Prime, Select vs. Choice

I'd go for prime every time unless it is just cost prohibitive...

If your grocer has a large meat selection and your careful choosing, you can get some very nice Choice. I rarely by Prime and I hardly ever see Select anymore, sometimes in brisket but I never buy it.

There is a big difference in prime vs select. Choice products is always a good choice but you will find that Primes are much higher in internal fat and lower in connective tissue. I find that Primes like lower pit temps.

How can a muscle from one cow to another have less connective tissue? Isn't connective tissue what holds everything in place under the skin of an animal? I thought that all of the ligaments, tendons, cartilege, and other connective tissue are the same in all animals of the same species. I agree that the intramuscular fat marbling is higher, as that is part of the grading process, but I never heard that prime has less connective tissue. I also didn't understand the last sentence in your response above. Very interested in learning more Jim. Thanks

The animals are younger at slaughter and the connective tissue is not as developed. I'm sure your right that all the ligaments, tendons and cartledge is there.

Not to be a preacher speaking to the choir, but this discussion is regarding beef and beef cuts, if I understand it correctly. This is realy hard to describe. I understand what Jim is trying to say. Proper marbleing and coursness and texture of grain are important factors when selecting beef to cook. Connective tissue to me is colagen. That means that big thick course of gristle that can be in the middle of a chuck roast. Or possibley marbleing through any cut of beef. It's cologen. When rendered out, this is what edible sausage casings are made of. Some chewey stuff. What you desire in the end product of your cook is a tender piece of beef with a strong beef flavor.

Those thin long lines of white in a prime rib are pure flavor. The thickyellowish lines running through a chuck roast or around the edge are not. Not desirable for a steak, but good for low and slow for other dishes. Then again the rules get broken. That big white chunk of fat at the tip of a "real" prime rib looks like somethig that you may not want to eat, but it has more flavor than a hundred 1/4 pounders at mickey D's.

Hope this makes some sense. I doubt it.

I'll bet you $50 that after 12-18 hours in a pit, you couldn't tell the difference between kobe/prime/or choice brisket! If it really mattered, nobody would even ask this question, because SOP in ALL contests would be to start with a KOBE or PRIME brisket!

The Woodman said:

I'll bet you $50 that after 12-18 hours in a pit, you couldn't tell the difference between kobe/prime/or choice brisket! If it really mattered, nobody would even ask this question, because SOP in ALL contests would be to start with a KOBE or PRIME brisket!

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Fair enough. I'll bet you $50 that cooking a prime and choice brisket of equal size that the prime will come off the pit earlier and provide a little more of a time cushion, or be able to be put on later allowing more time for meat prep of the brisket itself and other meats. More often than not that is, with all variables being equal.

I'm always a sucker for a good bet. You attending Qfest, that Zilla has spoken of, this year?:grin:

Jorge said:

Fair enough. I'll bet you $50 that cooking a prime and choice brisket of equal size that the prime will come off the pit earlier and provide a little more of a time cushion, or be able to be put on later allowing more time for meat prep of the brisket itself and other meats. More often than not that is, with all variables being equal.

I'm always a sucker for a good bet. You attending Qfest, that Zilla has spoken of, this year?:grin:

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Jorge, You bet I'm in on Q-fest! Best time I have all year! Hope to see ya there. Oh, sorry about the can of whoop-ass the Cavs opened up on the Spurs last night!:tongue:

Bigmofo300lbs said:

Seems to me that no one is choosing Select Grade beef. So I should stay away from that, right?

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To me, it depends on what you are doing and want to accomplish.
For steaks to grill, choice is fine with me unless it is a special occasion. I need to justify the cost spread. I have used Prime--just gotta save up for it and it has to be a really (really) special event. Select steaks are normally not labeled as such here, but identifiable because of "it just looks like cheap crap" :lol:
Now, if I am grilling steaks for a lot of folks and they are not "special", I look at the meat cost and appearance and go for the best balance. "Grading" is not an issue. Cost and reasonable quality at an affordable cost is an issure!

For routine home or recreational smoking of brisket or beef roast cuts, Select is normally just fine with me. The marbling is not so consistent and all of that. But it renders out just fine. Seems like the Brisket fat cap is HUGE on many select briskets, so some waste there to trim it off. Depends a lot on the price spread from Select at Wally World vs Choice elsewhere. And, I always check the brisket at Wally World because they sometimes mix in "true Choice" at $1.28 to $1.48 and I grab them suckers :lol:

For Comp--Choice minimum. CAB preferred if I can get it priced right.
I have never seen Prime brisket, may be a local problem down here. I do not know if it even exists.

KOBE? A valued Brother send us one (Thanks). We screwed up the cook, so really can't comment. Wish I could :redface:

Just my thoughts.

TIM

The_Kapn said:

And, I always check the brisket at Wally World because they sometimes mix in "true Choice" at $1.28 to $1.48 and I grab them suckers :lol:

TIM

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Thanks, Tim, for that tip. i will be paying closer attention.

Starting with a Kobe or prime brisket doesn't assure you anything. You have Handle the brisket correctly and primes do better handled differently than other briskets I've cooked.
Knowing th differences and cooking accordingly give you a leg up.

For what it's worth. The best brisket I've ever cooked was a "Select" Packer from Super Wal Mart. I know alot of peoples opinions will differ about this, but your making BBQ here. If you want to cook a great steak, the Prime or Kobe would probably be the better choices. My definition of BBQ is to make a cheap, tough piece of meat into a finished product that is tender, flavorful and still moist after all of the hours of cooking. Again this is my opinion, but if you go out and spend some ridiculous amount of money for a higher grade of meat to make BBQ, that's just ludicrus. Choice is as high of a grade necessary for BBQ IMHO.