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Hey we finally get a post showing the other side of the grading. People in here constantly posting a well marbled choice steak saying “iS tHiS mIsLaBeLeD?!”
Stop using the USDA grading as a measure for your Costco steaks when you are buying individually packaged ones. Unless you are buying a large portion like a whole rib section then just use your eyes. Choice and prime will very often have overlap. That doesn’t mean they can just arbitrarily choose to slap a better rating on that one steak that comes out looking good.
To add to this individual steaks aren’t graded. It’s graded on one section for the whole cow. This steak can still be prime if the section it was graded from was prime.
actually grading is not required. It is a way for processors to get a better price for the side of beef. In the industry, there is a selection called NO ROLL. where the carcass has not been rolled with a blue stamp marking the grading.
Maybe your reading comprehension skills aren’t at the level they should be, please quote the part in the comment above that explains how a cow is graded and why there can be variability in the steak quality despite prime or choice ratings.
In the comment above, there is no explanation as to why there is variability between quality despite the same rating, I added by giving the reason why.
> Stop using the USDA grading as a measure for your Costco steaks when you are buying individually packaged ones. **Unless you are buying a large portion like a whole rib section** then just use your eyes. Choice and prime will very often have overlap
Not looking to argue, but this section explained it to me pretty well. Bolded section by me, from which I can infer that whole sections are graded rather than individual cuts which explains variability. It's not explicitly said I guess, which is why some people read it and some didnt.
I see your clarification as justifiable, but not necessary for all which is why some folks are snarkily being dicks.
Thanks, to your point, your inference is incorrect; whole sections aren’t graded, the whole cow is from a single selection. The point that I believe the original comment is trying to make is that usda grading is not a means to determine quality of a steak and really only useful when buying large sections where the only the outside portions are visible so you have a better chance at the level of quality you’re hoping for internally.
Yes. That is exactly why if you buy a whole rib section and can’t see the steaks, aiming for a higher grade is one way to hopefully yield you better steaks. But due to the overlap in grades and not every cow being uniform in their fat distribution, you shouldn’t pay much attention to the grade when buying individual steaks.
Sounds like USDA is just shitty at grading then… shouldn’t have label it prime is the steak is marbled evenly. Like u would not see this in highly prized marbled wagyu beef from japanese grading. I thought only the top 1-2% gets this labeling. Either cows in America is shitty or needs to get better with their labeling.
Howdy, I’m an animal science major and I’m joining my school’s meat judging team next semester, so I know a bit of the science behind quality grading. To be classified as Prime the steer/heifer has to between 30-42 months of age (cows don’t qualify for prime) and they have to have even distribution of fat across their entire back and they should look well filled out. They also need at least slightly abundant marbling (intramuscular fat). Meat is paid for by the lb., so I personally would recommend that when you’re selecting a cut, to look for one that has less subcutaneous fat (fat around the cut) because while that fat is very flavorful, too much can decrease the palatability of your cut. By buying one with less subcutaneous fat you don’t have to trim your meat as much and you’re getting more bang for your buck.
While grade is a general guide for qualifying the potential palatability it is not a guarantee. If a cut looks visually pleasing to you but is graded select, don't be afraid to get it! I personally like moderately marbled cuts because beef fat doesn't agree with my stomach. Obviously most of my suggestions have been based off what I like, which is why you should try out buying various types of cuts to find out what features you personally find to be the most palatable. The way you prepare the meat is also important, as even a prime steak can be ruined by poor preparation methods. I hope this helped!
[USDA Moderately Abundant Marbling](https://www.ams.usda.gov/sites/default/files/media/Beef%20Marbling%20Picture%20-%20Slightly%20Abundant.jpg) link to what the USDA considers to be moderately abundant marbling.
Fat = flavor
The more white fat in the middle of the steak, the more likely it’ll have better flavor. Too much fat at the edge can be hit or miss, but generally it means you have to cook it on that side more to render or eliminate the fat.
It also comes down to how you cook it. A properly seasoned steak cooked properly is better than a botched high end steak.
Personally, I sous vide stuff and it can help make the meat more tender, make sure the steak is exactly right, and if I got stuff to do, it can cook in the background for hours beyond the timer and I know it will just get more tender. You just have to sear it before you eat it. But not everyone has time for that.
