The Biggest Mistake You're Making When Cutting Steak

A home cooked, restaurant-quality steak is tender, juicy, and cooked exactly the way you want it. It shouldn't be difficult to cut a steak, assuming you're using a good steak knife and cutting your meat the correct way. However, one of the biggest mistakes people make when cutting steak may result in bites of meat that are chewy, tough, and gristly.

The proper way to cut steak is against the grain. When you don't cut against the grain, you end up with tough pieces of meat that are difficult to chew. This is because cutting your meat against the grain breaks up the muscle fibers in the meat. Shortening these fibers ensures each bite of meat is moist, tender, and easier to chew.

Cutting your steak against the grain will also help it maintain its delicate texture. A tough, gristly texture is unpleasant to eat and won't allow you to enjoy the full benefits of a quality piece of meat. Using the right knife and proper meat slicing technique for each cut will guarantee a more pleasant dining experience.

You'll have better luck cutting your steak properly if you invest in a good set of steak knives. You should also let your steak rest for a few minutes after cooking; this gives the juices time to settle so that the meat remains moist, flavorful, and tender. A telltale sign that you didn't let your steak rest long enough is tough meat with juice pouring from it.

Before cutting, look for long muscle fibers that run across your piece of steak in one direction. Then position your knife so that it rests at about a 45-degree angle from the meat. Cut across the muscle fibers, rather than alongside them. Doing so will result in shorter pieces of steak that are more tender and flavorful and easier to chew. When you're ready for your next bite, locate the muscle fibers once again and repeat. This technique applies to all cuts of steak as well as other cuts of beef, so keep it in mind the next time you fire up your grill or get out your cast iron pan.