The i.m.

tenderness variation was examined within four beef chuck muscles, the infraspinatus (IF),
supraspinatus (SS), triceps brachii (TB), and serratus ventralis (SV). The IF, SS, TB, and SV muscles
were cut into 2.5 cm thick steaks perpendicular to the long axis of the muscle

Beef Glossary
Aging – a period of time during which meat is softened as its enzymes tear down its
proteins and fibers. This occurs during a wet-aging process or during a dry-aging process.
Most of today’s beef is wet-aged in its own juices while in plastic wrap. Typically a
wholesaler fabricates a carcass into primal cuts and soon thereafter vacuum-seals them in
plastic wrap. The cuts then wet-age in their own juices until such time that a retailer opens
the plastic wrap.

Dry aging is the process of hanging beef (carcasses, sides, quarters or primal cuts) in a
temperature-controlled environment for around three weeks or more. During this time
moisture evaporates from the beef which causes it to shrink. Evaporation can result in a size
reduction of up to 20 percent as the beef becomes more dense, and so, as its flavor becomes
more concentrated (robust). Dry aging was the norm for centuries until the late 1960s - early
70s when vacuum sealing became more economical to the meat packing industry. Today,
dry aged beef is somewhat of an expensive specialty item that can be hard to find outside of
(high-end) butcher shops or specialty restaurants.

 • You may have had opportunity to purchase vacuum sealed beef cuts from a door-to-door
vendor. From the likes I have purchased both fine and unfit beef.
 
  Beef from  A Cut Above, Inc.  was unfit because their processes for plastic wrap vacuum-
seal packaging failed: I observed that packaging from A Cut Above did not properly seal
each cut that I had purchased.
 
  USDA documentation traces  E. coli  to  A Cut Above, Inc. Such was published in Recall
Notification Report 032-2003. Escherichia coli O157:H is the focus of this report which
was published by the Food Safety and Inspection Service, a division of the USDA.
E. coli Recall – A Cut Above, Inc.  6351 East Platte Avenue  Colorado Springs, Colorado
80915   719.638.6316
Anterior – before or in front; more toward the head; opposite of caudal.

Arm bone – a common name for a humeros bone which is a long bone that extends from a
blade downward to a foreshank. Another common name for this bone is clod bone.

  •  We may think of a cow as having four legs. In beef terminology however, the front/anterior
“legs” are referred to as arms while the rear/caudal legs are referred to as legs.
Backbone – consists primarily of cervical vertebrae (from the skull to the shoulder),
thoracic vertebrae (from the shoulder to the caudal end of the rib cage), lumbar vertebrae
(from the caudal end of the rib cage to the anterior end of the ischium bone), sacral
vertebrae (from the caudal end of the ilium bone to just above the anterior end of the
ischium bone) and finally, coccygeal vertebrae (which are collectively referred to as the tail
bone).

  •  A backbone is commonly referred to as the spine while a vertebra is commonly referred to

as a spine.
Blade – a common name for a shoulder blade, the scapula bone.

Bottom round – a common name for biceps femoris muscles located near a hip. Other
common names for the these muscles include gooseneck round and top sirloin cap.

  •  Retail cuts that contain a portion of bottom round muscle include round roasts/steaks, heel
of round roasts/steaks, bottom round roasts/steaks, bottom round rump roasts and others.
Bovine – of or pertaining to the bovine genus. The word bovine was derived from the Late
Latin word bovinus which stems from the Latin word bos. Bos refers to a male or female
that pertains to, is related to or that is, an ox or cow.

Braise – to cook slowly with moisture in a closed pot. Because the pot is closed, moisture is
absorbed by the meat which makes it more tender. Also because the pot is closed, meat
simultaneously cooks from all sides (angles) toward the center. This is why it is not
necessary (though it may be preferable) to flip meat cooking in a closed pot. Guidelines for
braising, which is also referred to as “pot roasting” are:

