Chuckie Vs Eye of Round Question

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bwsmith_2000

Master of the Pit
Original poster
OTBS Member
Jul 9, 2005
1,350
13
Santa Rosa Beach, Florida
     A couple of weeks ago, I smoked a 3 1/2 lb chuckie at 230* to and IT of about 160* and it was delicious. It was tender, juicy and very good to eat either as an entree or in sandwiches.

     Thinking how really good this was, I thought I would upgrade a little today. I smoked a

5 3/4 lb eye of round at 230* to and IT of 130*. It was beautiful inside but tough. I sliced it very thin and that helped a lot but still the toughness detracted from the overall enjoyment. Any thoughts as to why the eye of round was so different from the chuckie.
 
Bill, I have to agree with Ross, the eye of round is a very lean piece of meat where as most chucky's are well marbled with fat throughout the piece of meat, as the chucky cooks the fat breaks down and leaves the meat very tender and juicy.  The eye of round on the other hand does not have much if any marbling in it so there is nothing to help make it more tender or more juicy.  The best cuts of meat for your smoking purposes is a well marbled cut of meat which in many cases is a cheaper cut of meat.  Just look for the marbling, it's usually a sure way of knowing what a piece of meat will do when cooking it in a smoker low and slow!  Keep up the good work and let's see how your next smoke goes, we have all had smokes that did not meet our expectations so your not the first by any chance.

Your SMF Friend,

Barry 
biggrin.gif
 
I agree with the guys above but depending on what you're end product is expected to be.  With chuck, I prefered them pulled. There's a lot of connective tissue in them that really benefits from a long low and slow smoke.  If planning to shred/pull (which I think is more preferrable for this cut) cook until it hits 165 internal, foil with some broth, beer, juice, whatever, and continue to cook until the internal temp hits 205* F.  Then rest for and hour or two then start shredding.  Super tasty and versitle cut of meat.

Like the guys said, the eye of round is much more lean and doesn't really benefit from a long smoke.  What I do with these is smoke them until the internal hits around 140*F.  Then chill overnight and slice as thin as you can the next day.  They are great for thin sliced roast beef sandwiches with  little lettuce, tomato, and horseradish.

Hope this helps. 

They're just different cuts of meat
 
My main use for eye of round is to turn them into corned beef.  We prefer the very lean corned beef. 

OTOH, we buy ready corned beef flats or points from brisket to turn into pastrami.
 
The eye of the round comes from the hind leg of the steer which is used for locomotion; that's why it is leaner and tougher than the chuck, which is more used in the shoulder for support, allowing fat to build up (look at your leg muscle compared to your shoulder blade - which is leaner?)..  The grain of the meat is more fibrous and in 'ropes' also.
 
I hear a lot of guys smoking chuckies to 165 and slicing, I am on the same page as The Dude... I would think this cut be better for pulling, but back to the OP, I agree with the rest eye of round is too lean for low and slow.

BW Smith's post that the chuckie was cooked to an internal temp of 160 and sliced.

I was under the impression that the connective tissue doesn't break down until it reaches an internal temp of 160 or better? so wouldn't this sliced chuckie bee too fatty for sammies?

Most of the chuckies I have seen, I think would be to fatty to slice at 165, but I have heard many who have had great success with this.

And Virginia smokes post, "as the chucky cooks the fat breaks down and leaves the meat very tender and juicy", while this is true I do not think it applies to this particular smoke of an internal temp of 165, I believe the meat is tender due to the marbling but not because of the breakdown of the fat and connective tissue because it has not begun yet. IMHO

Has anyone else had much luck with slicing a Chucky at 165?

my 2 cents

I think next chuckie I am going to play a bit.
 
     Thanks a million folks for your responses. I think I agree with the consensus that the chuckie has more fat and thus produced a more tender product than the eye of round. I just thought that since the eye is considered a higher quality cut, it should make a superior Q. But not so . ...... next time I'll go for the fattier cuts for smoking. I've always been a pork kind of a guy and just started  trying smoking beef. I usually grill my steaks and the wife does the roast in the oven.

     Once again, I have learned something on the SMF. My sincere thanks for all your responses.
 
If you get another Eye of round again make it into dried beef. Check out Bearcarvers post on that it looks awesome. I have one in the freezer just waiting to be cured and turned into dried beef. I can't wait!
 
I like to take my Chuckies to about 205˚ for pulling.

The only way I like Eye Rounds is for Dried Beef.

I have a step by step of my "Dried Beef" in my signature below.

However slicing real thin like you did can be some very tasty stuff!

Bear
 
Eye of round is my favorite cut for Sourbraten, or minute steaks if you Jacard them to death, if you feel like playing with that cut again
 
     Thanks a million folks for your responses. I think I agree with the consensus that the chuckie has more fat and thus produced a more tender product than the eye of round. I just thought that since the eye is considered a higher quality cut, it should make a superior Q. But not so . ...... next time I'll go for the fattier cuts for smoking. I've always been a pork kind of a guy and just started  trying smoking beef. I usually grill my steaks and the wife does the roast in the oven.

     Once again, I have learned something on the SMF. My sincere thanks for all your responses.
 
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