Select-Choice-Prime? (1 Viewer)

[woodsman]

How selective are you with buying beef? In the US we have three grades (Select, Choice and Prime) I have never seen Select cuts in stores but also never see Prime unless you go to a butcher shop. I consider steak a luxury meal and will spend the extra money for the best, after all, would you purchase icky fish, poultry or pork?

I do purchase the average choice beef for certain things were marbling and tenderness are not a factor but not as a stand alone piece of meat.

I have two locations for Prime beef close to my home, one is obvious, the local quality butcher shop, the other may surprise you. The Costco in my area does carry Prime beef, who knew? Just today I picked up a tray of sirloin for tips. The marbling on this meat was like a Picasso painting.

 

[Harshaw]

Generally speaking, I buy steaks from a butcher. There's one a bit down the road from me who sells excellent meat, generously cut, at prices only a little above grocery.

In fact, I'm heading out later today to pick up some bone-in prime rib.

 

[WCH]

How selective are you with buying beef? In the US we have three grades (Select, Choice and Prime) I have never seen Select cuts in stores but also never see Prime unless you go to a butcher shop. I consider steak a luxury meal and will spend the extra money for the best, after all, would you purchase icky fish, poultry or pork?

I do purchase the average choice beef for certain things were marbling and tenderness are not a factor but not as a stand alone piece of meat.

I have two locations for Prime beef close to my home, one is obvious, the local quality butcher shop, the other may surprise you. The Costco in my area does carry Prime beef, who knew? Just today I picked up a tray of sirloin for tips. The marbling on this meat was like a Picasso painting.

We go for the no antibiotics/no hormones/no pesticides grass fed beef. Get it from a friend's dad in OK.

 

[PirateMk1]

We go for the no antibiotics/no hormones/no pesticides grass fed beef. Get it from a friend's dad in OK.

I get a beef half from my sister in Montana. Her beef is fed a grain mix along with grazing the last 6 months before butchering. Makes for excellent well marbled beef.

 

[woodsman]

We go for the no antibiotics/no hormones/no pesticides grass fed beef. Get it from a friend's dad in OK.

Is it frozen?

 

[Gaius46]

I don't recall ever seeing Prime cuts in my local supermarkets - I've read they are typically not sold retail - and usually only see Choice cuts in the market so I tend to obsess more over which cut to buy for a particular dish that the quality. I used to buy day-to-day cuts at the market and cuts for special occasions at the butcher but really don't do that much any more since the local market gets surprisingly high quality meats and reserve the butcher for things like lamb and pork bellies.

 

[WCH]

Is it frozen?

Yep. He butchers it, packages it, and delivers it to Austin.

 

[woodsman]

Generally speaking, I buy steaks from a butcher. There's one a bit down the road from me who sells excellent meat, generously cut, at prices only a little above grocery.

In fact, I'm heading out later today to pick up some bone-in prime rib.

That’s also the experience at my butcher shop, at one time I asked about the grading, I guess there are sub-gradings within each category, meaning a choice cut from the local market is not the same as the butcher sells.

 

[Lutherf]

How selective are you with buying beef? In the US we have three grades (Select, Choice and Prime) I have never seen Select cuts in stores but also never see Prime unless you go to a butcher shop. I consider steak a luxury meal and will spend the extra money for the best, after all, would you purchase icky fish, poultry or pork?

I do purchase the average choice beef for certain things were marbling and tenderness are not a factor but not as a stand alone piece of meat.

I have two locations for Prime beef close to my home, one is obvious, the local quality butcher shop, the other may surprise you. The Costco in my area does carry Prime beef, who knew? Just today I picked up a tray of sirloin for tips. The marbling on this meat was like a Picasso painting.

Costco usually has pretty good meat but if I want to do it right I head to my local butcher and buy Prime/CAB.

 

[WCH]

I get a beef half from my sister in Montana. Her beef is fed a grain mix along with grazing the last 6 months before butchering. Makes for excellent well marbled beef.

I believe they do the same where we get ours but, it's usually a young steer. It's very lean but, very delicious.

 

[WCH]

Our local HEB has all the choices available including natural chicken, turkey, pork, lamb and bison if we want something fresh.

 

[beerftw]

How selective are you with buying beef? In the US we have three grades (Select, Choice and Prime) I have never seen Select cuts in stores but also never see Prime unless you go to a butcher shop. I consider steak a luxury meal and will spend the extra money for the best, after all, would you purchase icky fish, poultry or pork?

I do purchase the average choice beef for certain things were marbling and tenderness are not a factor but not as a stand alone piece of meat.

I have two locations for Prime beef close to my home, one is obvious, the local quality butcher shop, the other may surprise you. The Costco in my area does carry Prime beef, who knew? Just today I picked up a tray of sirloin for tips. The marbling on this meat was like a Picasso painting.