  1.  Preheat a cast iron Dutch Oven to a low heat setting then lightly cover the bottom surface
with cooking oil.
  2.  Add beef then slowly brown all sides (some prefer searing rather than slowly browning
the sides). Pour out the drippings.
    • Pour the drippings over dog food, let set for a while, then treat your dog.
  3.  Season the beef, pour simmering liquid (broth) into Dutch Oven, then place meat in the
broth.
    • Some people prefer to set a rack in the pot then set the meat on that rack.
  4.  Remove before the desired tenderness-temperature*  is reached – let stand for a few
minutes before eating.
    * Beef continues to cook even after it is removed from cooking heat, as noted here.
Broil – in beef terminology the term broil is usually used in reference to the broiler settings
on a convectional oven. Less often it is used in reference to pan broiling (no oil, no water
and no cover) or to grilling. Guidelines for oven broiling are:

 1 Load (seasoned) meat onto a broiler rack (the rectangular thing that came with your oven).
.  If the meat is quite lean, you may want to lightly cover the cooking surface of the rack with
cooking oil.
 2 Put the loaded rack in an oven that is broiler-preheated
. 
 3 Broil one side then flip the meat and broil the other side.
. 
   • Seasonings, broiler settings (high or low), rack placement (close to or far from the heating
element) and cooking times vary from cut to cut, recipe to recipe and oven to oven.
Caudal – at or near the tail; opposite of anterior.

Chuck eye – a common name for a supraspinatus muscle which a cow uses to extend a
shoulder joint and to keep that joint from dislocating. Other common names for this muscle
include chuck tender, chuck fillet, mock tender and Scotch tender.
  •  Retail cuts that contain a portion of chuck eye muscle include chuck blade roasts/steaks,
chuck 7-bone roasts/steaks, chuck mock tender roasts/steaks and others.
Clod (bone) – a common name for an arm bone.

Clod (muscles) – a common name for the biceps brachii muscles which a cow uses to flex
an elbow and to lock its elbow and shoulder in place when standing.

Complexus – muscle used by a cow when it extends its head and neck.

Corning – like pickling, corning is a method of curing food, that is, to simultaneously
season and preserve food. Corned beef is cured predominately with salt, with other
seasonings commonly including peppercorns, allspice, thyme, paprika and/or bay leaves.
Once seasonings are rubbed into a cut of beef, the cut is stored for a week or so. During
storage salt and seasonings cure the meat which is then cooked.

  •  Almost always, corned beef made of brisket and cooked by broiling.

Culotte – a common name for a rectus femoris muscle. This muscle works in conjunction
with a hip and is sometimes referred to as an outside round muscle. Note that the term
outside round may also be used in reference to a semitendinosus muscle.

  •  Retail cuts that contain a portion of culotte muscle include wedge bone sirloin steaks and
round tip roasts (cap off).
Curing – a term used for the preserving and/or seasoning of foods. Common methods for
curing beef include smoking, freezing, pickling and corning.

Delmonico steak – the term Delmonico steak may seem as though a catch-all for choice
cuts from the ribeye muscle or from the top loin muscle. However, this is not so in certain
localities. In a specific locality the term Delmonico steak can refer to a specific cut, as
though a definitive-like custom limited to that specific locality.

  •  The University of Nebraska lists the term Delmonico steak in reference to both a ribeye
steak and to a top loin steak (aka club steak).
  •  Cheri Sicard of Fabulous Foods lists the term Delmonico steak in reference to a bone-in rib
cut
  •  Prince Meat Company lists the term Delmonico steak in reference to a boneless rib cut.
Eye – term used in conjunction with other terms, most often in reference to a choice muscle
in a cut. Frequent terms include ribeye, top loin eye, eye of round, chuck eye and eye
muscle. Less often, beef terminology uses the word eye to mean center, as does the phrase,
eye of the tornado.

Eye of round – a common name for a semitendinosus muscle which is located near a hip.
Another common name for a semitendinosus muscle is outside round. Note that the term
outside round may sometimes be used in reference to a culotte muscle.

  •  Retail cuts that contain a portion of eye of round muscle include round roasts/steaks, heel
of round roasts, round eye roasts/steaks and others.
Fabrication – the USDA defines the term “beef fabrication” as a method of manufacturing,
dividing, creating or constructing from standardized parts. For the like it then mandates
rules that define specific methods. The term fabrication is a catch-all term that applies to
processors (for example, dividing a carcass into primal cuts) and on to retailers (for
example, combining chuck meat with flank meat to produce ground beef). Depending on
state law, additional meanings for fabrication may entail labeling terms such as chopped,
shaped, molded, cubed, beef added, or even frozen.

