyway.

Sirloin, or something very similar, but I sirloin, because of texture and the cut itself lends to the typical way I've tried it. I think it's more of a Thai food (?).

Share the receipe if it comes out okay.

[mark1101]

We used to use London Broil about 1 1/2" thick.........and only 2 other ingredients. Teriyaki sauce and black pepper. Marinade for several hours or overnight. Then grill.

[greg928gts]

Thanks for the responses so far.

I guess I'll need to try a few different cuts of meat. The varied suggestions here mirror what I found in my search. Apparently there's no right cut of meat to use. (whatever walks down the alley near the back door!) LOL

The marinade is a whole nother thing.

Greg

[Ironsave]

Greg,

If you are going to research this by experimenting; please post results!

[mungkiman]

I prefer Bavette:

[sunburnwilly]

Sirloin , pounded to a pulp and then cut across the grain .

[Mighty Favog]

We always use skirt steaks. The big trick is how you cut the meat brfore you cook it. Cut the strips against the grain of the muscle, that way when you chew it, it will seam much more tender.

[Gilbert]

Mr. Greg, the results please.... Easter is in a couple days yea know. Don't let me go it alone.....

[greg928gts]

I asked my wife to pick up two cuts of beef today. I was very specific about the size, thickness and cuts - one sirloin and the other flank. The butcher told her that he makes teriyaki beef all the time and uses a flap steak. He said sirloin would be his second choice. Not sure what a flap steak is, but that's what I got, so I'm going to give it a go tomorrow.

1 lb to 1 1/2 lb flank flap steak
1 cup Kikkoman teriyaki sauce
2 Tbsp brown sugar
1 Tbsp honey
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp fresh ginger, minced
8 inch wooden skewers

Soak wood skewers in water for an hour before skewering

Cut meat against the grain

Soak in marinade in zip lock bag for at least 6 hours - or overnight

Skewer and grill

Discard excess marinade

Greg

[Groomlakearea51]

[Y][Y][Y]

If you want to "push" it towards the classic "Mongolian" flavor, just add some star anise and chives to the marinade; and simmer the marinade (covered) for about an hour before adding the beef. The warm marinade really penetrates the steak strips.

[Gilbert]

Danki very much for the receipe, and I will give it a shot.... and have a michilada or 2 or 3 while I'm cooking it.

Flap steak,.. hmmm, I'm not sure but it sounds like it could be the same as what latino's down here refer to as outside-cut fajita. I say this because it is like a big wide sheath-like or flap of meat. It is especially tender fajita, the cut is taken just outside the rib cage of the animal. Outside cut fajita can get a bit pricey though, about 5 to $6/lb, but it's dang tender. I've never been able to find outside cut fajita anywhere other than a border town. Can't even find it here in SanAntoino. The mexicans here are too domesticated.

[greg928gts]

Today I cut the meat and let it marinate all day. I skewered and grilled it tonight for dinner. Overall it was very good. I couldn't stop eating it while grilling.

The sirloin cost about $5 per pound, but the flap steak was $7 per pound! But the flap steak was much better. It was more tender and had more flavor. The sirloin was good too, but more dense and it didn't capture as much of the marinade.

When I do this again, I'll use a different marinade recipe. The one I used was ok, but not really the right flavor. I think it can be better.

I cut the meat too thin. Next time I'll concentrate more on getting the slices a little thicker and I also will not try to cut at an angle, which is not necessary, and actually made the pieces too wide and hard to skewer. The sirloin was not as thick as the flap steak and it was also denser, so the sirloin pieces were easier to skewer and kept their shape better. The flap steak was falling apart as I was trying to skewer it, and when I put it on the grill, would fold over onto itself.

I ended up getting about 1.8lbs of sirloin ($9) and 2.2lbs of flap steak ($15). The cost of the ingredients for the marinade was about $5 and the skewers $2,50. Total cost was about $32. I ended up getting about 25 neat skewers and some odd pieces that just went on the grill because they really couldn't be easily skewered. So $1.28 each not including the tidbits. My local Chinese restaurant charges $1.33 each for their teriyaki beef skewers, so I'm really not saving any money, especially if I consider my time. Although the flap steak I used is a better quality meat than what the Chinese restaurant is using. I like their flavor better though.

Another little bit of info - be prepared ahead of time to do something with the small pieces of beef that aren't used for the slices.

Greg

[Gilbert]

Thanks Greg, I just finished preparing mine to marinate. I placed some chicken tenders and fajita (cut against the grain) to marinate in separate zip-lock bags. I'll let them set over-night in the refridgerator, and BBQ'em around noon time tomorrow. Followed your receipe.... and I'll see how the guest like'em and let you guys know if anybody croaks.

I asked for Flap steak at the meat counter, but gut strange looks from the guy. He knew flank steak right away, but not flap steak. I decided to go with the fajita, it's very simialr texture to flank, but more tender I think.

[JerolW]

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/chronicle/archive/2005/03/16/FDG2BBNBS01.DTL

jerol