To show the difference, that is pretty misleading unless you navigate the site REALLY thoroughly…
I bought the same steak for the wife this week (Aldi rib eye 227g matured 21+ days) this is the sort of thing we deem more of a rarity to the normal weeknight supper here generally.
I also bought to try an Aldi “essentials range” nameless steak (227g) also apparantly 21 days aged, though it did not have the scent of matured meat whatsoever) which to my untrained eye reminded me of SKIRT / ONGLET the thickness was inconsistent as a cut (many steaks are though) which matches in with when we have bought kg’s of it at the wholesaler.
(Suffice to say, both skirt & onglet are popular in France, where I eat them regularly as a stop off down the mountain n the valley hypermarche restaurant (if you ever travel to france you will see "culinary excellence even in supermarkets, perfect for travel on a budget)
As i’d had other things to do I stuffed them both in pre-heated for 45 minutes, because I was “iffy” as to the wife’s steak thickness, 54.5c
I could have got another Anova stick out & done them at different temps / times but in reality that is not the normal households ownership, time was against me…
Result 45 minutes resulted in an edge to edge rare for the wife, (the rarest she’s ever eaten as i’m slowly bringing her down from heavier cooked) …so hers was on the edge of time that could have done better at 1 hour, but the previous cook was great, came out & finished as intended, this time “borderline” …more my daughter & I’s appreciation veering vaguely towards the blue which we both enjoy (she’s been eating them in france since about 12 years old) …they are still essentially banned over here since BSE hit decades ago, a remnant of a different age of stupidly feeding cows offal based feed!
My steak also done following the guide parameters of 129°F / 54°C to 134°F / 57°C for a medium rare? was cooked at 54.5c for 40 mins, it could have done with less, but it came out beautifully nonetheless (I do wonder how the average pan frier at home comes out with anything good that means they would downgrade (technically) to this for a tasty steak alternative / fantastically overloaded steak baguette, the steak was too much for me (reduced meat intake) & there was enough to go into a container of rice, peas, corn for today, but I decided to treat the hounds with a bit of steak instead.
I really do think we need to scrutinise on the site having a “switch” thickness quick look, rather than it being as buried as it is, but seeing as the software devs & anova staff rarely (if at all) read these boards then nothing will ever change, & a large degree of european buyers relying on “app” will screw up countless steaks before sussing it out.
We are a lot more sparing in our meat consumption here & more used to making good of cheaper cuts that others only resort to when the latest financial crash is upon us screwing it up & resorting to the same old same old because they try & fail more often than not.
But yes, the Aldi no cut definition “essential steak” was more than acceptable cooked s/vide, having tried it with a mix of decent roasting mix salt just prior to immersion, tasty & satisfying, would have no hesitation in making a bunch in the morning to feed a party of sofa surfing & floor crashing overnighters who were needing sustenance for a weekends drinking & DIY, just as I’d cook it as a regular nights simple steak meal with an eye on budgetary constraint.
Here is a link to ald’s steak as it currently stands (Oct 2023) for some context, note my steak was not much less than rump.
https://groceries.aldi.co.uk/en-GB/Search?keywords=steak