Master the Perfect Steak
Lesson 1 · Pick the Right Cut
6 min read
Ribeye vs. strip vs. filet — what each cut wants, what each cut gives, and how to choose for the night you're cooking.
The three pillars of the steak world
Almost every steak you'll cook at home comes from one of three primals: the rib (ribeye), the short loin (strip and filet), or the sirloin. They eat differently because they work differently on the animal. Cuts from muscles that move a lot get flavor and chew. Cuts from muscles that barely move get tenderness, sometimes at the cost of flavor. Once you understand that one trade-off, the whole map opens up.
Ribeye — the most forgiving
Heavily marbled, generous fat cap, deep beefy flavor. Because of that internal fat, ribeyes are the easiest steak to cook well — there's a wider window between perfect and overdone. If you're learning, start here. Pasture-raised ribeyes run a little leaner than commodity beef, which is the entire reason you'll start pulling them 5°F earlier than the steakhouse playbook says.
New York Strip — the workhorse
Confident, balanced, classic steakhouse flavor. Strips have a clean strip of fat cap that crisps beautifully and a uniform interior that's easy to slice. They want high heat and a hard sear — they're not delicate. This is the steak we recommend for weeknight steak dinners because it's quick and almost impossible to mess up if you trust the heat.
Filet Mignon — the texture cut
The most tender cut on the steer. Mild in beef flavor — by design. The texture is the showpiece. Lean cuts overcook in a heartbeat, so filets want the sear-and-roast method: hard crust on the outside, gentle finish in the oven, butter and herbs riding shotgun. We treat filets as a vehicle for great sauce.
Try this next
Cook your first steak
Start with our Bone-In Ribeye for the most forgiving first cook — generate a beginner-friendly recipe and follow it step by step.
Quick Check · 3 questions
Prove you got it.
Get all three right to earn +15 XP and lock in the win. Retry as many times as you need.
1.Which cut is the most forgiving for a first-time steak cook?
2.Why do we pull pasture-raised steaks 5°F earlier than commodity beef?
3.For a beginner, thickness matters more than what?
Answer all three to check.