Has anyone else noticed that select grade steaks from HEB are very hit or miss and sometimes so tough they are un-edible? I used to by them all the time, but have been burned by several packages of New York strips and others. I have even had several packages of "prime" sirloins that ended up getting tossed. So tough you can't chew them. I have been buying steaks at HEB for years and this problem seems fairly recent. Anyone else seen this?

You probably got one that is closer to the sirloin end, and they're going to be tougher. Also, there are other factors, such as animal breed, animal size and age, condition of the animal at slaughter, that are going to determine how good a steak is. The thing you have to keep in mind is that a quality grade is a best guess based on the marbling found at the ribeye between the 12th and 13th rib. I've started watching their ads, and when choice or prime go on sale, I grab a few packages, portion them out, and vacuum seal them.

It's getting to the point where we are just getting beef from Costco. Agreed on HEB showing some inconsistency.

Yeah, I know you get what you pay for, but select, for me, has always been edible. The ones I have gotten from HEB lately have been ridiculously tough - to the point it can't be chewed. "Prime" sirloin the same. That's not normal. I guess I will just try some other sources. Something changed with HEB meat in the last year.

Chuck Eye Steaks for the win

HTownAg98 said:

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If I had to guess, it's more likely due to the breed of animal that is coming through the slaughterhouse at the moment because of the low cattle numbers. A select Angus steer is going to be different than a select Brahman crossbred steer.

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Probably a few Corriente's snuck in after dark....

I only buy prime ribeyes from HEB. Otherwise it's from my local butcher shop or Kroger, which has been much more consistent lately.

Mathguy64 said:

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Maybe I'm missing something but OP said "select grade" steaks. You will get what you pay for and a select grade will be pretty different than a Prime1 steak.

Having said that I get Select flat irons all the time. Those are both great value and great taste and they do not need to be Choice or Prime1. In fact that's all they put out for a flat iron. You can ask the butcher I if they have a better flat iron in the back. I have gotten a Waygu flat iron before. That was interesting. Beefy and rich.

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This intrigues me. I buy flat irons only too but only from Kroger. Is this Wagyu at HEB? And are they thick cut? The couple times I tried to buy flat irons at HEB they were cut too thin so I didnt even bother.

I asked the butcher at my HEB if they had flat irons and he didn't know what they were. Do they only keep them behind the counter? Do they have another name for them? Would love to get some but thought HEB didn't carry them.

Slightly off topic but last week I needed some tenderized cube steaks for a meal I was making. HEB at TowerPoint didn't have any- I asked and they gladly went back and made me exactly what I needed.

RooAg said:

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I asked the butcher at my HEB if they had flat irons and he didn't know what they were. Do they only keep them behind the counter? Do they have another name for them? Would love to get some but thought HEB didn't carry them.

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At Tower Point I have seen them on the meat wall near the Tri-Tips etc but they only have a couple packages it seems and they looked pretty small the time I saw them.

RooAg said:

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I asked the butcher at my HEB if they had flat irons and he didn't know what they were. Do they only keep them behind the counter? Do they have another name for them? Would love to get some but thought HEB didn't carry them.

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That sounds like a butcher keeping things for himself.

digging tunnels said:

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Mathguy64 said:

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Maybe I'm missing something but OP said "select grade" steaks. You will get what you pay for and a select grade will be pretty different than a Prime1 steak.

Having said that I get Select flat irons all the time. Those are both great value and great taste and they do not need to be Choice or Prime1. In fact that's all they put out for a flat iron. You can ask the butcher I if they have a better flat iron in the back. I have gotten a Waygu flat iron before. That was interesting. Beefy and rich.

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This intrigues me. I buy flat irons only too but only from Kroger. Is this Wagyu at HEB? And are they thick cut? The couple times I tried to buy flat irons at HEB they were cut too thin so I didnt even bother.

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Yes. HEB and the Waygu was probably 1" thick at the thickest. Maybe a bit less, tapering down.

We only buy steak from Readfield's or Rosenthal on campus. Too many bad cuts from HEB.

I don't think I have ever bought any select grade steaks. I usually get choice or prime from Costco.