Slicing Beef Carpaccio Is Simple With This One Trick

One of the defining features of beef carpaccio, aside from the rawness of the meat, is that the beef slices are paper thin — this thinness, after all, is what separates carpaccio from crudo. However, the preparation is easier said than done; anyone who's ever tried to slice a soft and slippery piece of raw beef knows it can be difficult to get it super thin. Before you despair and relegate beef carpaccio to a restaurant-only dish, know that there's a simple trick that will make slicing beef carpaccio a breeze: Partially freezing the meat first before slicing it.

Freezing meat before you cut it has long been the trick to getting the thinnest meat slices for your stir-fry, since it firms up the meat, making it easier to cut and slice. It's arguably even more important for carpaccio, since those beef slices need to be thinner, around ⅛ of an inch or less. It's easy to do. First pat your beef dry before you place it in the freezer. How long it should stay there depends on the size of that piece of beef and your freezer, but usually around an hour is a good amount of time. You don't actually want the beef to be totally frozen, as completely frozen meat is hard to cut or slice, but you do want it chilled enough for easier slicing.

Before you freeze the beef, you should also trim off any fat and gristle that you don't want included in your finished slices. When slicing your nearly frozen beef carpaccio, be sure to use a really sharp knife — ideally a carving knife or a slicing knife, but a chef's knife will also work — and to cut against the grain, using a smooth and steady motion.

To get the beef even thinner, you may also want to wrap the slices in plastic or parchment paper and then either pound it with a meat mallet or roll it with a rolling pin. And since it's still raw meat at the end of the day, use the highest quality and freshest meat you can get — tenderloin and sirloin are both good go-to cuts of beef for the best carpaccio. If you're concerned about the meat being completely raw, you can also sear the outside of the unsliced beef but keep the inside rare — do this before freezing it. Another handy tip is to use a chilled plate when serving to keep everything as fresh as possible. Finally, top your beef carpaccio with garnishes such as arugula, capers, and parmesan cheese, drizzle with olive oil or a vinaigrette and serve immediately as an appetizer or a light lunch.