Food - Drink
Jacques Pepin's Go-To Cut Of Beef For Stew
By ERICA ANDREWS
When making a stew, it's essential to choose a cut of meat with fat and connective tissue that can stand up to long cooking and create a gelatin-rich consistency for the broth.
While some cooks prefer to use round cuts of beef or oxtails, world-renowned chef Jacques Pépin likes to use tougher cuts of meat like flatiron, AKA chuck.
This well-marbled cut is taken from the shoulder of the cow, and when slow-cooked in low heat, it becomes tender and juicy, making it the perfect addition to your stew.
Other cuts like sirloin taste incredible when you braise it for a shorter time, but it doesn't break down well in a stew and instead can become tough or dry.
In contrast, flatiron or chuck meat has a medium level of fat content and connective tissue that turns into gelatin when cooked, for perfectly tender pieces that are easy to bite into.