Flap – a common name for the obliquus abdominis interni muscle which holds in place
abdominal areas of a cow.

Flatiron – a common name for a infraspinatus muscle which a cow uses to rotate an arm
outward. The term top blade is sometimes used in reference to a infraspinatus muscle
(though more often in reference to the latissimus dorsi muscle).

Fly shaker – a common name for the cutaneous trunci muscle which a cow frequently uses
to twitch skin around its abdominal region (to shake flies away).

Foreshank – a common name for the radius bone in the lower part of a cow’s arm. It
extends from an arm bone down to a hoof (see hindshank).

Gluteus – a cow uses a gluteus accessorius muscle in moving a hind thigh outward as well
as in rotating it inward. A cow uses a gluteus profundus muscle in extending a hip joint and
in moving a hind leg outward.

Hindshank – a common name for the bone in the lower part of a cow’s leg, the tibia bone.
It extends from the round bone down to the hoof (see foreshank).

Hip – a common name for what is actually a group of bones sometimes referred to as a hip
girdle or as a pelvis. The anterior end (tip) of a hip is an ilium bone, which is part of a os
coxae bone. The middle of a hip is a pubis bone which is also part of a os coxae bone. The
caudal section of a hip is an ischium bone which is not part of a os coxae bone.

  •  A round bone has a ball on its upward end that fits into a socket, with that socket being part
of a pubis bone.
Hock – a common name for a tuber calcis bone. It is located below a hindshank and is
attached to many tendons that work in conjunction with bottom round and eye of round
muscles. It also works in conjunction with a gastrocnemius which is referred to as a heel
muscle. The bottom of a hock is called a hock joint, it consists of seven tarsal bones located
directly beneath a hindshank (tibia) bone.

Ilium bone – anterior portion of the bone group that comprises a hip. The anterior end (tip)
of an ilium bone is called a tuber coxae bone.

  •  Pin bone, flat bone and wedge bone sirloin steaks include segments of an ilium bone. They
are cut from slightly different locations and so, are cut at slightly different angles relative
to an ilium bone. These different angles result in different ilium bone appearances,
depending upon which sirloin steak cut you are looking at. Accordingly, pin, flat, and
wedge sirloin steaks were so named.
Inside round – a common name for an adductor muscle which is located near a hip. A cow
uses this muscle to move a hip and a round bone.

  •  Retail cuts that contain a portion of inside round muscle include round roasts/steaks
(especially top rounds) and others.
Ischium bone – caudal member of the bone group that comprises a hip. Common names for
the ischium bone include rump bone and aitch bone.

Knuckle (bone) – a common name for any bone that is part of a “ball-and-socket”
arrangement and, that more often refers to a ball than to a socket. In beef terminology it
most often refers to the ball on the upward end of a round bone which fits into the socket on
the downward end of a hip. It may also refer to the ball on the upward end of an arm bone
which fits into the socket on the downward end of a blade bone.

  •  Any knuckle bone is a choice dog treat.

Knuckle (muscles) – a common name for the combination of the vastus lateralis, vastus
intermedius, vastus medialist and rectus femoris muscles. A cow uses this group of muscles
to move a hind leg. These muscles are located on the anterior side of a round bone,
immediately above a knee cap.

  •  Note that the term “knuckle cap” is often used in reference to the tri-tip muscle.
Longissimus – a long, tubular-shaped muscle that spans much of the upper length of a cow
along its backbone, from the anterior portion of a chuck primal cut to the anterior portion of
a round primal cut. Different sections of this muscle are referred to by different common
names, depending on the location of a segment. Common names include the ribeye, and,
the top loin.

In a chuck primal cut the longissimus muscle has an endpoint in the lower neck at which
point it runs (in a caudal direction) along the last four cervical vertebrae. It then runs along
the thoracic vertebrae. It then reaches a rib primal cut at which point it runs along the rib
cage and is called the ribeye muscle. It then reaches a short loin primal cut at which point it
runs along the lumbar vertebrae and is called the top loin muscle. It continues to be called
the top loin muscle as it runs through the sirloin primal cut along lumbar and sacral
vertebrae and into the round primal cut.

