This lesson is free to watch. No membership needed.
Even the most flavorful skirt or flank steak can turn out tough if you don't cut it right, honey. Take a close look at the meat to see which way the long muscle fibers run, and run your knife directly across those lines. Slicing against the grain cuts those tough fibers short, making every single bite melt-in-your-mouth tender.
Technique Summary
Slicing beef perpendicular to the natural direction of its muscle fibers is the easiest way to make tougher cuts wonderfully tender. This simple trick turns a simple steak into something so soft it practically melts on your tongue.
Chef’s Checkpoints
- Long, parallel lines are visible running along the surface of the cooked steak.
- The knife cuts cleanly through the meat with minimal sawing, yielding neat, short-grained slices.
- The cut slices pull apart easily with very little tension or resistance.
How Jorj Does It
- Skirt steak really needs a little tenderizing. Flatten it a little bit with a meat mallet.
- Season it and let it marinate for a little while.
- Cook it quickly. It won’t take long.
- Cut the steak in half so you can slice it across the grain.
- Lay your knife at a diagonal and slice against the grain for nice, beautiful slices of tender meat.
Questions Home Cooks Ask
Why slice against the grain?
Slicing against the grain gives you a nice, beautiful slice of tender meat. Perfect, not chewy at all.
Recipes That Use This Technique
- Mustard-Crusted Broiled Skirt Steak (Vault recipe, for members)
- Chuck Wagon Steak Fajitas
- Steak Board Sauce & Farmers Market Salad
- Flank Steak Fajitas with Sautéed Veggies (Vault recipe, for members)