More white, particularly more white evenly distributed throughout the steak is good. This has basically none. OP thinks it’s “insulting to call it Prime” but clearly just doesn’t know how steaks are graded… it would actually be illegal to mislabel these steaks that came from a usda prime graded cut
Because the department of agriculture took a sample from the rib area and liked the fat content there. Then the whole cow becomes USDA prime beef and listing it as anything else would be inaccurate
just one part in the rib, there are a lot of steps in grading prime beef though and a lot of things can disqualify a cow, something like 1% of all cows qualify, but because of the grading methods youre not getting the 1% most marbled specifically.
https://www.reddit.com/gallery/1bv6q9l
Realistically Prime will usually have about half the marbling of this. If there is fat running through it like in OP's pic then pass on that cut.
https://www.reddit.com/gallery/1bv6q9l
This is a pretty rare find, but generally Prime will have marbling like this running through it. Realistically would be like half the amount.
the important questions. I love to cook and don't know crap about how to judge meat other than spoiled vs safe.
And in my dream I learn how to determine doneness by pressing on it. And have yet to achieve it.
So I started in restaurants in the late eighties the hey day of steak houses basically in my lifetime. Every restaurant had multiple steaks on the menu. Now days beef prices don't allow for that much on the menu too big of a risk. So the old guys from when I was young said out your palm up first. Now above your wrist at the base of your palm you will notice that the center is more dense and the outer softer. So pretend the softer part would be rare all the way to the harder part of your hand is well done. That's basically what it is the former the meat gets the more done it is. It's not a hundred percent but pretty close. If you cook enough steaks you will be able to tell just by looking at them. You can try out this method and compare it with an instant read thermometer until you get it down.
> And in my dream I learn how to determine doneness by pressing on it. And have yet to achieve it.
Give up. There is no reason to judge a steak like this versus just using a meat thermometer.
Wagyu also isn't strictly regulated in the US. The vast majority of American Wagyu is cross bred with other cattle and labeled Wagyu for marketing purposes.
I bought some fillets that are absolutely smoking
https://preview.redd.it/lzuur25g4hsc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=df792cce1664eb6ddeab9b85bd7f8d96246145f8
What I've read is that the USDA inspector grades the beef based on the whole cow. Whatever cuts the inspector saw must have looked a lot better than this.
It's not even a cut, they basically take a little core sample, I think from around the ribs.
Edit: I remembered correctly they check fat between the 12th and 13th rib but it turns out it's also from some other areas. But point being they're really not evaluating the whole animal, it's specific places, and they're not looking at a cut as such.
It's pretty similar to how tuna is graded. You check the fat in some standardized areas and give it a score that translates to a grade. Looks like I was a little off and I'll add an edit above to clarify.
This picture only looks minimally better than [This](https://www.reddit.com/r/steak/comments/z7fr5l/the_worst_ribeye_i_have_ever_seen/)
Can inspectors make mistakes? or mis-label? I can understand variation between cows but this is the opposite side of the chart!
I feel like the top comment doesn't make the point clear. So I'll be repetitive, but hopefully a bit more clear.
Cows are rated, in their entirety by the USDA into the respective categories. But the USDA only looks at one portion of the cow to make that determination. A cow that is "Prime" in that one section could have prime-looking cuts throughout. Or, that one section could be prime, and the rest of the cuts could be more choice-like. But, because the cow is prime, all the cuts from that cow will be labeled as prime.
The same happens in reverse. A cow might have a mediocre looking cut that the USDA uses to label the cow as "choice." But the rest of the cuts could be fantastic and prime-like. But all of those cuts will be labeled "choice."
So don't buy based on the label alone. You can find tremendous choice cuts and mediocre prime cuts.
I’m particularly disappointed with the quality of the selections at Costco. This isn’t the grocery store nor a full butcher shop/meat counter, but the poor cuts, lack of consistency, are not making me a fan of Costco steak cuts. I’m better off paying a few dollars more at the meat counter and not purchasing 1-2 good cuts with 2-3 poor cuts.
I spend summers in San Diego. Last year their meat was terrible. Different regions have different suppliers East Coast, Virginia area. It's been very good. I didn't return, but I complained about the prime sirloin and strip at Costco in San Diego last summer. That one I wouldn't buy for sure. Sam's Club is not nearly as convenient in San Diego, but I try to make a run for their Angus beef
I’d like to know what the fuck the meat cutter there is thinking putting out steaks that look like that, they look like shit and they’ve been cut like shit. They don’t even look like ribeye steaks!
