Vrftsjtryk

We recently moved to a nice apartment building with great rooftop grills. I have started to learn about grilling, and it was a mistake, as now I really like prime ribeye steak off the grill (I think, we buy Whole Foods, grade 3 meat)

The problem is that such steaks are relatively expensive, at $13-19/pound.

Is there any trick to finding good quality meat at lower prices apart from waiting for discounts? Can cheaper steak be prepared to similar quality/taste as better cuts on the grill, if I like form-factor of rib eye?

There are a few things that you can do:

• Buy in bulk. There's typically a major discount for buying a 'family pack' (usually 5+ lbs) at once. I like shopping at Wegman's, because they sell steaks that are on sheets where each one's individually wrapped, so I can leave some sealed for later in the week or even freeze them.




• Shop at more than one store. They all have their sales each week, and you have potentially more deals if you hit one on the weekend but a different one (not in the same chain) on your way home from work mid-week.




• Look for 'must sell' packages. When the package gets within a day or two of the 'sell by' date, most stores will mark them. It's often half price, but I've seen it anywhere from 30-70% off. Some stores will slap them with bright yellow or orange price tags and put them back in the section they came from, while others will have a place in the meat department that's only the must-sell packages.




• Cut your own steaks. For some cuts of meat, you can get roasts, and they're often at a cheaper cost than steaks. You'll just have to cut them to an appropriate size yourself. (don't do this if you don't have any large knives). For ribeye, look for a 'boneless rib roast' or 'standing rib roast' if you want it on the bone. For some cuts, you can get a half primal in a cryovac bag, but it's a more limited selection unless you go to a warehouse style store (Costco, BJs, etc.)



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  Buy different cuts of meat. Rib eye tends to be one of the more expensive steak cuts. There are a few websites out there that have recommendations for more economical steaks:

  
  
  
  
  
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    http://www.thenibble.com/reviews/main/meats/beef/best-value-steak-cuts.asp (their top three are boneless blade, thin flank, and tri-tip)
  
  
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    https://www.mashed.com/24540/best-cuts-steak-budget/ (chuck eye, flat iron, tri-tip)
  
  
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    https://www.myrecipes.com/ingredients/beef-recipes/affordable-beef-cuts-you-need-to-try (tri-tip, hanger, chuck eye)
  
  
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    https://www.thekitchn.com/5-budget-cuts-of-beef-you-should-be-buying-according-to-a-butcher-240281 (chuck eye, flat iron, hanger)
  
  
  
  

  One thing to remember is that the less intramuscular fat, the more rare that you should cook it. For lean cuts that come from working muscles, you'll need to slice it thinly across the grain so it's not too tough.

  
  

Her is an article on how to make cheaper cuts of meat better. There are a number of options to "transform" different cuts.

https://food-hacks.wonderhowto.com/how-to/make-cheap-cut-steak-taste-like-filet-mignon-0162708/

A quick google provide a ton of results on the first page. I'd suggest using Google before stack.

Maybe come back with a specific question for a specific cut.

Since you mention Whole Foods, I'm assuming you're in the US. That being the case, you are likely within reasonable driving distance of a Costco or Sam's Club (big warehouse stores that require memberships). At these stores and many other outlets, you can buy what are known as "primal cuts" in choice and even prime grades. Primal cuts are big anatomical chunks of the animal that are further cut into more familiar cuts; steaks, roasts and such.

In the US, ribeye steaks are cut from the beef rib primal, or more specifically, the 7 rib beef sub-primal. Here's a photo of the 7 rib sub-primal with bones trimmed (ready to be cut into steaks) and a diagram showing from where on the animal it is cut.

Source

The rib primal is G & H, the 7 rib sub-primal is G.

Source

Many places will even cut the primal into steaks for free if you buy the whole primal or sub-primal. Or, you can do it yourself with a big knife and some elbow grease. You'll be shelling out a lot of cash at one time, but the savings vs buying steaks of the same quality at a normal grocery store are huge.

You'll probably want to freeze some steaks, so be sure to ask if you want information about how to most effectively (and frugally) pack steaks for freezing.