Elements Affecting Taste and Texture

(Updated Jan 18, 2010 at 4:30 pm PST)
Dozens of important elements affect the taste and texture of steak. Some of the important elements include the following:

• Breed or hybrid of the cattle (e.g. Angus, Limousin, Texas Longhorn, Wagyu etc.).
• Sex of the cattle (e.g. steer).
• Age of the cattle at castration (e.g. castrated at birth or later).
• Growth of cattle (e.g. whether born in the Spring and weaned in the Fall).
• Climate where the cattle are raised (e.g. Midwestern plains).
• Terrain where the cattle are raised (e.g. California Central Valley).
• Feed of the cattle at each stage of their lives (e.g. , including the types of grasses, grains and other food.
• Physical care and exercise of the cattle at each stage of their lives.
• Health care and treatment of the cattle at each stage of their lives, including the administration of antibiotics, vaccines, hormones and other drugs and medicine.
• Age of the cattle at slaughter.
• Grade of the cattle, if graded by the USDA.
• Marbling score of the beef, if scored by the USDA between the 12th and 13th rib.
• Brand of the beef, if branded (e.g. Certified Angus Beef).
• Aging method and time, if applicable (e.g. 28-day dry aged).
• Cut of the steak (rib, strip, tenderloin, etc).
• Thickness of the cut.
• Trimming method (i.e. how much fat is removed before cooking).
• Seasoning before cooking (i.e. which, how much and how long before cooking are seasonings applied to the cut before cooking).
• Cooking method (e.g., grilled over live coals, cooked over a gas grill, cooked in a Montegue oven, etc.).
• Temperature of cooking at the steak level.
• Time of cooking.
• Actions during cooking (e.g. flipping, covering with a lid, basting and similar steps).
• Resting time and method after cooking (e.g. placing in 150F oven for 5 minutes).
• Seasoning after cooking (i.e. which, how much and how long after cooking are seasonings and other ingredients applied.
• Slicing of the steak (where, when and how is the steak sliced).
• Seasoning at the table (e.g. sea salts).

If each of these has only five alternatives, then the number of different taste profiles is 1.5 quintillion (that is 1.5 followed by 18 zeroes)!

SteakPerfection is a complex process that involves every detail, from pasture to plate.

Click here for our Steak Perfection Twitter.

Click here for our Steak Perfection Facebook.

Click here for our Steak Perfection Blog.

Click here for our Steak Perfection LinkedIn.

Click here for our Steak Perfection Wave.

Click here for our Steak Perfection website.

The short link to this blog is http://bit.ly/6jrEkT