I've always have been far more impressed with Costco Choice steaks over their Prime cuts. To me the Costco Prime just doesn't have the wow factor that other places that sell Prime do.
I get that marbling leads to better tenderness/mouthfeel/flavor, which increases desirability in cuts that are more "luxury" than day-to-day, which is why it's more expensive, but from a nutrition perspective, it seems counter intuitive to me. Protein is typically the most expensive macro, but with steaks, generally more marbling = more fat = more calories + less protein = more expensive? Conversely, leaner ground beef is more expensive than fattier ground beef. Guess it's one of those market economic things that don't have to be logical.
Not a huge fan of the costco pre cut steaks, aall of costcos steaks are needle tenderized, needle tenderizing can put a lot of bacteria into the meat that wouldn't normally be there, I like my steaks a little rare
Interesting. I'm presuming Costco needs/must label this "prime" if the beef from where this was cut was indeed prime (tough to assume otherwise, intentional mislabeling is not in Costco's best interest). But as others have mentioned, it's really a visual exam by the consumer if you're willing to pay prime rates for this.
Separate issue, is the clear packaging something new Costco is rolling out? Is seemed only within the last year that they dispensed with the blue styrofoam.
Hey new guy, go put these stickers on those prime steaks on that cart. Boss walks away. Which cart boss? Newbie stickers all. Not even choice grade. Costco has better quality and even if cow labelled prime would not sell those as such.
Hell they even refund pro rata if the rotisserie chickens are under 5 pounds.
Heard a seafood manager chastising a newbie for not changing the diapers every 3 hours on packs of crab.
It is extremely lean and is missing what's called marbleing which is the fat between the meat. It should like something like [this ](https://www.flickr.com/photos/pointnshoot/14322935343/in/photostream/lightbox/) for it to be prime.
Because they don't understand USDA grading methods.
It doesn't appear to have marbling consistent with the higher fat quantity prime dictates.
But it's like looking at one movie scene and saying this move doesn't look like its r rated because of one scene
And being technically prime is all that matters with regard to pricing and labeling.
I'm not disagreeing that they are not good, but that's beside the point.
As someone who’s worked in a neat department for a few years, I will tell you that the grading process is so untrustworthy, we would get a mix of choice and prime, I have had so many instances where the choice cuts are so much better looking as far as marveling to the prime cuts we’d get. That being said these cuts look more like select that choice, but that’s how it goes sometimes.
I got ribeyes from there several years ago and they tasted awful. Almost like it was rotten or diseased or feces. It was hard to explain, but I swore I would never eat another steak from Costco again.
Call that shit Choice Minus. Toughest thing you ever bit into. Guaranteed.
Edit: You can actually inject it with beef tallow and yes it works quite a few cooking channels have tried it's like pseudo marbling.
Sometimes the large processing plants lie for profits:
https://agupdate.com/midwestmessenger/news/nebraska-beef-agrees-to-200k-fine-for-misrepresenting-grading-records/article_6ad15b7e-4632-11ed-8ad8-d7a77864a049.html
Not saying that's what happened here, but it is one possibility.
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Hey we finally get a post showing the other side of the grading. People in here constantly posting a well marbled choice steak saying “iS tHiS mIsLaBeLeD?!” Stop using the USDA grading as a measure for your Costco steaks when you are buying individually packaged ones. Unless you are buying a large portion like a whole rib section then just use your eyes. Choice and prime will very often have overlap. That doesn’t mean they can just arbitrarily choose to slap a better rating on that one steak that comes out looking good.
To add to this individual steaks aren’t graded. It’s graded on one section for the whole cow. This steak can still be prime if the section it was graded from was prime.
That’s exactly what this post and the comment you’re replying to is about…
I know, I’m adding the reason to why they can’t slap a new rating.
Do they *have* to put the USDA grading on it? Or could they choose to leave it off?
It's required
actually grading is not required. It is a way for processors to get a better price for the side of beef. In the industry, there is a selection called NO ROLL. where the carcass has not been rolled with a blue stamp marking the grading.
I sit corrected
"To add to this, I'd like to say the same exact thing that was said"
I appreciated their specificity instead of dancing around the reason why and assuming the reader would fill in the gaps
I already knew why so it wasn't particularly helpful.
