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Lean Selections and Best Ways to Prepare Them for Maximum Tenderness
Beef doesn’t have to be avoided completely for a healthy diet. There are quite a few lean cuts of beef that can be found at any meat counter, which can be prepared in various ways.
These cuts come from three of the five major primal cuts of beef:
- Chuck
- Rib
- Loin
- Round
- and Flank/Brisket
Round steaks and roasts and loin steaks and roasts have the lowest amounts of fat of all the cuts of beef available.
Here are five great choices for lean beef that can be used in healthy cooking, with the best ways to prepare them for maximum flavor and tenderness.
Eye Round Roast
This comes from the ‘Round Primal Cut’ of beef and is the lowest in calories and grams of saturated fat per 3-oz. serving (144 Calories and 1.4 g of Saturated fat) of all the lean cuts of beef. Eye Round Roast is best oven roasted, while the Eye Round Steak can be pan fried or braised.
A great way to serve a tender Eye Round Roast is to oven bake a seasoned 3 lb. roast at about 325 degrees. For medium-rare, the internal temperature will read 145 degrees.
Top Round Steak
The top round steak comes from the ‘Round Primal Cut’ beef. Great in both flavor and versatility in cooking, this cut has 157 calories per 3-oz. serving.
Top round steak is easily grilled and broiled after some time in a marinade and can also be sliced thin and pan-fried.
Round Tip Roast
This roast comes from the ‘Round Primal Cut’ of beef. Round tip roasts have about 148 calories per 3-oz. serving with 1.9 grams of Saturated fat.
Round tip roasts can be found in smaller and larger roasts and are best prepared when oven-roasted at 325 degrees. It is also great to use other dry heat methods, such as broiling and grilling.
Flank Steak
Flank steak is a popular cut of beef, and this steak comes from the ‘Flank/Brisket Primal Cut’ of beef. Flank steak is sometimes found packaged folded up since it is a long, flat piece of steak.
After cooking, it is sliced across the grain to ensure tenderness. It is best grilled or broiled and often marinated before cooking.
Tri-Tip Roast
This is an excellent tasting roast and is perfect for barbecuing outdoors. Tri-Tip comes from the ‘Loin Primal Cut’ of beef.
The name comes from its shape of it – it is found in a triangular roast and has 158 calories per 3-oz. serving. Tri Tip roasts can be roasted, grilled, and broiled.
Since the cut is more tender than the above cuts, it can withstand higher heat when cooked.
