Ribeye covered in gold, Philly cheesesteak rivals, and the tomahawk cut. If you're a meat lover
here's everything you need to know about the ribeye steak. As the name would suggest, ribeye steaks are cut from the rib section of a steer
Omaha Steaks notes that this section of the animal is right behind the shoulder
also known as the chuck. Specifically, ribeyes are cut from the meat that lies between the
sixth and the twelfth rib of the steer. Ribeyes are prized for their tender texture
beefy taste, and high level of marbling. The rib primal is particularly well-suited for
cutting into steaks because it's fattier than many other areas of the animal
You might not think you like fatty meat, but the fat in a ribeye is key to this cut's buttery taste
and melt-in-your-mouth texture. The fat moistens and bastes the meat during cooking
giving you crave-worthy end results. But ribeyes aren't just fatty in all the right ways
The meat is also naturally tender. This is because the ribcage muscles that make up a ribeye
don't get much exercise while the cow is alive. Since these muscles don't do much work
they end up being very tender. This combination of tenderness and delicious fat can't be equaled
by many other steaks, if any at all. So there's a good reason why you have to shell out top dollar
for a good rib eye. Come on, do I look like a steak to you
Yeah! Prime rib is another cut from the rib primal. In fact, it's basically the same piece of
meat as a rib eye, except it's usually left as one large roast instead of being sliced
into steaks. The size is the main difference between prime rib and rib eye. Confusingly
the word prime in prime rib does not mean it must be USDA prime-grade meat. Prime rib
Rib is really just a casual term for a standing rib roast of any grade
Although both cuts consist of the same meat, their different form factors mean they're usually
treated differently. Prime rib is great when it's slow-roasted, while rib-eyes can generally be cooked hot
and fast like a porterhouse or New York strip. If you want to serve rib-eye steaks to a crowd and aren't afraid of doing your own butchering
you can save a few bucks by buying a whole standing rib roast and cutting it into rib-eye
steaks yourself. The Bearded Butchers have a tutorial on how to do this if you feel confident in your slicing skills
In addition to the monetary savings, cutting your own steaks has other advantages
You can choose how much fat to trim off, how thick to cut your steaks, and whether you
want bone-in or boneless ribeyes. Although it's sold as one piece of meat, a ribeye isn't just a slice of one muscle like
a filet mignon. Instead, ribeyes are two, or sometimes even three, muscles stuck together, according to Omaha Steaks
The bulk of a ribeye steak is the meaty marbled muscle in the middle of the steak It flanked on either side by large chunks of fat that separate it from the other two muscles At one end of the steak the ribeye cap curves around the eye
This is the most tender part of the steak, and it also has a coarsely grain texture that's
somewhat reminiscent of skirt steak, per Complete Carnivore. At the opposite end of the steak from the cap is a muscle called the complexus
Not all ribeyes have a piece of this muscle. It depends on how the steaks were butchered and what part of the rib primal they were cut from
You can buy ribeyes either boneless or with a piece of the rib bone still attached
Which one is better is the subject of fierce debate. There are many myths associated with bone and steaks
Bone partisans argue that bones are filled with flavorful marrow that seasons the steak
during cooking. There's also a layer of connective tissue holding the bone to the
meat that could, in theory, melt and baste the meat. Sadly, the high-heat, brief cooking methods
you're likely to use when preparing a ribeye are ill-suited to extracting flavor from bones
marrow, and connective tissue. For that, you need low, slow, long cooking in liquid
That's not to say that bones do nothing to help out a steak. Their mass and porous structure
insulate the meat they're attached to, protecting it from the heat. This helps the steak cook slower
and guards against overcooking. Bone-in meat will be more tender. However, Steak School argues that the bone may prevent you from achieving even browning
Ultimately, it's up to what you prefer. If you like bone-in ribeyes and want to go full caveman
then tomahawk steaks will be right up your alley. Normally, the bone in a ribeye is trimmed pretty
short, but a tomahawk is served attached to a long piece of bone, at least a few inches long
and up to over a foot. If you order this at a steakhouse, the whole dining room is going to
be staring at the plate as it's delivered to the table. It really looks impressive
The rib bone on a tomahawk steak is Frenched. This means any stray meat
fat, and connective tissue is peeled off, leaving behind a bare bone
This makes a tomahawk steak look something like a giant meat lollipop
though the sorts of establishments that serve them would probably frown on you picking up the
the steak by the bone and taking a big chomp. Bon appétit
Aesthetics aside, not much separates a tomahawk steak from any other bone-in ribeye
Compared to a boneless ribeye, it's likely to be thicker. A tomahawk can't be cut any
thinner than the bone it's attached to, so it's usually going to be a couple of inches