  •  It is not clear to me whether the term “longissimus muscle” is short for “longissimus dorsi
muscle.”
  •  Related muscles include the longissimus capitus et atlantis muscle (along cervical and
thoracic vertebrae) and the longissimus costarum muscle (along thoracic vertebrae and
ribs). Both of these longissimus relatives are excluded from retail cuts.
Lumbar vertebrae – section of vertebrae located between the hip and the last (thirteenth)
rib. A lumbar vertebrae forms the  T  shape that is especially famous in T-bone and
Porterhouse steaks (see backbone).

Marbling – intra-muscular fat; fat speckles within a single muscle. Marbling is a primary
factor in USDA beef grading.

  •  While marble fat is within a single muscle, seam fat is between multiple muscles.
Multifidus dorsi – muscle a cow uses this to flex and extend its backbone.

Pickling – like corning, pickling is a method of curing that simultaneously seasons and
preserves food (beef), predominately with salt. Seasonings for pickling are similar to those
for corning but often with the addition of cloves.

Pot roast – a cut of beef suitable for braising (braising is sometimes referred to as “pot
roasting.”).

Ribeye – a common name for the rib section of the longissimus muscle which runs along
the backbone. Once the ribeye muscle passes from the rib primal cut to the short loin primal
cut, it is then referred to as the top loin muscle (see longissimus muscle).

  •  Retail cuts that contain a portion of ribeye muscle include caudal-most chuck blade
roasts/steaks, large end rib roasts/steaks, small end rib roasts/steaks, ribeye roasts/steaks
and others.
  -  Prime Rib – the most famous cut that contains a portion of ribeye muscle is the Prime Rib,
be it a large end rib roast or a small end rib roast.
Ribeye cap – a common name for the spinalis dorsi muscle which a cow uses to flex its
back. Another common name for the spinalis dorsi muscle is Delmonico (steak) muscle.

Ribeye lip – serratus dorsalis-anterior muscle which a cow uses to move its ribs forward
and outward in the process of breathing. Less often, the term ribeye lip is used in reference
to the longissimus costarum muscle.

Roast – a cut of beef that has a thickness of two inches or more is usually called a roast. A
thinner cut is usually called a steak. An exception is the rib roast small end which is a fine
cut that is thinner, as though a steak – say about one inch in thickness.

Robust – term this site uses in attempt to differentiate the flavor of a cut that is less
tender/less fatty/less moist from the flavor of a cut that is more tender/more fatty/more
moist. “More robustness in flavor” is meant to imply an overall flavor that consists of more
beef flavor relative to fat flavor. Accordingly, “less robustness in flavor” is meant to imply
an overall flavor that consists of less beef flavor relative to fat flavor. Put another way, the
flavor of a less tender/less fatty chuck blade roast has a higher ratio of beef flavor to fat
flavor than does a more tender/more fatty ribeye roast, and so, a chuck blade roast has more
robustness in flavor than does a ribeye roast.

  •  This site does not  use the term “robust/robustness in flavor” to imply more overall flavor,
nor to imply less desirable flavor, nor to imply more desirable flavor.
     · See the mention of concentrated flavor in the dry aging note above.
  •  See Tough.
Round bone – a common name for the upper bone in a cow’s leg, a femur bone. A round
bone extends down from the lower extremity of a hip to the upper extremity of a hindshank.

  •  For a given cut with a given name, certain fabrication specifications mandate removal of
the round bone while others do not.
Round cap – a common name for a gracilis muscle which a cow uses in controlling a hip.

Seam Fat – inter-muscular fat, fat between muscles.

  •  While seam fat is between multiple muscles, marble fat is within a single muscle.
Standard Hamburger Meat – on this site the term standard hamburger meat refers to pre-
packaged meat sold in grocery stores, meat labeled either as “Ground Beef” or as
“Hamburger Meat.”
  •  On this site the term standard hamburger meat does not refer to a whole cut of beef that
you (or a butcher) ground and, that will be cooked very soon after being ground.
Steak – when a cut of beef is two inches or less in thickness it is usually called a steak, with
most steaks usually being one inch or so in thickness. A cut that is two inches or more in
thickness is usually called a roast. An exception is the rib roast small end, a fine cut known
as a roast even though its thickness (say about one inch) is much less than that of other
roasts.