I do not even bother learning the designations, since good meat is good meat, and if it is bad I do not buy it again. I personally go for tougher cuts of meat like brisket and bottom sirloin (aka tritip) over softer cuts of meat, due to the fact the tougher ones taste better.

For any cut of beef from the us, if you know how to cook it you will not care, brazillian beef however, always tastes grassy now matter how good the grade, because they are grassfed til death.


Also for oddball meat, I go to heb in texas(sorry the rest of yall ain't got an heb) They have bison, grassfed beef, other natural meats, and sometimes depending on availability, they even carry alligator meat, so they seem to be king of quality meats here.

 

[woodsman]

I do not even bother learning the designations, since good meat is good meat, and if it is bad I do not buy it again. I personally go for tougher cuts of meat like brisket and bottom sirloin (aka tritip) over softer cuts of meat, due to the fact the tougher ones taste better.

For any cut of beef from the us, if you know how to cook it you will not care, brazillian beef however, always tastes grassy now matter how good the grade, because they are grassfed til death.


Also for oddball meat, I go to heb in texas(sorry the rest of yall ain't got an heb) They have bison, grassfed beef, other natural meats, and sometimes depending on availability, they even carry alligator meat, so they seem to be king of quality meats here.

I agree with you to a point, but the grading of US beef does give you a certain starting point even though It’s very broad. You certainly can’t take a select grade cut and sear it up and expect anything other than shoe leather.

Where I do agree is, the top two quality cuts are laking in flavor in my opinion, tenderloin and ribeye. I almost always chose the NY strip/top loin or a T-bone if BBQ-ing. If your good with marinades and have a very hot grill running flank steak can also be very good.

You mentioned bison, I live reasonably close to a ranch that has a good size herd with a meat shop at the same location. Its great meat, I pick some up once a month or so and really enjoy it.

 

[Northern Light]

I buy grass fed with no abx, since we don't eat beef that often and when we do I don't feel like eating chemical crap. The grade doesn't matter to me as long as it meets those standards.

 

[SocialD]

That’s also the experience at my butcher shop, at one time I asked about the grading, I guess there are sub-gradings within each category, meaning a choice cut from the local market is not the same as the butcher sells.

There are more grades than those 3 yes. In addition below select there is Cutter grade and below that Canner Grade ( these are found in like frozen burritos and pot pies and stuff like that )
Some premium steak sellers such as Allen Bros and others only sell a select best of prime even.
Then you have premium beef such as wagyu kobe, angus etc..

 

[Hawkeye10]

Very, not only grade but source, who do I trust to pick the best of the grade. THe grade I want depends upon the project, and I do sometimes want N0-Roll and I do sometimes want Prime and I do sometimes want everything in the in between. The majority of my beef comes from Costco, but I do get around some. I have gotten some very expensive 90 day dry aged Prime by mail as well...it all depends.

 

[Hawkeye10]

Costco prime top sirloin tonight....

 

[Brewdog]

There are more grades than those 3 yes. In addition below select there is Cutter grade and below that Canner Grade

There's also "Taco Bell" grade. I saw it listed on the FDA website. It was one step down from Alpo grade.

 

[KevinKohler]

Choice, select, and prime is only referring to the fat content and marbeling of the beef. Which primarily affects tenderness. More fat marbled into the muscle breaks down and becomes looser, when cooked, making the beef more tender. Flavor is more determined by freshness, cut, and species of cow, and what it was fed.

In my opinion, paying for prime is a rip off. It's typically 10 dollars or more per pound, than choice. No thanks. I'll take a USDA choice black angus bone in ribeye at 9.99 per pound all day, any day, over paying 20 bucks ore more per pound for a prime cut of the same think.

 

[Master PO]

Costco does sell prime beef, i love ribeyes, they have the prime for 185 a rack which is about 18 steaks and choice for about 135, both are great but prime is more tender

 

[Mr Person]

It depends. Usually we go with choice (from a proper butcher shop, not a supermarket), since prime can be pretty expensive.


Though recently we splurged and picked up a couple of 30ish day dry aged prime strip steaks. Had them last night, grilled rare (though mine was more....very rare) and damn were they good.

 

[SocialD]

There's also "Taco Bell" grade. I saw it listed on the FDA website. It was one step down from Alpo grade.

Lol. well it matches their service. worst service by a fast food place ive ever experienced.

 

[KevinKohler]

Honestly, all I ever buy anymore is the butt flap, or flap meat. It's where the tri tip comes from. 5.99 per pound, lovely marbling, great flyover, and takes most any kind of marinade very well.

 

[SMTA]

We go for the no antibiotics/no hormones/no pesticides grass fed beef. Get it from a friend's dad in OK.

Once you have that kind of fresh meat, grocery stores really suck.