What Is The Lowest-Grade Steak, And Should You Avoid Buying It?

If you know a thing or two about beef, then perhaps you know about the top beef grades and what they really mean. This steak grading system, introduced by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is a measurement of the food's quality that takes into account both the marbling and flavor of the beef, and the health and nutrition of the cattle. Grade is typically an important question to ask your butcher when you're buying beef. Prime is at the very top, followed by choice and select. There are lower grades out there, however; should you avoid them? 

For some expert advice, Chowhound spoke exclusively with Jonathan Bautista, executive chef at Ember & Rye, a steakhouse in Carlsbad, California. According to Bautista's exclusive advice, you're unlikely to find the absolute lowest grade styles of beef at your grocery store, but you should know what they're called. "I personally would stay away from cutter, canner, and utility grades," he suggests. "Most retail stores don't carry these anyways." These types of extremely low grade beef are typically only used in heavily processed foods, animal food, or ground up rather than served as a steak. Instead, Bautista prefers to go with prime or choice steaks whenever he's out of the restaurant and cooking at home.

Utility, canner, and cutter grades are fairly uncommon, and they tend to come from older cattle with very little muscle mass or fat left on them. As a result of the poor health or nutrition of the cows, the beef isn't tender at all and there's very little marbling. Utility-grade beef is the highest grade of these bottom three choices and it still contains some fat. It's most commonly seen in canned foods and the boxes of frozen dinners in your grocery store's freezer aisle. Going further down the list, the canner and cutter grades are so low quality that you typically only see them in pet food. Even if they're not at retail stores, you can find utility grade at some meat sellers, sometimes for very cheap.

According to chef Jonathan Bautista, none of these three grades should be cooked as a steak of any kind. "Any lower grade under select will naturally present an unpleasant and chewy texture if cooked like a conventional steak," he says. "If the grade is low, I recommend using the meat for braising or stewing so the meat tenderizes for a more pleasant result." If you can identify these different grades of steak, you can more easily tell if you're eating a cheap steak. However, utility is the only bottom-level grade you're likely to come across, and you hopefully aren't getting any frozen dinners at a sit-down restaurant.