Skirt steak is a

cut of beef During butchering, beef is first divided into primal cuts, pieces of meat initially separated from the carcass. These are basic sections from which steaks and other subdivisions are cut. Since the animal's legs and neck muscles do the most work ...

steak A steak is a thick cut of meat generally sliced across the muscle fibers, sometimes including a bone. It is normally grilled or fried. Steak can be diced, cooked in sauce, such as in steak and kidney pie, or minced and formed into patti ...

from the plate. It is long, flat, and prized for its flavor rather than tenderness. It is not to be confused with

hanger steak Hanger or hangers may refer to: Hardware * Clothes hanger, a device in the shape of human shoulders or legs used to hang clothes on * Casing hanger, part of a wellhead assembly in oil drilling * Derailleur hanger, a slot in a bicycle frame where ...

, a generally similar adjacent cut also from the plate. Though it is from a different part of the animal, its general characteristics and uses cause it to be confused with both flank steak, taken from the flank behind the plate and the flap meat from the

bottom sirloin The bottom sirloin steak is a steak cut from the back of the animal below top sirloin A spinning top, or simply a top, is a toy with a squat body and a sharp point at the bottom, designed to be spun on its vertical axis, balancing on the ...

behind the flank and above the rear quarter.

Characteristics

Both the inside and outside skirt steak are the trimmed, boneless portion of the diaphragm muscle attached to the 6th through 12th ribs on the underside of the short plate. This steak is covered in a tough membrane that may be removed before cooking. By keeping the membrane it will be more tender but would require the eater to remove it which is why many remove it prior to cooking. The inside skirt steak is often confused with the flank steak, which is the tail of the porter house and T-bone steaks of the short loin found on the flank, and

. It has similar cooking properties. In the United States, the

North American Meat Processors Association The North American Meat Processors Association (NAMP) was an industry group for meat processors, packers, and distributors. It was a nonprofit, membership-based group with significant presence in the U.S., Canada and the Caribbean. Its Executive ...

(NAMP) classifies all skirts steaks NAMP 121. NAMP 121 is further subdivided into the outer (outside) skirt steak (NAMP 121C) and the inner (inside) skirt steak (NAMP 121D). The beef flank steak (NAMP 193) is adjacent to the skirt, nearer the animal's rear quarter.

History

The name "skirt steak" for the butcher's cut of beef diaphragm has been in use since at least the 19th century. The cut is defined as extending to the 10th rib in the early 20th century. It was formerly considered a less commercially mass-salable cut in America, hence its use for ''fajitas'' by the vaqueros in Texas. The U.S. Food Safety and Quality Service established in 1977 (now the

Food Safety and Inspection Service The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), is the public health regulatory agency responsible for ensuring that United States' commercial supply of meat, poultry, and egg pro ...

) by the Department of Agriculture (

USDA The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, and food. It aims to meet the needs of comme ...

) had designated the cut as "beef skirt diaphragm" (with the adjoining cut being called " hanging tender diaphragm"). But the diaphragms were treated as "offal" rather than meat by the Japanese government, thus exempt from any beef import quota restrictions. These cuts of U. S. beef (and Canadian beef) could consequently be exported to Japan without quota restrictions, and constituted a major portion of the U.S. beef trades there from ca. 1975 into the 1980s, until the beef import deregulation in Japan lifted the quotas in 1991.

Uses

Skirt steak is also traditional in

Mexican cuisine Mexican cuisine consists of the cooking cuisines and traditions of the modern country of Mexico. Its earliest roots lie in Mesoamerican cuisine. Its ingredients and methods begin with the first agricultural communities such as the Olmec and ...

, particularly in the north where it is known as , and is generally marinated, grilled and served in

tortillas A tortilla (, ) is a thin, circular unleavened flatbread originally made from maize hominy meal, and now also from wheat flour. The Aztecs and other Nahuatl speakers called tortillas ''tlaxcalli'' (). First made by the indigenous peoples of M ...

, and with a squeeze of lime juice,

guacamole Guacamole (; (informally shortened to ''guac'' in the United States since the 1980s) is an avocado-based dip, spread, or salad first developed in Mexico. In addition to its use in modern Mexican cuisine, it has become part of international cuisi ...

salsa Salsa most often refers to: * Salsa (Mexican cuisine), a variety of sauces used as condiments * Salsa music, a popular style of Latin American music * Salsa (dance), a Latin dance associated with Salsa music Salsa or SALSA may also refer to: A ...

, and

onions An onion (''Allium cepa'' L., from Latin ''cepa'' meaning "onion"), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus '' Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the on ...

as a

taco A taco (, , ) is a traditional Mexican food consisting of a small hand-sized corn- or wheat-based tortilla topped with a filling. The tortilla is then folded around the filling and eaten by hand. A taco can be made with a variety of fillin ...

. It is also the cut of choice for making

fajita A fajita (; ), in Tex-Mex cuisine, is any stripped grilled meat with stripped peppers and onions usually served on a flour or corn tortilla. The term originally referred to skirt steak, the cut of beef first used in the dish. Popular alternati ...

churrasco ''Churrasco'' (, ) is the Portuguese and Spanish name for beef or grilled meat more generally. It is a prominent feature in the cuisine of Brazil, Uruguay, and Argentina. The related term '' churrascaria'' (or ''churrasquería'') is mostly un ...

, and in Cornish pasties.

Preparation

To minimize toughness and add flavor, skirt steaks are often

marinated Marinating is the process of soaking foods in a seasoned, often acidic, liquid before cooking. The origin of the word alludes to the use of brine (''aqua marina'' or sea water) in the pickling process, which led to the technique of adding flavor b ...

before grilling, pan-seared or grilled very quickly, or cooked very slowly, typically

braised Braising (from the French word ''braiser'') is a combination-cooking method that uses both wet and dry heats: typically, the food is first browned at a high temperature, then simmered in a covered pot in cooking liquid (such as wine, broth, coc ...

. They are typically sliced against the grain before serving to maximize tenderness.

References

Bibliography

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Skirt Steak Cuts of beef