Ditch The Ribeye And Go For This Affordable Steak Cut Bobby Flay Recommends

Ribeye steaks are extremely popular for some very good reasons. They are praised for generous marbling throughout the meat, which provides richness and robust beefy flavor. Even some chefs agree that it's one of the best steak choices out there. But if you ask Bobby Flay, he prefers a different cut altogether at home. He told Food & Wine, "Ribeye can be inconsistent because the fat doesn't always melt even when cooked properly." Unfortunately, this could result in unpleasant chewiness. For a better experience, Flay instead chooses skirt steak.

The renowned television chef, restaurateur, and author told the publication that his preferred alternative to ribeye is more affordable, can be seasoned boldly, and is tender when it's sliced against the grain (the way you also should be cutting flank steak). The cut comes from underneath the cow's ribs in the beef plate primal. It's a flat piece of meat that can be up to 2 feet long. Like ribeye, it has a very beefy flavor and is especially well-suited for grilling. But, because the cut is relatively thin, it can cook in a matter of a couple minutes per side. It has a decent amount of fat to give the meat richness, but not as much as the ribeye.

Skirt steak will likely be easier for people to keep on hand than ribeye due to its lower price point. For example, at the time of this writing, Kroger was selling skirt steak for $14.99 per pound in northern Alabama, while beef ribeye cost $21.99 per pound.

In the aforementioned Food & Wine article, Bobby Flay spoke highly of using dry rubs on his steaks. We agree and like to use a mix of salt, pepper, smoked paprika, ancho chili powder, and garlic powder in our recipe for grilled skirt steak with corn and tomato salsa. That beef cut is also an excellent choice if you like to marinade your meats, particularly because it has very thick, loose muscle fiber bundles, which hold liquid marinades beautifully.

The beefiness of skirt steak can pair extremely well with bright flavors. For example, drizzling a fresh, tangy, garlicky chimichurri sauce on the meat would turn it into a flavor bomb. Using marinated skirt for fajitas along with onions and peppers is a classic choice as well. This beef cut is also well suited for Asian stir fry dishes since the thin beef cooks up quickly over high heat. Really, you can use sliced skirt steak almost anywhere you want to add beefy protein, whether that's on top of a salad or skewered with fresh vegetables.