The Thin Steaks

FrostyEgg

Inspired by @blind99. What's the difference between a flat iron, flank, and skirt? I frankly haven't cooked any...wondering what people prefer and why? Looks like it'd be killer for tacos/fajitas.

blind99

flank is super common near me, we get it from costco and vac seal it.  

two kinds of skirt - outside and inside. the outside is better, less tough membrane.  you can tell if it's outside - grab the two ends and pull apart, outside will snap in half, inside skirt won't.  one place near me used to stock outside skirt and it's my top choice for tacos/fajitas.

i don't know enough to tell you where the different cuts come from on the animal, though!

i think the trick to most of these is to slice across the grain when you're cutting, and don't cook the bejeeeeezus out of them

FrostyEgg

blind99 said:

flank is super common near me, we get it from costco and vac seal it.  

two kinds of skirt - outside and inside. the outside is better, less tough membrane.  you can tell if it's outside - grab the two ends and pull apart, outside will snap in half, inside skirt won't.  one place near me used to stock outside skirt and it's my top choice for tacos/fajitas.

i don't know enough to tell you where the different cuts come from on the animal, though!

i think the trick to most of these is to slice across the grain when you're cutting, and don't cook the bejeeeeezus out of them

Right on! Nothing steak related in this house gets cooked beyond medium rare, so were good to go there. Might just have to stat sampling.

dcc

Haven't done flank or flat iron.  The word "fajitas" originally meant small pieces of skirt.  It has since morphed into meaning any grilled meat in a tortilla.  I've tried several different skirts this summer.  Sams Club skirts were tough and flavorless.  They required a strong acid marinade and generous seasoning to be worth cooking.  The Nolan Ryan pre-seasoned skirts were fine right out of the package.  Snake River Farms Wagyu skirts were fantastic. Only seasoned with salt and pepper.  Good enough to serve by itself as a steak or steak appetizer.  Probably too good to make into a fajita.