Where did some of the various steaks
get their names?
Steak
comes from the old Saxon word steik (pronounced stick), meaning meat on a stick,
however, it has evolved to a great many cuts of meat now available. Each steak seems
to have it's own history.
Chateaubriand was created
during the Napoleon era for the French statesman Francis Chataubrand. It is a large
tenderloin steak for two.
Filet mignon is derived
from the French words filet, meaning boneless meat, and mignon meaning small.
London broil gets its name
from the city. In the supermarket any thick cut steak can be called a London broil,
however, the traditional recipe calls for flank steak that is marinated and broiled or
grilled. It is served by cutting thin slices across the grain.
Porterhouse
steak was named after porterhouses, or coach stops, where travelers in the early 1800's
stopped to dine on steak and ale. The porterhouse steak became popular in the United
States about 1814 when a New York porterhouse keeper, Martin Morrison, began serving it.
The porterhouse is really two steaks in one, a strip loin and a tender loin.
T-bone, named for the shape
of the bone, is the same as a porterhouse, except with a smaller tenderloin.
Ribeye is also known as a
Delmonico named after Delmonico's Restaurant in New York who specialized in ribeye steaks.
Sirloin got its name from
Henry VIII who was so impressed with the meat that he pulled out a sword and dubbed it
"Sir Loin."