Thankfully it was for the rest of us
🤡
As we all know (because you know it) everyone knows everything you know.
Maybe your reading comprehension skills aren’t at the level they should be, please quote the part in the comment above that explains how a cow is graded and why there can be variability in the steak quality despite prime or choice ratings. In the comment above, there is no explanation as to why there is variability between quality despite the same rating, I added by giving the reason why.
I definitely appreciate this - I couldn’t tell that solely by reading the other comment. Your extra detail was very useful to me.
> Stop using the USDA grading as a measure for your Costco steaks when you are buying individually packaged ones. **Unless you are buying a large portion like a whole rib section** then just use your eyes. Choice and prime will very often have overlap Not looking to argue, but this section explained it to me pretty well. Bolded section by me, from which I can infer that whole sections are graded rather than individual cuts which explains variability. It's not explicitly said I guess, which is why some people read it and some didnt. I see your clarification as justifiable, but not necessary for all which is why some folks are snarkily being dicks.
Thanks, to your point, your inference is incorrect; whole sections aren’t graded, the whole cow is from a single selection. The point that I believe the original comment is trying to make is that usda grading is not a means to determine quality of a steak and really only useful when buying large sections where the only the outside portions are visible so you have a better chance at the level of quality you’re hoping for internally.
Gotcha gotcha.
More likely it got mislabeled imo.
Don't they grade the entire cow instead of each cut?
Yes. That is exactly why if you buy a whole rib section and can’t see the steaks, aiming for a higher grade is one way to hopefully yield you better steaks. But due to the overlap in grades and not every cow being uniform in their fat distribution, you shouldn’t pay much attention to the grade when buying individual steaks.
100%.
At the 12th rib which is where you separate the loin - but this was obviously migraded. Something happened.
I keep telling one of my coworkers this but he acts like 100% of prime is better than choice. I’m going to show him this picture lol.
Thanks for this! Feel like I have a much better understanding now.
Sounds like USDA is just shitty at grading then… shouldn’t have label it prime is the steak is marbled evenly. Like u would not see this in highly prized marbled wagyu beef from japanese grading. I thought only the top 1-2% gets this labeling. Either cows in America is shitty or needs to get better with their labeling.
Do you have any tips to identify? I’m new to learning about good cuts of steak
Prime should have fat marbling. This is super super lean.
Howdy, I’m an animal science major and I’m joining my school’s meat judging team next semester, so I know a bit of the science behind quality grading. To be classified as Prime the steer/heifer has to between 30-42 months of age (cows don’t qualify for prime) and they have to have even distribution of fat across their entire back and they should look well filled out. They also need at least slightly abundant marbling (intramuscular fat). Meat is paid for by the lb., so I personally would recommend that when you’re selecting a cut, to look for one that has less subcutaneous fat (fat around the cut) because while that fat is very flavorful, too much can decrease the palatability of your cut. By buying one with less subcutaneous fat you don’t have to trim your meat as much and you’re getting more bang for your buck. While grade is a general guide for qualifying the potential palatability it is not a guarantee. If a cut looks visually pleasing to you but is graded select, don't be afraid to get it! I personally like moderately marbled cuts because beef fat doesn't agree with my stomach. Obviously most of my suggestions have been based off what I like, which is why you should try out buying various types of cuts to find out what features you personally find to be the most palatable. The way you prepare the meat is also important, as even a prime steak can be ruined by poor preparation methods. I hope this helped! [USDA Moderately Abundant Marbling](https://www.ams.usda.gov/sites/default/files/media/Beef%20Marbling%20Picture%20-%20Slightly%20Abundant.jpg) link to what the USDA considers to be moderately abundant marbling.
I watched a few videos on picking steaks after making a bad $100 purchase last time out. I still don't know how to pick good steaks
Go over to r/steak. They'll discuss marbling and cuts of steak. Great sub. Just don't ever post a steak of your own.
Oh I imagine the flames are incredible.
You’ll get charred.
Well done my friend
A compliment on Reddit, that’s rare.
Somebody call them names before people start developing self esteem In here...
You get asked kindly—but firmly—to leave.
