A perfectly cooked steak is a beautiful thing, but it’s not just how it’s cooked, it’s where it comes from and how it’s been prepared beforehand that’s key.

Before you turn the stove on and start cooking for your guests, you must ensure you’ve purchased the best meat you can. You want them to taste the quality of the beef and give them a reason to keep coming back.

Some pointers to consider when choosing your steak:

Meat needs to be well hung. Dry-ageing allows enzymes in the meat to break down its structure. This leads to a more developed, superior beefy flavour and tenderness. In fact, Burts was one of the first butchers in the country to recognise this. Hanging times range from 21 to 35 days depending on the cut. However, despite the time and space hanging takes up, the results are definitely worth it. You’ll have meat that’s deep in colour, succulent and has a lovely buttery aroma.

Grass-fed is best; it provides a richer, sweeter and fuller flavour. We only buy from Red Tractor, Eblex and BRC-accredited companies, which means we can guarantee our customers that the produce they serve has been properly cared for and is of the highest possible quality and will taste great too. With our farm-to-fork traceability scheme, our beef can be tracked back to the farm where it was bred – and in some cases, even down to the food it ate.

Ensure that the meat has been properly butchered. It may come as a surprise to some, but how the meat has been cut is just as important as dry-ageing. How the meat is cut can influence how tender and how well it will cook. Burts knows just how to get the best out of each steak. We ensure the silverskin, gristle and excess fat is removed so you get more meat for your money. Your customers will be guaranteed to clear their plates every time, too.

So the moral of the story is – always ensure the quality of your meat is top notch! We deliver wholesale meat and other produce to customers in Sussex, Kent, Surrey and further afield by arrangement. So if you’re interested in changing suppliers to one of the South Coast’s leading catering butchers, then give us a call on 01424 730417.