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How to prepare beef onglet

9 November 2016

Learn how to prepare a beef onglet for cooking in our brilliant video guide with top chef Andy McLeish.

How to prepare beef onglet

Learn how to prepare a beef onglet for cooking in our brilliant video guide with top chef Andy McLeish.

Onglet is a cut of beef that hangs beneath the diaphragm of the animal near the flank (which is why it’s sometimes called hanger steak in other countries). The steak has quite a coarse grain but due to its positioning on the animal does relatively little work and is therefore quite tender. It is best cooked quickly over a very high heat to either rare or medium rare, making it a favourite for steak frites in French bistros. Onglet has a unique meaty flavour similar to offal, thanks to its close proximity to the liver of the animal. It is basically two muscles attached together by a thick piece of connective tissue.

If you find yourself presented with a whole onglet, preparing it may seem a little daunting. It takes a little nifty knife-work to remove the connective tissue, but here chef Andy McLeish shows us how to negotiate this cut with ease to leave you with lovely, tender cuts of meat that are perfect for all manner of beautiful beefy dishes.

Method

1
To begin, remove the silverskin running through the centre of the onglet. Insert the knife at the end of the connective tissue and slice gently against it, cutting into the silverskin to ensure you don't remove too much meat. You will be left with two long strips of onglet
2
One of the strips will still have the silverskin attached. Lay it flat, silverskin-side down on the board, and insert the knife at one end, running the blade along to cut it away completely. Make sure the knife is facing slightly down towards the silverskin (much as if you were filleting a fish)
3
Throw away the silverskin
4
Trim the two strips of onglet, cutting away any large pieces of fat – these trimmings will be fantastic in a sauce. Remove any more elastic, sinewy pieces and discard
5
Once you've removed all of the connective tissue and large pieces of fat, you should be left with three pieces of onglet – one very thick piece, one long thick piece and an even longer, thinner piece

Serving suggestions

Onglet has a wide variety of uses, from quickly-grilled steak dinners to slow-cooked stews. If you are using a quick-cook method such as grilling or pan-frying, aim for a medium-rare finish – any longer and the meat might be a bit tough. If you prefer your beef well-done, use onglet in a stewing or braising dish for a fantastically unctuous finish.

Andy's grilled onglet recipe not only shows you how to grill beef onglet to perfection, but also whips up a deliciously rich red wine sauce using all of those delicious fatty trimmings. Jeremy Lee serves up his onglet steak recipe with pickled walnut and horseradish, while Tom Hunt's barbecued onglet recipe is served with a light herb dressing.

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