How to tenderize tough meat

Kiwi. It contains an enzyme called actinidin that tenderizes and helps marinade steak.

Cut kiwi in half. Smear it all over the steak. Let sit for 30 mins to 1 hour.
 
Ratorasniki said:
I have no idea why somebody would do that to a steak they intended to eat in an hour (by grilling or fying no less).
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I was skeptical myself, especially after seeing how much moisture was extracted from the meat after the 1 hour "cure." However, in my highly non-scientific test, the steak that was salt-cured was noticeably more tender than the other and both were plenty juicy. I cook my steaks medium-rare; maybe the moisture factor becomes more prevalent for longer cooking times. :shrug:

All I can say is, buy a cheap cut of meat and give it try.
 
Tryp said:
Kiwi. It contains an enzyme called actinidin that tenderizes and helps marinade steak.

Cut kiwi in half. Smear it all over the steak. Let sit for 30 mins to 1 hour.
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so right now, there are a few topics i am reading about in this thread that i want to comment

1. Slow Cooking
-If i am slow cooking a meat, do i need to marinade it?

2. Grill
-If i salt pack the meat to make it tender, or use that kiwi as above, as well as marinding it overnight, can I cook these beef rounds on a grill and still have it be tender? Which is better: salt packed or kiwi? Can i do both? Can i also implement a marinade? People say dont grill Beef Round b/c it will be tought, but if these are tender ways to get there, i dont mind trying

3. Smoker
-Low and slow, gotta love it. These beef rounds (and beef rounds only), how can they be smoked for an hour or so and still come out tender?
 
I think maybe if your steaks are just as juicy coming off the grill, as they are when you salt them like that and then cook them, then your issue is that you aren't letting your meat rest properly. It makes a massive difference. All the moisture that gets squeezed out taking it up to midrare or so is just kind of floating around, if you cut it open right away it's all going to end up on the plate. If you wait up to say half it's cooking time, the cells relax and reabsorb all that moisture so it stays in the meat. It may be tender, but you're losing tons and tons of flavour.
 
Ratorasniki said:
I think maybe if your steaks are just as juicy coming off the grill, as they are when you salt them like that and then cook them, then your issue is that you aren't letting your meat rest properly. It makes a massive difference. All the moisture that gets squeezed out taking it up to midrare or so is just kind of floating around, if you cut it open right away it's all going to end up on the plate. If you wait up to say half it's cooking time, the cells relax and reabsorb all that moisture so it stays in the meat. It may be tender, but you're losing tons and tons of flavour.
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Way to quote "Grilling for Dummies." ;)
 
Rev_Night said:
so right now, there are a few topics i am reading about in this thread that i want to comment

1. Slow Cooking
-If i am slow cooking a meat, do i need to marinade it?

2. Grill
-If i salt pack the meat to make it tender, or use that kiwi as above, as well as marinding it overnight, can I cook these beef rounds on a grill and still have it be tender? Which is better: salt packed or kiwi? Can i do both? Can i also implement a marinade? People say dont grill Beef Round b/c it will be tought, but if these are tender ways to get there, i dont mind trying

3. Smoker
-Low and slow, gotta love it. These beef rounds (and beef rounds only), how can they be smoked for an hour or so and still come out tender?
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do you not know how to slow cook stuff

you dont need to marinade pot roasts and shit because you are slow cooking it for a long ass time

i have never marinated steaks myself, i just salt pepper it before i pan fry and it and it's tasty
 
Ratorasniki said:
go pick up a book called On Food And Cooking by Harold McGee and read the sub chapter about applying heat to meat, and the reactions it produces on it's molecules by degree and then come back.



it goes on like this for awhile. originally i had mentioned that meat cooked past about 170 breaks down it's colagen into gelatin, and this is where you get the fall apart texture of really good bbq, which is probably the only way to create the illusion of tenderness in meat that is already overcooked. then i figured nobody wanted a science lesson, but apparently not citing references on TW now means you're talking out your ass.
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Bringing up irrelevant shit does not mean you are not talking out of your ass. If you had used it and were talking from experience, then maybe you'd have a point. But you are bringing up cutting a piece of meat and separating it as your example. With a jaccard style tenderizer, no material is removed. Meaning it is still a barrier to moisture transfer. Furthermore, whatever increase in the ability for moisture to leave the meat is balanced by the ability for heat to enter the center. The easier heat can enter the meat, the faster it cooks, and the less moisture is lost.
 
Hey guys I disovered the beauty of brining chicken and pork a few months ago. There is no better method of grilling chicken or pork then brining and a dry rub.

6 hr brine for half a dozen center cut chops (boneless). Pull them out, dry them off and put this rub on it

equal parts

cinnamon
cumin
salt
pepper
chili powder

make as much as you want and just save for later. Grill the chops on a super hot grill for 45-60seconds, turn 45*, give it the same time, flip grill for 45-60, turn 45*, give it another 45-60. Rest 8-10 minutes.

Pork will still be slightly pink in the middle...this is OK. They will be some of the best chops you will ever eat.
 
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during the swine flu rage we had some chick send back perfectly cooked pork with only a few bites left

"OMG ITS PINK I DONT EVEN KNOW HOW MUCH I ATE THIS IS A TRAVESTY COMP PLEASE"
 
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