Affordable Meat Cuts for the Perfect Stew
Discover the most affordable cuts of meat you can use to achieve the perfect stew, without compromising on taste or quality.
Tl;dr
- Stewed meats, ideal for autumn, pair well with pasta, rice, and mashed potatoes.
- Three affordable meat cuts for stews: Roast beef, shoulder, and shank.
- Combining different cuts in the same stew can enhance the flavor.
Autumn’s Arrival Calls for Hearty Stews
As the first chills of autumn make themselves felt, our culinary instincts naturally turn towards warm, hearty dishes. A classic choice for this season is stewed meats, providing a robust accompaniment to pasta, rice, or a velvety mound of mashed potatoes. A good stew typically starts with a base of onion, carrot, garlic, and bay leaf, but the beauty of this dish is its flexibility – simply use the vegetables you have on hand.
Affordable Meat Cuts for Your Stew
The star of the show, of course, is the meat, and given the recent price increases, it’s helpful to know which cuts offer the best value for your money. The brilliant aspect of a stew is that it lends itself perfectly to cheaper cuts of meat. These cuts, while not generally used for dishes such as steak or schnitzel, become tender and flavorful when cooked slowly over a long period.
Best Value Cuts for Stew
- Roast beef: A generous and flavorful cut from the front quarter of the cow. It has the right amount of fat and collagen, making it ideal for slow cooking. It becomes tender and juicy when stewed. Best cut into large cubes to maintain its structure in the dish. Priced at 10,000 per kilogram.
- Shoulder: This versatile front cut is more economical than others. The shoulder has sinews and connective tissue that melt during slow cooking, giving the stew a velvety texture and deep flavor. Remember not to rush the cooking process, as it only starts revealing its best after one and a half to two hours. Priced at 11,000 per kilogram.
- Shank (Osobuco): Often associated with risotto, the shank (the bone marrow from the hock or the arm) is a gem for stewing. Its marrow gives the stew a unique richness, and the meat, full of natural gelatin, becomes incredibly tender. Many argue that there’s no better stew than one prepared with this cut. Priced at 7,000 per kilogram.
Enhancing Your Stew
An extra tip to elevate your stew? “If more than one cut is combined in the same preparation, the result can be even tastier.” So, don’t be afraid of experimenting with different cuts in your next stew pot.