  •  The word steak was derived from the Saxon word steik, meaning meat on a stick. The
Saxons and Jutes (see Saxon-Jute), who lived in what is now Denmark, placed high regard
on steik. Accordingly, they became skilled cattlemen. Source: The Minnesota Beef
Council.
Tail bone – a common name for coccygeal vertebrae (see backbone).

Tenderloin – a common name for two attached muscles, the fine-grained psoas major and
psoas minor muscles. A tenderloin spans short loin and sirloin primal cuts, its anterior tip is
in the short loin and, its diameter increases as it spans caudally. Tenderloin from a short
loin primal cut may be referred to as a short tenderloin while tenderloin from a sirloin
primal cut may be referred to as a butt tenderloin.

  •  Retail cuts that contain a portion of tenderloin muscle include caudal-most top loin steaks
(possibly), T-bone steaks, Porter House steaks, tenderloin roasts/steaks, and sirloin steaks
(pin bone, flat bone, round bone and wedge bone).
The tenderloin muscle runs somewhat parallel to the top loin muscle, though a bit lower in
position and on the other side of the backbone.

Tenderloin Roast - Tenderloin Steak – the most famous tenderloin cut is the tenderloin

muscle itself – the tenderloin roast/steak – tenderloin with no other muscle(s):

 
Top blade – a common name for a latissimus dorsi muscle which a cow uses to move an
arm inward, to rotate it and to stretch (extend) it. Another common name for a latissimus
dorsi muscle is large deckle muscle.

  •  Note that the term top blade is sometimes used in reference to the infraspinatus muscle.
Top loin – a common name for the loin section of the longissimus muscle which runs along
A cow’s backbone. Once the top loin muscle passes from the short loin primal cut to the rib
primal cut it is then referred to as the ribeye muscle.

  •  Retail cuts that contain a portion of top loin muscle include top loin steaks, T-bone steaks,
Porter House steaks and pin bone sirloin steaks.
Top round – a common name for a semimembranosus muscle which works in conjunction
with a cow’s hip.

  •  Retail cuts that include a portion of the top round muscle include a round steak, a heel of
round roast, a top round roast and a top round eye steak.
Top sirloin – a common name for a gluteus medius muscle which a cow uses in
conjunction with a hip. Other common names for the gluteus medius muscle include jump,
top butt and top sirloin butt.

  •  Retail cuts that contain a portion of top sirloin muscle include top loin steaks, Porter House
steaks and sirloin steaks (pin bone, flat bone and round bone).
Tough – a cut can be tough due to a higher extent to which it was derived from more
frequently-used muscle(s). More frequently-used muscles have less fat thus are less tender-
moist and correspondingly, have more robustness in flavor. Tough cuts are usually cooked
in ways meant to make them more tender, often by means of moist heat. For example,
certain roasts are generally regarded as tough cuts and they are commonly braised or cubed
then slowly cooked in stew.

  •  At first pass, the term “tough cut” may have negative implications because we highly
regard beef for its more tender steaks/roasts. However, there are plenty of cases for which
cuts that are more tough (less tender and typically more robust) are sought over cuts that
are less tough (more tender and typically less robust). For example, tough cuts typically
have more robustness in flavor, and accordingly, are preferred for use in preparing corned
beef, fajitas, hotch-potch, jerky, London Broil, pastrami … and broth/soups/stews.
  •  The terms “tough cut,” “lean cut” and “robust cut” are rather synonymous.
A cut’s reputation for being tough may accurately apply to run-of-the-mill sorts but
inaccurately to higher quality sorts. For example, a chuck blade roast from a mass-marketer
would more likely be tough whereas a chuck blade roast from a specialty butcher shop
would more likely be tender enough for roasting. Similarly (and as I have experienced),
meat from a cow that Joe Rancher gave special treatment to (say, in preparation for a family
gathering) is more desirable than a like cut from a specialty butcher shop and in turn, does
not compare to a like-cut from a mass-marketer.

Tri-tip – a common name for a tensor fasciae latae muscle which a cow uses in conjunction
with a hip. Other common names for the tensor fasciae latae include triangle muscle and
knuckle cap (see knuckle muscle).

Under blade – a common name for a serratus ventralis muscle which a cow uses to protract
and retract a shoulder, and also, to move its neck in certain ways.