I liken meat cookery to one of those mix and match puzzles where you’re trying to match the cut of meat with the cooking technique that is most effective at developing that cut’s flavor.

For the uninitiated, this can seem very complicated. But once you’ve taken the time to familiarize yourself with the available varieties and cuts, you’ll have no problem identifying which cooking technique is most appropriate.To begin orienting yourself…

Meat (the muscle tissue of an animal) is composed of the following:

• 75% water (which is why your meat will shrink as it cooks)
• 20% protein (proteins coagulate, this helps meat firm to become“done”)
• 5 % fat (this marbling – intramuscular fat which resembles a marble pattern in the meat- leads to juiciness, tenderness and flavor
• Minimal amount of carbohydrate (via the Maillard reaction, these carbs allow the surface of your meat to brown)

Connective tissue, which is a network of proteins in which muscle fibers are bound together, comes in two forms:

• COLLAGEN – white connective tissue that can be broken down with slow moist cooking (i.e. braising) ; acid, enzymes and tenderizers can also help break it down
• ELASTIN – found more frequently in older animals, this yellow connective tissue does NOT break down in cooking; trim it away or break the fibers by pounding, grinding and slicing the meat against the grain

Therefore, these several factors will affect the texture of your meat:

• Exercise – as with us humans, animal body parts that were more highly-exercised will be leaner, yet tougher, due to the connective tissue that forms in the muscles
• Age – as animals get older, the amount of connective tissue (collagen) increases and therefore their meat becomes tougher
• Aging – as the meat is subjected to what is actually controlled rotting, natural enzymes do the work of softening the meat

When buying meat, use the following voluntary grading system of quality designation (in order from highest to lowest) as your guide:

• Beef – Prime, Choice, Select, Standard, Commercial, Utility, Cutter, Canner
• Veal – Prime, Choice, Good, Standard, Utility, Cull
• Lamb – Prime, Choice, Good, Utility, Cull
• Pork – no grading

When cooking your meats, note the following recommended levels of doneness:

MEAT	RARE	MEDIUM	WELL DONE
Beef	130*	140* – 145*	160*
Lamb	130*	145*	160*
Pork	–	–	160*   – 170*
Veal	–	145* – 150*	160*

COOKING MEATS

SEARING:

• Creates an attractive and flavorful brown surface
• Place your meat in a very hot pan with a bit of oil until it browns OR place your meat in the oven at a high temperature
• DO NOT OVERLOAD the pan – give your meat space to brown or you’ll end up just boiling your meat in its juices
• After searing (achieving the brown exterior), continue to cook your meat through at a lower temperature

ROASTING:

LOW TEMPERATURE ROASTING:

• 250*-325* (the larger the cut, the lower the temp)
• Place fat-side up to facilitate basting
• Less shrinkage
• More flavor, juiciness & tenderness
• More even doneness
• Greater ease in carving
• Use this kind of thermometer to know when it’s ready

HIGH TEMPERATURE ROASTING:

• Good for small pieces served rare

GRILLING & BROILING:

• Best for cooking to rare or medium-rare
• The shorter the cooking time, the higher the temp
• For thin steaks, simply sear your meat

SAUTEING, PAN-FRYING & GRIDDLING:

• Saute – only use tender cuts; allows for deglazing
• Pan-fry – typically breaded; more fat at lower heat than sauté
• Griddling and pan-frying – preferable for pork and veal chops because temperature is lower than broiling/grilling and keeps meat moister

STIR-FRYING:

• Pan is left stationary (vs. sauté) and foods are tossed with spatula

SIMMERING:

• Cooking at just below the boiling point
• Effective for tough meats where you don’t need a brown crust

BRAISING:

• Dry heat for Searing, then cook the meat through with moist heat

Below are several images and tables with information on the different cuts of meat and their most appropriate cooking methods. While certainly not comprehensive, it should give you a sense of direction. Also, please note that cuts can have different names, depending on what part of the country you’re in.

In order to make sense of these charts, please note the following definitions:

FABRICATION – the process of cutting a slaughtered animal into smaller pieces

PRIMAL CUTS – primary cuts of the animals which are sold to chefs, allowing them to fabricate their own smaller cuts

BEEF

PRIMAL   CUT	COMMON   FABRICATED CUTS	COOKING   TECHNIQUE
CHUCK	Pot Roast	Braising
	Chuck Steak	Braising
	Chuck short ribs	Braising
	Stew meat	Braising
	Ground chuck	Grilling or Sauteing
RIB	Prime rib	Roasting
	Ribeye steaks	Grilling/Broiling or Sauteing
	Short ribs	Braising
SHORT LOIN	Top Loin	Grilling/Broiling or Sauteing
	T-Bone	Grilling/Broiling or Sauteing
	Porterhouse	Grilling/Broiling or Sauteing
	Strip loin	Grilling/Broiling or Sauteing
	Tenderloin	Grilling/Broiling or Sauteing
SIRLOIN	Top sirloin	Grilling/Broiling or Sauteing
	Tri-tip steak	Grilling/Broiling or Sauteing
BRISKET	Brisket	Braising
SHANK	Stew meat	Braising
SHORT PLATE	Short ribs	Braising
	Stew meat	Braising
FLANK	Flank steak	Braising or Marinate and use Grilling/Broiling or Sauteing
	Skirt steak	Marinate and use Grilling/Broiling   or Sauteing
ROUND	Sirloin tip	Grilling/Broiling or Sauteing
	Top round	Marinate and use Grilling/Broiling   or Sauteing
	Bottom round roast	Braising
	Eye of round roast	Roasting

 LAMB

PRIMAL CUT	COMMON FABRICATED   CUTS	COOKING METHOD
SHOULDER	Shoulder   roast	Roasting
	Shoulder   chops	Braising   or Grilling/Broiling
BREAST/SHANK	Breast	Braising
RIB	Rib   roast	Roasting
	Crown   Roast	Roasting
	Rib   chops	Roasting   or Grilling/Broiling
LOIN	Loin   chops	Grilling/Broiling
	Loin   roast	Roasting
LEG	Sirloin   chops	Grilling/Broiling
	Whole   leg	Roasting
	Shank	Braising

VEAL

PRIMAL CUT	COMMON FABRICATED   CUTS	COOKING METHOD
SHOULDER	Roast	Roasting   or Braising
	Chops	Grilling/Broiling
BREAST	Breast	Braising
SHANK	Osso   Buco	Braising
RIB	Rib   roast	Roasting
	Rib   chops	Grilling/Broiling
LOIN	Roast	Roasting
	Chops	Grilling/Broiling
LEG	Roast	Roasting
	Scaloppine	Sauteing

PORK

PRIMAL CUT	COMMON FABRICATED   CUTS	COOKING METHODD
JOWL	Guanciale	Roasting,   Grilling/Broiling or Frying
SHOULDER/PICNIC	Picnic	Braising
BOSTON   BUTT	Steaks
	Shoulder   roasts	Braising
LOIN	Roast	Roasting
	Chops	Grilling/Broiling
	Country   style ribs	Braising
SPARERIBS	Spareribs	Braising
BELLY/BACON	Bacon   and Pancetta	Roasting,   Grilling/Broiling or Frying
HAM	Fresh   ham	Roasted