What cut of beef would be best for home-cooked?

goholistic

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I have Sebastian on a protein rotation in which I provide a one-protein canned food and matching home-cooked for three weeks before moving on to the next protein. For example, right now we're on turkey and he gets turkey canned food and cooked turkey thighs (supplemented with Balance It).

Looking ahead to when we start beef, I have no idea what cut of beef to get to cook. I don't buy beef for myself, but I know ground beef is not ideal. It should be easily digestible and not too fatty. Any suggestions?

When I was in the grocery store, people must have thought I was weird. I just stood there looking at all the different beef options (so many!), but about 4 feet away like a kid trying to avoid the scary beef monster. 
 

goingpostal

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I would just get whatever is least expensive, like a roast or chuck steak. 
 
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goholistic

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Thank you! I will at least know what to look for. It all looks the same to me - chuck...rump...shoulder... 
 

ritz

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Yeah, it all looks the same to me too.
If it is on sale, I buy the kind that is already cut up, I think it's called stewing beef. Work those jaw muscles, girl!
I avoid bone-in beef unless it is marked 50% off (at its 'sell by' date): I don't like paying for bone I have to simply throw away.
 
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goholistic

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For whatever reason, the "round" cuts of meat (top round, bottom round, etc.) were less expensive than the "chuck" cuts of meat at my local store. 
  I really don't know what the difference is between the two...if one is tougher than the other when cooked or what, but just thought I'd share.
 

aprilprey

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I try to get the leanest cuts when serving beef - the "round" cuts (top or bottom) are lean.  I also get roasts which makes cutting the excess fat off easier.  It can be very confusing while at the store, but if you study up on the "primal cuts" of beef, you learn which part of the steer a particular cut comes from, and the qualities of meat from that part of the body.  Grocery stores can and do come up with fancy titles for cuts made within a primal cut section, which is where the confusion starts.

Since beef can be very high in fat and many people strive for low fat diets, read up on what cuts those trying to reduce cholesterol should eat - there's probably hundreds of "how to eat low fat" blogs and sites out there.
 
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goholistic

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Thanks! I ended up getting "Chuck Tender Steak" (that's what it said on the package). They were oval slices of beef about 3/4" thick and very lean except for a little fat around the edge. I really don't know where this particular cut of beef comes from on the animal, but Sebastian really likes it and it was super easy for me to slice into cubes. Very little trimming needed. They were just slightly more expensive than the "round" cuts I mentioned, but definitely cheap compared to the top-of-the-line stuff. I noticed in my grocery store that they sort the beef from super premium to the cheap stuff (left to right), so that is helpful. On the left, some cuts were as much as $20/lb. To the right, I think the cheapest I saw was $4.99/lb. regular price. They do have "Manager's Specials" and on-sale items that will occasionally go lower than $4.99/lb.
 
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