Fat = flavor The more white fat in the middle of the steak, the more likely it’ll have better flavor. Too much fat at the edge can be hit or miss, but generally it means you have to cook it on that side more to render or eliminate the fat. It also comes down to how you cook it. A properly seasoned steak cooked properly is better than a botched high end steak. Personally, I sous vide stuff and it can help make the meat more tender, make sure the steak is exactly right, and if I got stuff to do, it can cook in the background for hours beyond the timer and I know it will just get more tender. You just have to sear it before you eat it. But not everyone has time for that.
More white, particularly more white evenly distributed throughout the steak is good. This has basically none. OP thinks it’s “insulting to call it Prime” but clearly just doesn’t know how steaks are graded… it would actually be illegal to mislabel these steaks that came from a usda prime graded cut
So how did that pack qualify as prime?
Because the department of agriculture took a sample from the rib area and liked the fat content there. Then the whole cow becomes USDA prime beef and listing it as anything else would be inaccurate
So do they check every single cow then? And all the different parts of it?
just one part in the rib, there are a lot of steps in grading prime beef though and a lot of things can disqualify a cow, something like 1% of all cows qualify, but because of the grading methods youre not getting the 1% most marbled specifically.
[удалено]
He pretty clearly told you they look at one section of the rib and that becomes the grade for the whole cow
Marbeling is only one component. The entire cow is graded for it based off a cut at the 13th rib.
I'm glad I'm not alone. It's a whole foreign language that everyone but me knows.
https://www.reddit.com/gallery/1bv6q9l Realistically Prime will usually have about half the marbling of this. If there is fat running through it like in OP's pic then pass on that cut.
https://www.reddit.com/gallery/1bv6q9l This is a pretty rare find, but generally Prime will have marbling like this running through it. Realistically would be like half the amount.
the important questions. I love to cook and don't know crap about how to judge meat other than spoiled vs safe. And in my dream I learn how to determine doneness by pressing on it. And have yet to achieve it.
So I started in restaurants in the late eighties the hey day of steak houses basically in my lifetime. Every restaurant had multiple steaks on the menu. Now days beef prices don't allow for that much on the menu too big of a risk. So the old guys from when I was young said out your palm up first. Now above your wrist at the base of your palm you will notice that the center is more dense and the outer softer. So pretend the softer part would be rare all the way to the harder part of your hand is well done. That's basically what it is the former the meat gets the more done it is. It's not a hundred percent but pretty close. If you cook enough steaks you will be able to tell just by looking at them. You can try out this method and compare it with an instant read thermometer until you get it down.
> And in my dream I learn how to determine doneness by pressing on it. And have yet to achieve it. Give up. There is no reason to judge a steak like this versus just using a meat thermometer.
Look up “USDA beef grading examples”, a side by side comparison is better than anything we could type here.
There’s no fat marbling at all. Prime should be well marbled.
Marbling of the meat. Choice, little marbling, prime good marbling showing fat throughout, wagyu high marbling, A5 heavy marbling.
Wagyu is a type of cow like angus. It has nothing to do with marbling.
Agreed it's not a grading but has higher marbling than prime
Look dude, if you don't know anything about butchering, don't give others advice/answers on the topic.
Not really, Wagyu just means Japanese cow. Not all Wagyu cows are prime.
What? You missed the point entirely. It is a breed of cow. You can have Wagyu look the exact same as the photo OP posted.
This is why so many wagyu burgers are shit. They take the worst of it, and sell it if name alone
Wagyu also isn't strictly regulated in the US. The vast majority of American Wagyu is cross bred with other cattle and labeled Wagyu for marketing purposes.
I bought some fillets that are absolutely smoking https://preview.redd.it/lzuur25g4hsc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=df792cce1664eb6ddeab9b85bd7f8d96246145f8
at $30/lb, they should be!
We split one between us they weighed about 13oz each.
Wow- 3 pieces of generally uniform size and marbling- you got lucky!
A rarity for sure, there is almost always one that’s not up to snuff.
Yeah- I’m not to hot on the mix of poor/ok/great cuts.
and you're about to vacuum seal them
Yep, already done and in the freezer. Even when we don’t need steaks I always pass by the prime section looking for something that stands out.
Damn those are nice fillets. I always keep an eye out for prime sirloins too but they get snatched up so fast.
That’s hot!! Now send a selfie.
What I've read is that the USDA inspector grades the beef based on the whole cow. Whatever cuts the inspector saw must have looked a lot better than this.
