Can you get a decent steak anymore?

[okie sawbones]

I like to cook beef tips and noodles occasionally. I use beef tenderloin tips and found some at Creekstone Farms for a decent price. I added on two prime NY strips.

When I opened the 'prime' NY strips, they looked more like select grade. They were seared 3 minutes per side, to a medium rare. Long story short, they were tough, very tough. The wife and I fed them to our dogs, who had no complaints. What a major disappointment.

As they say, fool me once, shame on you. I will place no more orders with them. Other suggestions on tender steaks?

 

[chopsaw]

I'm not buying many steaks these days . I've never bought into the mail order stuff .
I was cutting my own ribeyes , but to much money to do it now .
I did just buy a managers special 3 pack of ribeyes with some really nice cap meat . Marked " Down " to 23 bucks for the 3 . They were thin and only 8 oz. each . Good though .

So I go to the store and see what they have , then check the sell by date . Come back the day of , and see if anything is marked down .
I just did that with some chicken leg 1/4's . They were on sale for .99 a lb . I bought 3 trays for 4 bucks a tray . Came back 2 days later , and found them in the deal isle for 2 bucks a tray . So .50 cents a lb .

 

[sandyut]

Store bought is a roll of the dice. I did snag a few SRF NY strips. those were quite good.

But as Rich said, I dont by too many these days, or beef in general. its so costly. And I feel like the overall quality is down from a decade ago.

 

[jcam222]

I'm pretty spoiled on small farm local beef. Steaks that are fork tender every time.

 

[okie sawbones]

I'm pretty spoiled on small farm local beef. Steaks that are fork tender every time.

We tried a local guy that raises nice black angus beef. It was a bust. The closest meat market to us is an hour away. So gas costs defray the extra cost of mail order.

 

[normanaj]

So I go to the store and see what they have , then check the sell by date . Come back the day of , and see if anything is marked down .

This has been my strategy for some time now.

 

[Colin1230]

We don't have beef on the menu near as often as we used to. Not because of the price but because of our diets have changed as we have gotten older. We buy ground beef with our normal grocery list but anything else comes from Costco. We do the five pack of thick cut strip steaks for around $75 and vac seal into individual steaks. The quality has always been great, often better than the choice label. One steak is enough for both of us so they last a good long while.

 

[sandyut]

We don't have beef on the menu near as often as we used to. Not because of the price but because of our diets have changed as we have gotten older. We buy ground beef with our normal grocery list but anything else comes from Costco. We do the five pack of thick cut strip steaks for around $75 and vac seal into individual steaks. The quality has always been great, often better than the choice label. One steak is enough for both of us so they last a good long while.

We pretty much do the same thing. Costco steaks are usually pretty large and we are not young, appetites and diets have definitely changed.

 

[ajbert]

The only beef we have bought for years have been rib eyes as we hunt deer and elk. I'm very picky about what rib eyes I do buy. We have a Safeway and a small chain grocery store called City Market in the closet town that usually have the best meat hands down within 50 mile of the house. Got lucky over the last two times going into City Market as they had big thick bone in rib eyes on sale up front. First time I got 3 packs of 2 steaks in each pack at $10.99/lb, second time 2 packs at $8.99/lb. Each individual steak weighs 2lbs +/-. Yes, they are on sale because the due date was getting close. Yes, we've had steak night from both trips. Yes, they were very good.

If I had bought them on the normal meat aisle the would have been $23.99/lb! I look at them more as slightly aged beef than something ready to throw out. Vac sealed them when we got home but kept one off to the side for dinner. Plenty of meat for the wife and I with some trimmings for the dog's breakfast in the morning.

 

[Chris_in_SoCal]

So I go to the store and see what they have , then check the sell by date . Come back the day of , and see if anything is marked down .

Not steak but burger meat. I have gotten spoiled with sirloin burger lately. The meat tastes so much better than the regular stuff but costs over $7/Lb. I picked up this bargain today. I will cook one and freeze the other for later. Now I kinda wish I had picked up more, they had 5 sets marked down.

As far as steaks go my preferences have changed. I rarely ever get a ribeye, T-bone or porterhouse anymore. These days I would prefer a flap or skirt steak. I'm always up for a tri-tip. Wherever you shop you have to check them one by one. There might be three stinkers with a gem hidden just underneath.

