Different steaks

      Steak is usually grilled but can be pan-fried. It is often grilled in an attempt to replicate the flavor of steak cooked over the glowing coals of an open fire. Steak can also be cooked in sauce, such as in steak and kidney pie, or minced and formed into patties, such as hamburgers.

Steaks are often cut from grazing animals, usually farmed, other than cattle, including bison, camel, goat, horse, kangaroo, sheep, ostrich, pigs, reindeer, turkey, deer and zebu as well as various types of fish, especially salmon and large pelagic fish such as swordfish, shark and marlin. For some meats, such as pork, lamb and mutton, chevon and veal, these cuts are often referred to as chops. Some cured meat, such as gammon, is commonly served as a steak.

Grilled Portobello mushroom may be called mushroom steak, and similarly for other vegetarian dishes. Imitation steak is a food product that is formed into a steak shape from various pieces of meat. Grilled fruits such as watermelon have been used as vegetarian steak alternatives.

Types

1. Beefsteak

Many types of beefsteak exist. The more tender cuts of beef, from the loin and rib, are cooked quickly, using dry heat, and served whole. Less tender cuts from the chuck or round are cooked with moist heat or are mechanically tenderized (e.g. cube steak). Beefsteak can be cooked to a level of very rare (blue, a cold raw center), rare, medium rare, medium, the medium did, or well done. Pittsburgh rare is charred on the outside. Beef, unlike certain other meats, does not need to be cooked through. Food-borne human illnesses are not normally found within a beef steak, though surfaces can potentially be contaminated from handling, and thus, very rare steak (seared on the outside and raw within) is generally accepted as safe.

Beefsteak is graded for quality, with higher prices for higher quality. Generally, the higher the quality, the more tender the beef, the less time is needed for cooking, or the better the flavor. For example, the beef fillet is the most tender and wagyu, such as Kobe beef from Japan, is known for its high quality and commands a high price. Steak can be cooked relatively quickly compared to other cuts of meat, particularly when cooked at very high temperatures, such as by broiling or grilling.

The quality and safety of steak as a food product is regulated by law. In Australia, there are National Meat Accreditation standards; in Canada, there is the Canadian Beef Grading Agency; in the United Kingdom, the Food Standards Agency is responsible; in the United States, beef is graded by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) 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.

There is a wide range of quickly prepared and well-known beef steak dishes, including Minute steak, steak sandwiches, and steak and eggs. "Surf and turf", which combines meat and fish, requires more time to prepare. Steak meat is also often minced, shredded, chopped finely or re-formed to create a range of dishes, including steak burgers, that retain the name "steak". Other such dishes include:

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.

Hamburg steak – a beefsteak shaped into a patty to be cooked after being minced. It is similar to the Salisbury steak. Made popular worldwide by the migrating Germans, it became a mainstream dish around the start of the nineteenth century.

Restructured steak – a class of imitation beef steaks made from smaller pieces of beef fused together by a binding agent. Its development started in the 1970s.

Salisbury steak, first recorded in 1897 and named after James Salisbury, a doctor during the American Civil War, who recommended people eat hamburger three times per day. During World War I, American soldiers replaced the word "hamburger" with Salisbury steak for political reasons.

2. Fish steak

Fish steaks are cut perpendicular to the spine and include bones. Although their delicate flesh requires quicker cooking than beef, steaks from swordfish, halibut, tuna, salmon and mahi-mahi can be grilled. They are frequently cooked whole or as fillets. Fish steaks may also be poached or baked using a court bouillon, wine or sauce or cooked en papillote.

Commercial sashimi tuna steaks may have their coloration fixated by the use of flushing with carbon monoxide (CO), whereby CO is pumped into bags containing the tuna, which is then stored at 4° Celsius. The duration of time for color fixation to occur varies per the size of the meat. For example, a two-inch tuna steak takes twenty-four hours for color fixation to be completed using this process. When utilized, color fixation using CO occurs prior to the vacuum sealing of tuna steaks for storage. In Japan, color fixation using CO is prohibited.

3. Lamb steak

Lamb steaks come from a range of cuts and are a versatile ingredient that can be used in a range of dishes. It can be served warm or cold and is commonly found sliced into salads.

4. Pork steak

Pork steaks are generally cut from the shoulder of the pig, but can also be cut from the loin or leg of the pig. Shoulder steaks are cut from the same primal cut of meat most commonly used for pulled pork, and can be quite tough without long cooking times due to the high amount of collagen in the meat; therefore, pork shoulder steaks are often cooked slower than a typical beef steak, and maybe stewed or simmered in barbecue sauce during cooking.

Cooked gammon steaks are a component of a full breakfast, whereas ham steaks from a rolled pork loin are more likely to be served at lunch.

A Boston butt is a type of pork steak originating from colonial New England, where butchers would pack less valuable cuts of pork in barrels, called butts.

5. Chicken steak

Thick sliced or chopped and formed chicken used to create mainly traditional southern dishes such as chicken fried chicken. This may also refer to beef cuts such as a hip steak or a shoulder blade steak, or a small portion of chuck steak with a visible line of white connective tissue.

6. Vegetarian alternatives

Sliced vegetables can be used as vegetarian non-meat "steak" alternatives, such as cauliflower, portobello mushrooms, and eggplant. Beans and legumes (such as soybeans) have also been used to form steak-like foods. Watermelon steaks are sliced and cooked pieces of watermelon.