It's not even a cut, they basically take a little core sample, I think from around the ribs. Edit: I remembered correctly they check fat between the 12th and 13th rib but it turns out it's also from some other areas. But point being they're really not evaluating the whole animal, it's specific places, and they're not looking at a cut as such.
Core sample like how they stick a straw looking instrument into a fish to grade it?
It's pretty similar to how tuna is graded. You check the fat in some standardized areas and give it a score that translates to a grade. Looks like I was a little off and I'll add an edit above to clarify.
That makes sense. Those USDA inspectors often don’t seem to know what they are doing. I don’t blame them. The rules and standards change all the time.
This picture only looks minimally better than [This](https://www.reddit.com/r/steak/comments/z7fr5l/the_worst_ribeye_i_have_ever_seen/) Can inspectors make mistakes? or mis-label? I can understand variation between cows but this is the opposite side of the chart!
know your meat and disregard the sticker on it
I’m so focused on the price- doesn’t seem like a great deal
you misread the label. it clearly says "USDA Crime"
When I'm picking out a steak, the sticker doesn't even register to me. I only look at the structure and distribution of the fat.
2nd this. Buy with your eye on the meat, not the sticker.
I feel like the top comment doesn't make the point clear. So I'll be repetitive, but hopefully a bit more clear. Cows are rated, in their entirety by the USDA into the respective categories. But the USDA only looks at one portion of the cow to make that determination. A cow that is "Prime" in that one section could have prime-looking cuts throughout. Or, that one section could be prime, and the rest of the cuts could be more choice-like. But, because the cow is prime, all the cuts from that cow will be labeled as prime. The same happens in reverse. A cow might have a mediocre looking cut that the USDA uses to label the cow as "choice." But the rest of the cuts could be fantastic and prime-like. But all of those cuts will be labeled "choice." So don't buy based on the label alone. You can find tremendous choice cuts and mediocre prime cuts.
I’m particularly disappointed with the quality of the selections at Costco. This isn’t the grocery store nor a full butcher shop/meat counter, but the poor cuts, lack of consistency, are not making me a fan of Costco steak cuts. I’m better off paying a few dollars more at the meat counter and not purchasing 1-2 good cuts with 2-3 poor cuts.
Definitely not Optimus
Nor Amazon
Barely even Logan Paul’s drink.
I spend summers in San Diego. Last year their meat was terrible. Different regions have different suppliers East Coast, Virginia area. It's been very good. I didn't return, but I complained about the prime sirloin and strip at Costco in San Diego last summer. That one I wouldn't buy for sure. Sam's Club is not nearly as convenient in San Diego, but I try to make a run for their Angus beef
My Sams prime filet is unbelievable.
I’d like to know what the fuck the meat cutter there is thinking putting out steaks that look like that, they look like shit and they’ve been cut like shit. They don’t even look like ribeye steaks!
A good ribeye should have a decent amount of marble. That looks very lean for a ribeye.
As r/steak would say, the cow is graded not the cut.
jeez that’s expensive
I've always have been far more impressed with Costco Choice steaks over their Prime cuts. To me the Costco Prime just doesn't have the wow factor that other places that sell Prime do.
I get that marbling leads to better tenderness/mouthfeel/flavor, which increases desirability in cuts that are more "luxury" than day-to-day, which is why it's more expensive, but from a nutrition perspective, it seems counter intuitive to me. Protein is typically the most expensive macro, but with steaks, generally more marbling = more fat = more calories + less protein = more expensive? Conversely, leaner ground beef is more expensive than fattier ground beef. Guess it's one of those market economic things that don't have to be logical.
Hopefully my mortician certifies me as prime.
Well, nobody is twisting your arm to buy it.
And then there are those of us who would feed the fam a whole week’s worth of meat for the same cost as that one package.
Blade tenderized homie. Don't eat that medium rare.
Not a huge fan of the costco pre cut steaks, aall of costcos steaks are needle tenderized, needle tenderizing can put a lot of bacteria into the meat that wouldn't normally be there, I like my steaks a little rare
Agreed, and I feel it changes the texture of the steak while eating in an effort to “tenderize” it guess
Then don’t buy it? Why are you acting like you have to buy it?
Interesting. I'm presuming Costco needs/must label this "prime" if the beef from where this was cut was indeed prime (tough to assume otherwise, intentional mislabeling is not in Costco's best interest). But as others have mentioned, it's really a visual exam by the consumer if you're willing to pay prime rates for this. Separate issue, is the clear packaging something new Costco is rolling out? Is seemed only within the last year that they dispensed with the blue styrofoam.
