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    Flat Iron Steak | 5 Secrets To Melt-In-Your-Mouth Flat Iron

    Flat Iron Steak

    What is flat iron steak?

    The flat Iron steak – also referred to as the ‘top blade steak’ – is a thinly cut steak that comes from the hard-working shoulder (“chuck”) of a cow. Typically containing a high amount of intermuscular fat (or, ‘marbling’), the flat iron steak has skyrocketed in popularity in the UK due to it’s premium taste yet affordable price! It’s so tasty in fact that it’s becoming known as the nation’s affordable alternative to the tenderloin or fillet! It’s taste profile is very ‘beefy’, however, it’s known to be very versatile; matching a luxurious marinade on one day whilst a simple coating of salt on another!

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    History of flat iron steak

    The flat iron steak is named so because it supposedly looks like an old-fashioned metal flat iron. The happymeat.uk team isn’t sure why though, as it’s rectangular in shape? More broadly, the story goes that the flat iron steak was originally part of the top blade roast. Top blade roasts have a very tough bit of connective tissue that runs through their middle. At one point however, butchers decided that they would remove the tough part in the middle, making 2 pieces of meat — one of them being (yes, you guessed it) our beloved flat iron!

    Choosing the perfect flat iron steak

    Grass fed flat iron

    To ensure the highest quality at an affordable price, our artisan butchers strongly recommend buying flat iron steaks that come from cows that have been grass fed. Flat Iron steaks coming from grass fed cows are considerably healthier (having a higher % of antioxidants, vitamin A and omega 3 fatty acids), and more premium in taste. The difference in taste can be matched to the difference between an organic and GMO onion. That’s big.

    Spotting a grass fed flat iron steak is easy: just look for rich, dark red meat color matched with fat or ‘marbling’ that is orange (yes, that’s right, not pale white) in tone. Read more about why the fat is this color in our complete guide to grass fed beef.

    Ageing flat iron steak

    Though you’ll hear a lot of debate around whether you flat iron steak should be wet aged or dry aged, and for how long, the michelin star chefs we work with all recommend a balance of both dry ageing and wet ageing across 21 days for the best taste and texture! If you want to learn more about what ageing is all about, what the different techniques are, and how they impact the taste profile of your flat iron steak, check out our definitive guide of beef ageing.!

    Nutritional value of flat iron steak

    Under Armour's 'My Fitness Pal' have an awesome overview of the nutritional facts of the standard flat iron steak that we recommend strongly to get a good understanding of flat iron steak if you’re interested. In the meantime Have a look at the excerpt below:


    Grass Fed Flat Iron Steak Nutrition 
    Serving size of 114g 
    Calories 160 
    Per Serving% Daily Value
    TOTAL FAT 8g44%
    Saturated Fat 0mg0%
    Polyunsaturated Fat 0mg0%
    Monounsaturated Fat 0mg0%
    Cholesterol 0mg24%
    Sodium 0mg0%
    Potassium 0mg0%
    Carbohydrates 0g0%
    Dietary Fiber 0g0%
    Sugars 0g 
    Protein 23g56%
    Vitamin A0%
    Vitamin C0%
    Calcium0%
    Iron0%

    Storing Flat Iron Steak

    Flat iron steaks will last up to 5 days when kept refrigerated and up to 6 months when refrigerated. If your flat iron steak is vacuum packed, however, you can get up to 1 year of frozen storage while keeping the quality and taste of meat at 100% fresh standards. It’s really incredible. Check out more about how vacuum-sealed products stay so well and for so long here!

    How to cook flat iron steak

    There are many different methods on how to cook fillet steak including: frying, grilling, sous vide, BBQ, boiling and slow cooking. We encourage you to read our specialist guide on how to get melt-in-the-mouth results, every time! In the meantime, here’s a rough snippet:

     

    1. Place a frying pan or skillet over a medium heat until very hot — no need to add oil to the pan!
    2. Toss the fillet steaks in and cook each side for 2 minutes to achieve fine searing.
    3. Then take the seared fillet steaks and place them on a baking tray and put in oven for between 5 and 6 minutes
    4. Finally, let the fillet steak rest for 10 minutes and then serve!

     

    What to serve with Sirloin Steak

    We recommend serving your flat iron steak with Chimichurri Sauce and homemade fries!

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