So anybody who has read my posts here for quite a while, would know that I do a LOT of steaks… Petite Sirloins, which are NOT prime cuts, for 18-20 hrs, at 135F. Of course they come out very tender… but admittedly, these long SV’s tend to make them a little drier + can sometimes almost give that slightly powdery texture…
But I just had a HUGE breakthrough Its called a Jaccard machine The one I got is not really the Jaccard brand, but it does the same thing… which is, to pierce a whole bunch of holes all the way through the meat (i do it from both sides) which not only cuts a lot of the muscle fibers, but also allows marinades and more importantly “salt” to easily penetrate deep into the meat. In fact, it really seems to me, like it now penetrates all the way through !
Long story short, I’m now first using my Jaccard (type) of machine first, then marinating for 6 to 12 hours, then SV’ing for only 3-4 hrs, which for me, is super short ! And guess what ? Maybe even more tender and WAAY more juicy Plus no hint of powderyness. Its just really seems like a high end, prime cut from an expensive steakhouse, when in fact, I just got my Petite Sirloins on an awesome sale yesterday, for $2.98 a lb !!!
$2.98 a lb steaks that Id compare the best steakhouses in America Whoo Hoo !
This is the one I use… I’m not posting the whole link, but this should make it easy to find in a quick search…
This thing is SO awesome Oh, and BTW, after cooking and searing, all of the little cuts basically close up, and disappear Would be pretty easy to keep its use a secret if you wanted to
Just be absolutely certain you thoroughly clean and sanitize your new kitchen tool after evry use. If it’s dishwasher safe that’s the best way to clean. Then 10% household bleach solution sanitize and rinse just before use.
You would be surprised at the number of butchers that use them.
Yes ! Absolutely… mine is dishwasher safe, and it goes right in after every use But might start the quick bleach and rinse as well.
I know right ? I bought a 3 lb pack of hamburger on the same trip, and it was $3.48 a lb ! Honestly, they sell the Petite Sirloin roasts sometimes for $2.78 a lb… I keep threatening to get a really professional grinder, and make my own hamburger. I could probably add a little bit of lard to the mix, and 1) make it cook better, and 2) make it even cheaper… Like $2.25 a lb ! Your just not going to buy beef for cheaper than that unless you buy and section a cow… or at least a half or a quarter
Hey Chris, Yes, to be safe you don’t want to push surface bacteria deep into your meat.
You probably don’t want cow meat, even if tenderized.
With live cattle now selling at $1.24/lb. in Chicago or about $2.10/lb. dressed. After boning, cutting, and packing your sirloin roasts cost about double that before adding any aging… You are getting quite a bargain sir.
It makes me wonder, - is there much in the news these days about a cattle rustling problem in your area?
Buying a side or quater is rarely cost effective unless you use a lot of bone, fat, and ground beef.
So before the whole virus thing, I was getting these Petite Sirloins for the same $2.98 a lb, fairly regularly. The normal price back then was $4.98, and I thought that was high. But a few months ago, it was as high as $6.49.
Haven’t heard anything about cattle rustling.
Shouldn’t eat cow ??? Not quite following ? Same thing as “cattle” or “beef” right ?
Items of beauty Chris, thanks for sharing. And that is definitely not cow meat. Those would be at least $5 each where i shop.
Beef or cattle are the common names of the bovine species. Cows are mature females raised for the production of milk and calves. Bulls are mature males. Neither are good eating. At the end of their useful life they are harvested mostly for animal food.
Female calves are either raised as replacements for the milk herd, or for meat and called heifers. Young males are steers. Steers and heifers are good eating, particularly when properly cooked.
Maybe its just me, but I call anything Bovine a “cow”… In the same way I call a hen or a rooster, both a chicken.
But yea’, I’m telling you, I’d put these, with my latest Jaccarding, marinating, and SV treatment, against the top steakhouse steaks in the country !