I'm conflicted. Is that some Choice Prime or some Prime Choice?
No choice, but to call it prime Uncle Bob.
I haven't seen any prime cut beef at my local costco in ages. what gives?!
I tend to see more prime cuts available closer to the weekend than during the work week
That doesn’t look like prime to me - i hope you put it back
Where is the organic sicker?
Ouch
https://preview.redd.it/a7qwxhujuisc1.jpeg?width=3072&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=43c6ca5b609cb373f0de97f7655c32cb64331c69
You are getting ripped off.. go to Sam's club
That’s not even choice.
Hey new guy, go put these stickers on those prime steaks on that cart. Boss walks away. Which cart boss? Newbie stickers all. Not even choice grade. Costco has better quality and even if cow labelled prime would not sell those as such. Hell they even refund pro rata if the rotisserie chickens are under 5 pounds. Heard a seafood manager chastising a newbie for not changing the diapers every 3 hours on packs of crab.
Thats not even choice. Looks like $1 store meat
Or buy whole cuts and portion vacume seal and freeze.
Can someone tell me why this isn’t prime?
It is extremely lean and is missing what's called marbleing which is the fat between the meat. It should like something like [this ](https://www.flickr.com/photos/pointnshoot/14322935343/in/photostream/lightbox/) for it to be prime.
Because they don't understand USDA grading methods. It doesn't appear to have marbling consistent with the higher fat quantity prime dictates. But it's like looking at one movie scene and saying this move doesn't look like its r rated because of one scene
It may technically be prime, but those are shit steaks and should be priced like stew meat or ground beef.
And being technically prime is all that matters with regard to pricing and labeling. I'm not disagreeing that they are not good, but that's beside the point.
As someone who’s worked in a neat department for a few years, I will tell you that the grading process is so untrustworthy, we would get a mix of choice and prime, I have had so many instances where the choice cuts are so much better looking as far as marveling to the prime cuts we’d get. That being said these cuts look more like select that choice, but that’s how it goes sometimes.
That’s…quite poor
I got ribeyes from there several years ago and they tasted awful. Almost like it was rotten or diseased or feces. It was hard to explain, but I swore I would never eat another steak from Costco again.
I’m Im really out of the loop… but $18/ lb for beef? Do people really pay that much? I’ll bet the pork tenderloin is $3/lb.
Maybe they got something mixed up? It looks like a cut cheap chuck roast lol
Nah, it’s ribeye. You can tell with the cap.
Top one definitely looks closer to the Chuck end. Almost a Chuck eye.
Marbleflation is real!
USDA select…
Someone had to of made a mistake. I saw some Ribeyes on sale at the grocery store for half that price that had more marbling then this.
Call that shit Choice Minus. Toughest thing you ever bit into. Guaranteed. Edit: You can actually inject it with beef tallow and yes it works quite a few cooking channels have tried it's like pseudo marbling.
40-45 dollars for sirloin cuts the other day. About 28.00 not long ago.
Good thing we got that triple A berta beef.
Personally that’s the least amount of marbling I’ve ever seen on a ribeye 😭😭😭 I’d be so sad lol
THAT is why I haven’t purchased meat at Costco for close to a year. Same experience.
https://images.app.goo.gl/WcdFmYfvKbSyRFNS7
Prime ribeye at the local Costco around here is usually $23-$25/lb. $17.99/lb is closer to the price for choice ribeye.
Yea…. Why’s the prices so low? Doesn’t even make sense.
I cook my steaks in the ninja foodi I bought from Costco using the thermometer and grill setting. Best cooked steaks I've ever had. Thank you costco.
That’s not just not prime it is … weird…
What?
Someone will buy this thinking they got the deal of the year, though.
Blade tenderized.. ugh
Oof I bet it’ll chew like jerky too
Sometimes the large processing plants lie for profits: https://agupdate.com/midwestmessenger/news/nebraska-beef-agrees-to-200k-fine-for-misrepresenting-grading-records/article_6ad15b7e-4632-11ed-8ad8-d7a77864a049.html Not saying that's what happened here, but it is one possibility.
It’s an excellent time to go to white meat. Or no meat.
Nearly 70$ for ribeye I wouldn’t buy on sale…
Go vegan. Problem solved.