thick and weigh at least a couple of pounds. As we alluded to previously the different mussels in a ribeye steak have different properties While they all taste great the rib cap is the most highly prized part of the steak Depending on which rib the steak was cut from the ratio between the eye and cap will be different
The most desirable ribeyes come from the front of the rib primal. Here, the eye is quite small
and the cap is relatively large. A large cap isn't the only thing to look for when selecting a ribeye
According to Hungry Cravings, you want the kernels of fat in between the muscles to be as small as
possible. This doesn't mean you want a lean ribeye, though. Far from it. You want the mussels
themselves to be streaked with a ton of marbling. A good amount of marbling will make your steaks
better in every possible way. It'll be juicier, more flavorful, and more tender. Marbling is one
of the main factors the USDA takes into consideration when grading meat, so look for
prime ribeyes if you want to maximize fat. However, the higher the grade, the higher the price tag
We already know that ribeye is a special cut of beef because of its high level of marbling
and tender texture. If you want to maximize marbling and the softest beef, you can seek
out USDA prime ribeyes. But what if money is no object and you want something even more over the
top than prime? In that case, wagyu beef is the answer. Wagyu is a term for beef sourced from
Japanese cattle breeds. It tends to be intensely marbled and extremely tender. Japanese cattle
were bred to do labor, which just so happened to genetically predispose them to produce
marbled meat, according to the American Wagyu Association. The higher grades of Wagyu beef
have so much intramuscular fat that they are literally off the USDA charts and can be classified
as prime plus plus or beyond prime. Purebred Japanese Wagyu beef is so rich and intense
that it's not really a good idea to cook it like an American steak, according to BBQ Guys
We're used to being served a big ribeye in one piece, but that's just way too much wagyu to eat in one sitting. Instead, if you manage to source a real
Japanese wagyu ribeye steak, it's best to follow the traditional method and cut it into small pieces
to quickly grill. Not only will this give you a more reasonable serving size, but it also reduces
the chance that the fatty meat will flare up and scorch on the grill
We're moving on from Wagyu, which is perhaps the fanciest ribeye steak you can buy
to possibly the least fancy, a Philly cheesesteak. Classic Philly cheesesteaks are made with super
thinly sliced ribeye, griddled on a flat top until brown. Why are cheesesteaks made with ribeye
For one, the things that make ribeye great to eat with a fork and knife
Also make it perfect as a sandwich stuffer. You want tender beef in a cheesesteak
and the fat in ribeye keeps the beef juicy and tender during the griddling process Beyond the superior taste and texture of ribeye there another reason cheesesteak shops use it tradition
Ribeye is simply what has been used to make cheesesteaks for a long time. This fact is
actually a source of gentle ribbing between the owners of Pat's and Geno's in South Philadelphia
the two most famous cheesesteak places. Although Pat's is the originator of the sandwich, the owner of Geno's says Pat's no longer uses
ribeye. He told Philadelphia Magazine, He's into the chopped meat thing, but the Philly steak needs to be really thinly sliced
ribeye. That's how it started out. You have many options to cook your ribeye, and they're all excellent. Kansas City Steak
says grilling is the ultimate way to cook a ribeye, but also endorses broiling and pan
searing. No matter what method you choose, however, one thing remains constant. The best
way to enjoy a ribeye is medium rare. This means cooking it to an internal temperature of around
130 degrees Fahrenheit and then resting it before digging in. The temperature will rise to around
135 during the resting period. Regardless of whether you grill, sear, or broil, a 1 to 1.5
inch thick ribeye is a quick, easy protein option that cooks in around 10 to 15 minutes
A thinner ribeye can be cooked entirely on a hot grill, but for thicker steaks, you'll
want to set up your grill with a two-zone fire. That means half of your grill should
be significantly hotter than the other half. This way, you can sear the steaks on the hot
side of the fire, then move them to the cool side to gently come up to temperature without burning
Okay, we know we said Wagyu was the fanciest ribeye, but maybe this next one is actually
the fanciest way to eat this steak, or perhaps it's the tackiest? That depends on your perspective
In any case, you can order a Wagyu Tomahawk Steak covered in 24-karat gold leaf from Salt
Bay's restaurants for a cool $1,000. At his UK locations, the dish will set you back 850 pounds
Perfect! I'm getting charged $1,100 to get cupped in front of David Beckham
The dish's high price has raised some eyebrows, and even led to an incident where police were
called on a customer who said they didn't order the shimmering steak and refused to pay for it
We're sure the steak is good, but edible gold is odorless and tasteless
and adds nothing to the dish from a culinary perspective. So you're mostly just paying for
bling. And you might be overpaying for that bling, too. British chef John Sterk was able
to sell a gold-coated tomahawk steak in his restaurant for 100 pounds. Sure, that's still
a splurge, but it's a much more reasonable luxury than burning a month's rent on a single piece of beef