The 'World's Best Steak' Has Just Been Crowned
Is there anything better than a perfect steak? Whether your dream one is a well-marbled, buttery rib eye or the delicate flavors of the melt-in-your-mouth tender fillet mignon, some of the best cuts are so delicious you can forgive their considerable impact on your wallet.
The best steak usually comes from a steakhouse, where it's not simply the cut that makes it so delicious but also the aging process, which the finest steakhouses have perfected. Of course, cooking is also a factor, with some of the best restaurants eschewing a grill in favor of a high-heat broiler that leaves the perfect amount of char on the outer crust.
However, according to Insider, there isn't any steak in the world like Wagyu beef from Japan: This expensive meat can sell for upwards of $200 a pound. Moreover, the Japanese government has strict controls over its production to ensure its quality and protect its value. Wagyu's cows are the stuff of legend, and while they may not get the rumored massages (via Wagyuman), this type of cow distributes fat more evenly through its muscles, which makes the meat so tender. The animals are also fed a high-calorie diet three times a day until hitting nearly 50% body fat, which is why its prized meat is so buttery.
Shockingly, a Wagyu steak hasn't landed the title of World's Best Steak. Until now.
Japan's Waygu beef wins World's Best Steak honors
The one steak that rules them all was just crowned at the World Steak Challenge in Dublin, and for the first time in eight years of competition, Japan entered with its famed Wagyu beef. The meat from producer Starzen Co., took the top prize, beating out hundreds of entries, including three-time World's Best Steak winner JN Meat International's Ayrshire sirloin from Finland (via Food Manufacture). Starzen Co.'s Wagyu also walked away the top winner in World's Best Grain-Fed and World's Best Sirloin categories, reports The Morning Advertiser.
The Daily Mail explains that the winning sirloin is an A4 grade, also known as Akune Gold, and considered an ultra-premium steak. The cow was raised on the subtropical island of Kyushu, which, according to the Japan National Tourism Organization, is home to cows that produce this ultra-premium form of Wagyu beef.
This is not the first time Starzen's made international headlines, though it's for a positive reason. Back in 2002, Starzen, the third largest meat wholesaler in Japan at the time (via Food Navigator), was part of a meat mislabeling scandal and admitted to falsely labeling cheaper beef to sell at a more expensive price point, per The Wall Street Journal.
The World Steak Challenge is run by William Reed Business Media, a B2B media company behind the World's 50 Best Restaurants list.