>Cuts: Kirts rank ordering:  ;)

If I might add an addendum. And something of a retraction. ;) Today I found
a source of 100% pastured beef. I had to go looking for it because it is
rarely in the supermarkets here and when it is it is trimmed of all fat and
marketed as low fat meat. Anyway, I got a nice chunk (12 lbs) of top
sirloin at $3.99/lb which had been aged _six_ weeks. It was stunning.
_deep_ flavor, tender, and there was _plenty_ of excellent edge fat. The
idea that cattle are too lean and tough without marbling (grain fed) is
silly, and I was silly for forgeting that pastured meat makes a difference.
Pastured cattle have little marbling but plenty of tastier fat where it
belongs: between the muscle on the skin, not marbled. Probably the
potential problems with eating garin-fed meats would take a while to show,
or maybe the problems are more to do with the additives in dry-lot cattle
feeds than the garin itself. I don't know...

But while there is no doubt that marbling makes steaks more tender I figure
it is cheating in a way--trying to mimic the rich, tender flavor of aged
grass-eating beef...

Cheers,
Kirt