Bavette Steak

Bavette Steak — The Cut Butchers Keep for Themselves.

The bavette — sometimes called sirloin flap — is one of those cuts that doesn't make it onto most grocery store shelves. Not because it isn't exceptional, but because there isn't enough of it, and the people who know it tend to not let go of it. You're holding one now. Treat it accordingly.

It's a loose-grained steak from the bottom sirloin, and that open grain structure does two things: it soaks up heat fast and it holds onto flavor in a way that tighter cuts can't match. The beef taste here is bold — closer to a skirt or flank than a ribeye, but with more substance and better marbling than either. Grain-finished on our Indiana pastures, these animals produce beef with the fat distribution and depth of flavor that makes a cut like this sing.

Cook it simple. Screaming-hot cast iron or grill, two to three minutes a side for medium-rare, then rest it. The single most important step: slice against the grain. The grain runs long — slice with it and you've got a chew problem. Slice across it and every piece is tender, juicy, and exactly what it should be.

Intentionally raised. For those who believe in better.