I also have a new brainstorm about how to sear them with more flames, and a lot more smoke Granted, I’ll only do that for steak dinners, especially if we are are having friends over.
Btw, I love telling friends, “Yea, so I went all out on these steaks… These were about a $1.30 each, so you ought to feel special” lol
Well honestly, I’m not sure. But if your order it on Amazon you could use it several times in the first month, and if it fails, just send it back for a full refund
That sounds great, but what store do you get them for that price and what is the normal price you pay. The cheapest I’ve found is about $10 at Aldi’s. With Filet Mignon now selling for close to
$20/lb.would you consider them at that price, i.e. how would they compare the petite sirloin to Filet that is cooked and finished sous vide style?
PS after having a Jakard type machine I finally threw it away since I never found a good use for it and it was taking up valuable space. I saw Alton Brown use one to make cube steak and I never used it.
Be careful with the thickness of the steak. You are punching from the non-sterile surface into the sterile center of the steak and above 1.5" thickness at 135F for 3 hours is not long enough to pasteurize the meat - ESPECIALLY if marinated.
See A Practical Guide to Sous Vide Cooking
Hey Bob, that’s Chris’s point, using SV he substitutes top sirloin for beef tenderloin with no loss of quality. He enjoys those steaks for half what we pay for hamburger.
At those prices, it might be worth a drive to Boise to stock up on the best beef value i’ve seen anywhere. Can anyone beat those prices?
Of course he is living up there on the northern edge of the Great Plains where grazing cattle can eat all they want for free. Cost of feed makes a big difference in the ultimate selling price.
Hey Bob, I’m getting my Petite Sirloins here in “expensive” Sacramento California, at WinCo. The regular price on these is $4.98 a lb. So when I see $2.98, I scoop up many packs of them
As for how they would compare to higher quality cuts… I dunno. They are a perfect 10 on tenderness and texture. A perfect 10 on juiciness. a 9-10 on flavor depending on how I season them.
Honestly, regardless of the price of the cut, I can’t see it being much, if any better than these $2.98 - 4.98 Petite Sirloins.
Combined fire & drought likely causing a glut of cattle sold early for farmers who are on their knee’s who have had to assess feed for livestock prices & culling to try & make it through to next year.
Good for you the end user but years of terminal decline & more hardship in farming, if you keep abreast of that side of things.
But that would only explain this as a “one time thing”… I was getting the same Petite Sirloins from over 2 years ago, to 1 year ago, for $2.98 a lb, on a regular enough basis that I rarely paid any more than that. I think once or twice I was out, and wanted some for a special thing, like having friends over, but other wise, I got enough during sales to last me until the next sale.
Hi Chris. I tried your method yesterday for petite sirloin. It turned out very tender, but a bit mushy. I think it was the marinade I used,
The Best Steak Marinade from all recipes. Ingredients
2 Servings
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 teaspoons minced garlic
½ pinch salt and pepper to taste Directions
Mix olive oil, balsamic vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, Dijon mustard, and garlic in a small bowl. Season with salt and pepper.
I think there was too much Worcestershire and balsamic vinegar. I marinated the steak for 4.5 hours and cooked 3.5 hours to 130.5.
I like the idea but will try a different maranade next time; one with less tenderizing properties. As thin as the steak is,is there a reason you cook it as long as you do? From a safety point of view I would think 1.5 hours should be enough are you depending on the time to make them more tender? Have you played with the time much?
Yes, I’m thinking it was the marinade, that made your beef almost mushy.
For me, a 3-4 hr SV is actually very short (way down from my old method) I mean, I could probably go down even a bit shorter, but they are coming out great, and it totally ensures they will be pasteurized all the way through.
Good for you the end user but years of terminal decline & more hardship in farming, if you keep abreast of that side of thing.Something like that would help me make a crispier skin.
Its called a Jaccard machine 
Would be pretty easy to keep its use a secret if you wanted to 
I mean, I could probably go down even a bit shorter, but they are coming out great, and it totally ensures they will be pasteurized all the way through.