Two Steaks, part 2

but ranks first in pounds of beef marketed instead of selling his corn for cash this cattle feeder is turning it into high-quality beef after he's bored corn into these cattle for 6 to 12 months they're finished and ready for market the buyer really has to know what good steak looks like on the hoof bidding gets down to a quarter of a cent more or less per pound doesn't sound like much does it but on a truckload of finished cattle it really counts up no matter who offers the top bid they're ready to move some of these cattle may come back to the stockyards where I saw them as calves or yearlings after they've been through the feedlot I really like to see them this time you know they're ready for the packing plant federal inspection means that you can count on the wholesomeness of the meat wholesomeness is one thing in qualities another here's another case where you have to know what good meat looks like even before it's cooked where you have to know what a good steak looks like on the rail the corn belt finish really shows up from here on it's a matter of getting it ready for you to pick it up at the store expert cutters prepare some of the wholesale cuts right at the plant specialty beef products are prepared and packaged halves and quarters are wrapped for shipment to retail markets at your local store the butcher breaks the carcass into your favorite cuts and finally it's ready for you to pick up within a few blocks of your home in the cut and size you want you don't have to know what good meat looks like on the hook or on the rail but you should be able to pick a good steak even before it's cooked because there is a big difference you should know what a good steak looks like before it's cooked take a few tips from a meat specialist at a Midwestern university there are several things to look for in high quality beef that will assure you a flavorful and tender meat fresh beef from a young animal has a bright cherry red color and it glistens this rib steak has a rich full color in addition to youthfulness this bright color also indicates freshness meat from an older animal has a dark color and is more dull the fat too is important some fat is necessary to protect the cut of meat during storage and handling and it also contributes to flavor and juiciness in the cooked meat the fat should be hard and brittle the color of the fat has little effect on the nutritive value but white fat is preferable from the appearance standpoint soft and oily fat generally indicates meat that would have less desired eating qualities another comparison to look for in selecting quality beef is texture most meat is cut across the grain and the texture of the lean can tell you a lot high quality beef has a soft fine velvety surface the low quality beef you will find has a coarse fibrous texture like a bunch of cut rubber bands these flecks of fat within the lean tissue are called marbling this contributes to flavor and juiciness in the cooked meat there are different degrees of marbling so look for lots of flex evenly distributed through the lean in addition to color texture and marbling you should also look at the bone a red pinky's colored soft porous bone indicates that the cut of meat came from a young animal the color and structure of the bone will tell you a lot about the age of an animal remember that the bones of an old animal will be hard flat white and flinty a steer is not all stake there are many different cuts of beef that will be made from this high-quality carcass cuts along the back such as these the rib the porterhouse and sirloin steaks are the more tender cuts cuts from these areas such as the round steak and the chuck roast are less tender one way or another a lot of our beef goes through the stockyards the crossroads of quality some of it goes to slaughter some of it goes to the Corn Belt feedlots this is where the really top quality beef will come from it's up to you to know how to select it if the car of your steak is a bright cherry red if the fat is hard and brittle if the texture is daunting if the marbling is plentiful and evenly distributed and if the bone is red or pinkish and porous well you've probably got yourself a corn-fed steak you