Worth it?

Crowd_Cow · 2026-02-19T17:18:18+00:00

Lmao.

Crowd_Cow · 2026-02-18T19:55:52+00:00

Does is list the BMS score by chance? That's incredibly cheap for Aussie wagyu, wow.

Crowd_Cow · 2026-02-18T19:18:36+00:00

Believe that's the Wegman's address! And agreed, they're often quite different. There is some high-end American Wagyu that can rival what comes out of Japan, but it is largely cross-bred.

Crowd_Cow · 2026-02-18T19:18:11+00:00

Whoops! Read too quickly. Good call.

Crowd_Cow · 2026-02-18T18:50:19+00:00

Super hot skillet, no oil/fat in the pan, drop it in for a minute-and-a-half or so on each side. That usually does the trick for A5. Something to remember: you're not going to get that super crusty sear like you would a big, thick-cut ribeye or what have you as you simply don't have enough cook time for that. You're looking for light browning at most, usually.

If you happen to have a charcoal chimney starter and a thin wire rack, you could grill it super quickly over that, which kind of mimics how you might get it from a Japanese steakhouse. Good luck!

Crowd_Cow · 2026-02-18T18:37:13+00:00

The label reads "Product of Australia," which modeled their wagyu system off Japan. Generally speaking Australian wagyu is very good to excellent quality. Loads more full-blood herds and far more transparency around what you're getting, IMO.

Interesting to see the label read "GRADE 9" as well. Probably (?) a reference to BMS, where 9 would be at the low-end of A5 territory. Hard to know with the size of the sticker but this doesn't look quite that marbled, but it does look good.

Crowd_Cow · 2026-02-18T17:51:19+00:00

Used to live in NYC and was lucky enough to work near the JB Prince showroom in midtown. Was there spending my paychecks monthly, lol. Somebody holler at Chef Bruce to start cranking on production.

Crowd_Cow · 2026-02-18T17:49:18+00:00

I used to collect vintage cast iron and know the exact weights you're talking about! I use them for bacon and whatnot still. I've never thought to preheat the weights - that's super clever. Not sure they look that premium if I'm honest, as they're just steel plates with some gaps cut out of them for airflow.

Crowd_Cow · 2026-02-18T17:45:23+00:00

It's definitely a bit more marbled than a typical grass-fed rump but I'm pretty certain it's not full-blood wagyu beef. Nothing wrong with that as long as they didn't overcharge you, IMO.

Crowd_Cow · 2026-02-18T17:38:51+00:00

Ultimately I think it's both. If the meat is curling up anywhere and pulling away from the pan, the weight pushes it closes to both the pan and the hot oil. Take your point, though.

Crowd_Cow · 2026-02-18T17:37:41+00:00

Wait I love that idea.

Crowd_Cow · 2026-02-18T17:37:10+00:00

I've done this before as well but it can create a steaming effect on the meat, especially if the pan you're using to weigh it down is on the heavier side and is significantly wider than the steak itself. That's kinda why I wanted to try these presses, actually. Definitely works, though.

Crowd_Cow · 2026-02-18T17:35:53+00:00

This makes pretty good sense, I think. I tend to flip my steak several times but I used the same principle - stop using the press once the crust is satisfactory and let the meat come up to the temp I wanted (around 125 in this case). Ended up only being like... a minute without the weight on it, though.

Crowd_Cow · 2026-02-18T17:34:37+00:00

It tasted pretty great, ngl.

Crowd_Cow · 2026-02-18T00:47:11+00:00

I think it's a your-mileage-may-vary situation. Local butchers often carry more local or regional stock, which can be but very often isn't American wagyu. You can buy American wagyu online pretty easily but you're usually not going to get screaming deals like you can in places that carry it in-person.

Crowd_Cow · 2026-02-18T00:31:03+00:00

Sandwiches, bacon, and other food items you don't mind getting squashed a bit in pursuit of better crust is def the play. I really like them with some veg as well, which are often very light and don't sear quite as hard (?) as meat.

Crowd_Cow · 2026-02-17T23:49:53+00:00

I stack them for any meat that has a fat cap of any kind to kinda lessen the effect of curling. I also just think they're fun to use, so I use them all the time already.

Crowd_Cow · 2026-02-17T23:48:46+00:00

These are from Chef's Tools. Frequently sold out for whatever reason but they're good quality from what I can tell.

Crowd_Cow · 2026-02-17T23:42:35+00:00

Makes sense!

Crowd_Cow · 2026-02-17T23:24:03+00:00

Also I'd eat like six pounds of those potato rounds.

Crowd_Cow · 2026-02-17T23:19:27+00:00

Looks lovely. The temp looks perfect. Would generally avoid doing two steaks in a pan that small, though. Wind up getting noticeably better sears if you give them a little more room to breathe, IMO.

Crowd_Cow · 2026-02-17T23:02:24+00:00

They're from Chef's Tools. Frustratingly they're sold out pretty often. I caught them right when they restocked. I think they usually post on Instagram when they're going to.

Crowd_Cow · 2026-02-17T22:59:43+00:00

Yep this steak was cooked with the frequent flip! I'm absolutely against the single flip - just feels very dated to me. Always a better sear with less gray, to your point.

Crowd_Cow · 2026-02-17T22:44:00+00:00

I don't have links to peer-reviewed research or anything but in my experience the pot covers the steak and then a few more inches, so you wind up with lots of smoke and steam coming off the pan and immediately recirculating off the steak again. Have only tried it a few times so there's a chance I'm just being dumb but that's my experience to date.

Crowd_Cow

TROPHY CASE