5 Protein-Rich Steak Cuts and Their Best Uses

No two steak cuts are alike, and there’s one for pretty much any aim, purpose, or need. For many home cooks, finding the right beef for your next meal comes down to protein content; after all, steak is a wonderful source of protein. That said, not all cuts of steak are built the same. A fattier cut of beef, such as a porterhouse steak, can contain more fat than protein; in comparison, the protein-packed eye round steak has a higher proportion of protein than fat. So, picking the steak that fulfills your personal protein needs is important.

Just as important as picking a high protein steak, however, is knowing how to prepare it. Some cuts are perfect for roasting, while others might fare better on the grill top. Below, we explore five high protein cuts of steak and the best way to prepare them to showcase each one’s unique and distinctive flavor profile, texture, and tendon content. So settle in, grab a knife, and dig in to some juicy goodness.

Let’s start with a particularly versatile cut: the sirloin-tip side steak. This cut of beef, found at the rear of the cow, within the round, is very lean, with a low fat and high protein content — around 7 parts protein to 1 part fat. A three-ounce serving of this steak cut serves up an impressive 25 grams of protein.

Generally, sirloin-tip side steak isn’t all that expensive and can be a great choice for a weeknight dinner, though the cut is also known as “breakfast steak.” It is an incredibly versatile cut that can be prepared in many different ways, and, since it has no bones, it’s a great choice for dicing or grinding into ground beef.

In terms of cooking, sirloin-tip side steak can be prepared in various ways. This cut works well on the grill and can be a great choice for beef kebabs. You can dice your sirloin-tip side steak into small pieces and pan-fry them as a part of a hash, or marinate and grill them. You can serve it alongside eggs for breakfast (perhaps with some brown butter), or you can grill it and slice it thinly, serving it on a salad or with vegetables if you prefer to keep things lean.

Let’s not skirt around the subject — it’s time to talk about skirt steak. This long, flat cut of beef comes from the lower front portion of the cow known as the plate. A piece of skirt steak is a bit higher in fat than the very lean sirloin-tip side steak, with a proportion of protein to fat that generally sits at a ratio of 2.5:1. Despite this, the cut still has a considerable amount of protein (21 grams per three-ounce serving) and can thus be incorporated into a protein-forward dinner.

Because skirt steaks are so thin with a thick muscle grain and fat marbled between its tissue, they’re great for grilling. This cut is best cooked at a high temperature over a short period of time. Skirt steaks work great in a sizzling pan of fajitas, for example, cooked alongside veggies with a drizzle of lime juice for zest. You can also marinate your skirt steak if you want to infuse it with extra flavor; however, it doesn’t need to sit in its marinade for more than about 30 minutes as it’s already naturally tender on its own. Skirt steak also works great in a simple carne asada, is a great steak cut for tacos, and can be served atop a salad or plate of pasta. For this steak, the possibilities are pretty extensive.

Now let’s get to the meat and potatoes of it all: the bottom round. This cut of meat is a rich and beefy steak that comes from the round portion of the cow. You can find bottom round roasts and bottom round steaks, both of which come from the bottom portion of the round flat, which features lean, often tough cuts of meat. Both the roast and the steak have a high protein to fat ratio — an 8-ounce cut of bottom round steak has a whopping 50 grams of protein.

However, in terms of cooking this beef, you will want to prepare the two cuts in different ways. Bottom round roasts are best cooked as, you guessed it, roasts. Generally, lower cooking temperatures and longer cook times help this cut to become more tender. Cooking your bottom round roast in red wine and beef broth with a sprinkling of aromatic herbs can make for a simple but delicious entrée.

Bottom round steak can be prepared on the grill or in a broiler. However, as it’s a naturally tough meat, you might want to marinate the cut beforehand in order to tenderize the meat. Alternatively, you can sous-vide your bottom round for a lengthy period of time (think a few hours) in order to achieve a perfectly tender result. Once your sous-vide steak is prepared, you can slice it thinly and serve it alongside roasted potatoes for a rich and satisfying dinner choice that packs a high protein punch.

Now that we’ve discussed the bottom, it’s time to take a look at the top of the cow — top sirloin, that is. This incredibly flavorful and rich beef is a very lean cut of steak that comes from the upper sirloin portion of the cow, near the spine. Top sirloin is very high in protein while being lower in fat than many other cuts.

It’s best to serve this beef as a steak and cook it to medium rare for the most tender results. To achieve this, you can grill, broil, sous-vide, or even cook your top sirloin as a stir fry. Just make sure not to overcook it, as it can quickly become tough due to its low fat content. After all, even though top sirloin has a great flavor, there’s only so much you can do with a leathery cut of meat.

For this steak, it’s best to avoid the low and slow method; instead, you should opt for a quick cook at a high temperature. If you want to give it some additional flavor, you can even pan sear the steak in butter and aromatics such as rosemary and garlic to give it a little extra punch.

We saved the best — or at least one the leanest choices — for last. An 8-ounce serving of eye of round steak has around 52 grams of protein compared to 8 grams of fat. This cut of beef comes from the back of the cow and has very little marbling throughout. Because of this, its fat content is quite low, and its protein content is high. Round eye steak has a good, rich flavor, but due to its low fat content, this steak is not tender. In fact, round eye has a reputation for having a tough texture.

It is, however, a very inexpensive cut of beef, and, if prepared properly, round eye steak can make for a delicious dinner choice. For the best results, you’ll want to cook your eye of round low and slow. You can simmer your steak in a red wine sauce, as President Ford was known to enjoy, or prepare it as you would a roast, cooking it for a long period of time in the oven, braising it for added moisture. When serving this steak, slice it thin, making sure to cut your meat against the grain for the best results.