On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. In prehistoric times, humankind hunted aurochs and beef consomme safeway domesticated them.

Since that time, numerous breeds of cattle have been bred specifically for the quality or quantity of their meat. After the Norman Conquest, the French-speaking nobles who ruled England naturally used French words to refer to the meats they were served. Lascaux, show aurochs in hunting scenes. In the United States, the growth of the beef business was largely due to expansion in the Southwest. Agricultural land worldwide could be reduced by almost half if no beef or mutton were eaten.

The consumption of beef poses numerous threats to the natural environment. Earth, not including the large agricultural fields that are used to grow cattle feed. Amazon region, are being converted to agriculture for meat production. In 2018, the United States, Brazil, and China produced the most beef with 12. 57 million metric tons of beef in 2020, down 950K metric tons from the prior year. Major decline for production of beef was from India up to 510k and Australia down to 309K metric tons from the prior year. Beef is first divided into primal cuts, large pieces of the animal initially separated by butchering.

These are basic sections from which steaks and other subdivisions are cut. The term “primal cut” is quite different from “prime cut”, used to characterize cuts considered to be of higher quality. This section does not cite any sources. Wet aging is accomplished using vacuum packaging to reduce spoilage and yield loss. After two to three days there are significant effects. The majority of the tenderizing effect occurs in the first 10 days.

Boxed beef, stored and distributed in vacuum packaging, is, in effect, wet aged during distribution. Premium steakhouses dry age for 21 to 28 days or wet age up to 45 days for maximum effect on flavor and tenderness. Meat from less tender cuts or older cattle can be mechanically tenderized by forcing small, sharp blades through the cuts to disrupt the proteins. This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. These methods are applicable to all types of meat and some other foodstuffs. This leads to searing of the surface of the beef, which creates a flavorsome crust.

In Australia, New Zealand, the United States, Canada, the UK, Germany and The Netherlands, grilling, particularly over charcoal, is sometimes known as barbecuing, often shortened to “BBQ”. A technique of cooking that involves cooking meat for long periods of time at low temperatures with smoke from a wood fire. A term used in North America. It is similar to grilling, but with the heat source always above the meat. Elsewhere this is considered a way of grilling. Meat may be cooked on a hot metal griddle.

A way of cooking meat in a hot oven, producing roast beef. A gravy may be made from the cooking juices, after skimming off excess fat. Beef can be cooked to various degrees, from very rare to well done. The degree of cooking corresponds to the temperature in the approximate center of the meat, which can be measured with a meat thermometer.

Meat can be cooked in boiling oil, typically by shallow frying, although deep frying may be used, often for meat enrobed with breadcrumbs as in milanesas or finger steaks. Moist heat cooking methods include braising, pot roasting, stewing and sous-vide. This technique may be used as part of pressure cooking. Unlike stewing, braised meat is not fully immersed in liquid, and usually is browned before the oven step. Sous-vide, French for “under vacuum”, is a method of cooking food sealed in airtight plastic bags in a water bath for a long time—72 hours is not unknown—at an accurately determined temperature much lower than normally used for other types of cooking. The intention is to maintain the integrity of ingredients and achieve very precise control of cooking. Although water is used in the method, only moisture in or added to the food bags is in contact with the food.

With the adequate combination of temperature and cooking time, pathogens, such as bacteria will be killed, and pasteurization can be achieved. Thermostatically controlled methods, such as sous-vide, can also prevent overcooking by bringing the meat to the exact degree of doneness desired, and holding it at that temperature indefinitely. The combination of precise temperature control and long cooking duration makes it possible to be assured that pasteurization has been achieved, both on the surface and the interior of even very thick cuts of meat, which can not be assured with most other cooking techniques. Beef can be cooked quickly at the table through several techniques. In hot pot cooking, such as shabu-shabu, very thinly sliced meat is cooked by the diners at the table by immersing it in a heated pot of water or stock with vegetables. In fondue bourguignonne, diners dip small pieces of beef into a pot of hot oil at the table.