Learn what makes this trademark steak a BBQ’ing homerun!
In this post, we reveal meat shop insider info about what used to be one of the most underappreciated and most flavourful beef steak cuts available. We’re referring to our Meridian Baseball Steak, AKA: Top Sirloin Baseball Steak, which is one of our best sellers come grilling season each year.
Why call it a baseball?
We’re still unclear where exactly the Baseball Steak name originated, but it’s no stranger to steakhouse menus. The baseball term references the thick round shape of the steak. It’s typically cut at least 1.5 inches thick, and it puffs up in the center as it cooks, giving it an even rounder, more baseball-like, shape when served.
Get more Bang for you ‘Butt’
The Meridian Baseball Steak is skillfully cut in-house by our butchers from the center of the Top Sirloin Butt. That being said, this Butt has nothing to do with the anatomical location. The Top Sirloin Butt portion of the cow is located between the short loin and the round.
Meat from the Top Sirloin has a distinct, rich, beefy flavour.
The Top Sirloin Butt itself can be cut many different ways, and can be divided into three separate main muscles referred to as the “Cap”, “Center” or “Heart” and “Mouse Muscle” (Wait, did that just say “Mouse Muscle”? … Yup – for now, let’s save that story for another post). When we cut our Meridian Baseball Steaks, we only cut them from the Center muscle, where we can cut the thickest, most consistently sized steaks.
Make no Butts about it
For the best possible farm-to-plate tender baseball steak experience, we are more than opinionated when it comes to what kind of beef we choose to cut for our Meridian Baseball Steak. In fact, as you may already know, we are unapologetic in our downright fussiness when it comes to beef quality. Every baseball steak we sell is cut from 100% Grass-fed, Grass-finished, Free Range Beef, raised without added hormones – the way nature intended.
How To Cook the Perfect Baseball Steak
Given how thick this steak cut is, cooking takes a little more time and patience, but the result is one mighty juicy tender piece of beef.
The first tip is to always remember to remove the meat from refrigeration and let stand at room temp for 30-40 minutes before cooking – you need to let those meat fibers relax before introducing them to high heat. From there, we have two recommended cooking methods for you to follow.
Grill 🔥
- Heat grill to medium-high (about 550F)
- Lightly brush steaks with oil (olive or grapeseed oil) and season with salt & pepper.
- Put steaks on the grill for 3-4 minutes
- Lower temperature to medium, or medium-low (about 400F) for another 4-5 mins. At this point, we like to lift and rotate the steaks 90 degrees to give them that nice charred cross-hatching on the outside.
- Flip steaks and grill another 6-8 minutes, or to your desired doneness.
Note: You want to keep the grill covered during the duration of cooking, but keep a close eye on them! … If you find the grill is too hot, or notice flare-ups, reduce grill temp and move the steaks away from the flames. Otherwise, you’ll end up with a crispy Chicago-style steak.
Sear & Roast 🥩
- Preheat oven to 400F
- Season steaks with salt & pepper
- In an oven-proof skillet, heat 2 teaspoons of oil (olive or grapeseed) on medium heat until almost smoking
- Sear steaks 1 minute on each side until browned nicely
- Transfer the skillet to the pre-heated oven and roast the steaks for 4-6 minutes on each side for medium-rare.
Last but not Least …
The last tip is to always let the meat rest for 5-10 minutes before serving to keep most of those savoury juices in the meat once it’s cut.
“Play Ball!”