 

[gunzby]

I’m lucky where I am. One of my local groceries dry ages their own steaks for a somewhat decent price now (around $27 now, but I was robbing them blind when they were charging same as regular steaks which were $19 a pound then).

I also have a Chef Store near me that sells whole loins really reasonable. I can cut them up how I like and grind the rest

 

[Elf@shore]

I like to cook beef tips and noodles occasionally. I use beef tenderloin tips and found some at Creekstone Farms for a decent price. I added on two prime NY strips.

When I opened the 'prime' NY strips, they looked more like select grade. They were seared 3 minutes per side, to a medium rare. Long story short, they were tough, very tough. The wife and I fed them to our dogs, who had no complaints. What a major disappointment.

As they say, fool me once, shame on you. I will place no more orders with them. Other suggestions on tender steaks?

Use a tenderizer tool !
I have a Norpro Prong tool, not sure if they even still make um ? use on everything including roasts.
You can also use a multi prong fork to tenderize.
Also? Yur steaks ?
Did you dry brine and what Temps ?
Those 2 things can change yur end result.
Again they were NY strips which are lean cuts.
I say:? Too hot without even being there ?

 

[Fueling Around]

Looking at both freezers I haven't bought "steak" in some time. I am not happy with some of the lesser cuts that have been re branded as a steak so the price was also adjusted.

 

[okie sawbones]

Use a tenderizer tool !
I have a Norpro Prong tool, not sure if they even still make um ? use on everything including roasts.
You can also use a multi prong fork to tenderize.
Also? Yur steaks ?
Did you dry brine and what Temps ?
Those 2 things can change yur end result.
I purchased

 

[okie sawbones]

Nope, the meat was sorry. To make it worse, the 'tenderloin' tips I purchased were anything but tender. I don't know what cut they were, but they weren't tenderloin. The dogs got them as well. I'll never buy from them again, nor recommend them.

 

[okie sawbones]

I’m lucky where I am. One of my local groceries dry ages their own steaks for a somewhat decent price now (around $27 now, but I was robbing them blind when they were charging same as regular steaks which were $19 a pound then).

I also have a Chef Store near me that sells whole loins really reasonable. I can cut them up how I like and grind the rest

This is what I am going to do. Buy a whole prime tenderloin at Costco business, and cut steaks myself.

 

[chopsaw]

This is what I am going to do. Buy a whole prime tenderloin at Costco business, and cut steaks myself.

See if they have Petite tender / teres major . Comes from the shoulder clod . One per side of the animal .
Great cut of beef for doing a filet mignon type cook without paying for tenderloin .
Used to be 5 bucks a lb. They're up over 10 now .
I buy them untrimmed , and do the knife work myself . Gives me grind and tips too .

After cleaning and trimming . They're about a pound each .

I normally cook / smoke whole , then slice . Crazy tender , even at higher temps .

But also do a double cut filet ,


Makes a great meal . Just depends on the price .

 

[zwiller]

Use a different strategy. More seafood! We're eating shrimp weekly.

My Mom turned me onto these. Short drive for me but that is cheaper than all steak unless on sale. if you can believe it, looks at that Save A lot ad. It's current...

 

[thirdeye]

I like to cook beef tips and noodles occasionally. I use beef tenderloin tips and found some at Creekstone Farms for a decent price. I added on two prime NY strips.

Do you happen to have a sous vide set-up? We buy sirloin, sirloin cap or sirloin flap and cook it at 131° to 135° depending if I end sear or not. It has a beefy flavor, will get very tender and it's at a good price point.

 

[chopsaw]

I just got back from GFS . Went to look at the Cow tenderloins . $11.79 a pound . Average package price was $82.00 . Probably only 2 meals for 3 people out of that .

So I moved on to the Petite tenders @ 10.79 a pound . Average package price was $68.00 . Used to be half that , and probably 3 meals for 3 , and some leftovers for a lunch .

Then saw they had a nice beef knuckle for $5.59 a pound . 15 pounds for $82.00
So that's what I went with . I'll get several meals from that , and a variety . From sandwiches , to soup or stew , to a knife and fork plate . Even an option for tacos or enchiladas or crock pot beef . Probably grind some burgers too .

Also , if you're buying primals like this , ALWAYS take a picture of the tag . Put it in a folder for that cut and name it with the date . That way you KNOW what you paid and can be informed when you buy .
Jan . 2023 , knuckle was $3.79 a pound

Aug . 2026 , $5.59 a pound .