Beefsteak
Various cuts of beef are used for steak. The more tender cuts, from the loin and rib, are generally cooked quickly, using dry heat, and served whole. Less tender cuts from the chuck or round are generally cooked with moist heat or are mechanically tenderized (e.g., cube steak).
Beefsteak is graded for quality, with higher prices for higher quality. For example, beef tenderloin is the most tender, while wagyu, such as Kobe beef from Japan, is also known for its high quality.
The quality and safety of beefsteak as a food product is regulated by law. Australia has National Meat Accreditation standards; Canada has the Canadian Beef Grading Agency; in the United Kingdom, the Food Standards Agency is responsible; in the United States, young beef is graded by the United States Department of Agriculture as Select, Choice or Prime, where "Prime" refers to beef of the highest quality, typically that which has significant marbling. In 1996 in the U.S., only 2.4% of cattle were graded as prime, and most Prime beef is sold in restaurants and hotels.
Beefsteak can be cooked to a level of very rare (bleu, a cold raw center), rare, medium rare, medium, medium well, or well done. More tender cuts can be cooked relatively quickly at very high temperatures, such as by broiling or grilling. Pittsburgh rare is charred on the outside. Beef, unlike some other meats, does not need to be cooked through. Food-borne human illnesses are not normally found within a beefsteak, though surfaces can potentially be contaminated from handling, thus very rare steak (seared on the outside and raw within) is generally accepted as safe.
The wide range of quickly-prepared and well-known beefsteak dishes includes minute steak, steak sandwiches, and steak and eggs. Steak meat is also often minced, shredded, chopped finely or formed to create a range of dishes that retain the name "steak":
Chicken-fried steak – a breaded cutlet dish consisting of a piece of steak (tenderized cube steak) coated with seasoned flour and pan-fried. It is associated with U.S. Southern cuisine.
Restructured steak – a class of beefsteaks made from smaller pieces of beef fused together by a binding agent. Its development started in the 1970s.