The present invention relates to meat cutting and, more particularly, to a method of cutting a piece of meat in a manner such that the resulting meat product simulates at least the appearance of a tenderloin cut.
Tenderloins, such as beef tenderloins, pork tenderloins, etc. have become increasingly popular meat products. There are a variety of reasons for such popularity including the fact that such tenderloin cuts or products are boneless, relatively low in fat and are conveniently packaged for relatively easy preparation and consumption with little or no waste. Another feature of such tenderloin products is the fact that the tenderloin products are generally elongated and generally cylindrical with the grain of the meat extending generally along the length of the cylinder. In this manner, after cooking, portions of the cylindrically shaped tenderloin product can be naturally sliced off by cutting across the length of the cylinder, generally perpendicular to the cylindrical axis for consumption with the advantage that all of the slices will be across the grain.
The present invention comprises a method of cutting a portion of meat, particularly a primal cut of meat, in such a manner that the resulting meat product simulates the appearance as well as other characteristics of a tenderloin. A meat product prepared in accordance with the method of the present invention is generally elongated and generally cylindrical with the grain of the meat extending along the length of the cylinder and generally parallel to the cylindrical axis. In this manner, a meat product prepared in accordance with the method of the present invention can be conveniently cut or sliced across the length, generally perpendicular to the axis of the cylinder such that all of the slices are across the grain of the meat.
Briefly stated, the present invention comprises a method of cutting a primal cut of meat having a width, a thickness and an elongated length with the grain of the meat extending generally parallel to the length to form a meat product simulating the appearance of a tenderloin. The method involves cutting the primal cut along a first cut line extending through the thickness and along the length of the primal cut to separate a first meat portion from the remainder of the primal cut. The first cut line is spaced from a lateral side of the primal cut by a predetermined distance generally corresponding to the thickness of the primal cut so that the first meat portion is elongated and generally square shaped in end view. The first meat portion is then cut along four generally curved second cut lines along the entire length of the first meat portion for removing the four corner pieces of the first meat portion when seen in end view. The removal of the four corner pieces results in the first meat portion being generally cylindrically shaped and having an appearance simulative of a tenderloin.
The foregoing summary as well as the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the invention will be better understood when read in conjunction with the appended drawings. For the purpose of illustrating the invention, there is shown in the drawings an embodiment which is presently preferred. It should be understood, however, that the invention is not limited to the precise arrangements and instrumentalities shown.
In the drawings:
The present invention comprises a method of cutting various types of meat in a manner so that the resulting cut or meat product simulates, at least the appearance of a tenderloin product of the type well known to those of ordinary skill in the art. More particularly, and as illustrated in
The first step of the present method comprises cutting the top round 10 along each of the first cut lines 14 and through the thickness to separate the top round 10 into two or more individual pieces or first portions of top round 10a. The cuts through the top round 10 may be made utilizing a standard butcher knife (not shown) or any other cutting device or apparatus well known to those of ordinary skill in the art. For example, the top round 10 may be cut utilizing a standard meat saw, water knife or the like. It will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art that the present invention is not limited to the particular knife or other apparatus used for making the cuts through the top round 10.
Cutting the top round 10 along each of the first cut lines 14 results in a plurality of individual top round pieces or first top round portions, one of which is illustrated as 10a on
Referring to
It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes could be made to the embodiments described above without departing from the broad inventive concept thereof. It is understood, therefore, that this invention is not limited to the particular embodiments disclosed, but it is intended to cover modifications within the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims.
This Patent Application claims the priority of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/527,080 filed Dec. 4, 2003 and entitled “Method of Cutting Meat to Form a Simulated Tenderloin Cut and Meat Cut Using the Method”, the entire subject matter of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference.
Number | Date | Country | |
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60527080 | Dec 2003 | US |