The Underappreciated Cut Of Meat Andrew Zimmern Urges People To Try

It's common knowledge in the cooking world that different parts of each animal contain meat with unique uses, textures, and flavors from one another. While there is constant debate between which section of each individual animal reigns supreme (especially when it comes to favorite steak cuts, as Anthony Bourdain once explained), chef Andrew Zimmern has found that one cut of meat that most animals have is the best across the board — and it's probably not what you'd expect. 

Zimmern revealed in an interview with Tasting Table that his overall favorite section of an animal is actually the neck, a notoriously tough cut of meat due to its location and function on each animal's body. While the choice may be surprising, his reasoning is that neck cuts have incredibly flavorful potential if cooked correctly. 

"If you said to me, 'You have to take one cut, but from all animals — what's it going to be?' I go neck," Zimmern revealed. "Every animal moves its head to eat, [so the neck] has some of the best flavor on any animal."

While his choice might surprise fans of more popular cuts of meat like chops or ribs, Andrew Zimmern's affinity for the neck isn't uncommon among serious meat lovers. While you won't find many people using neck for quick cooking — although pig neck has become popular in some Japanese BBQ restaurants that specialize in yakiniku or quickly grilled meats — the unique cut is vital to many slow-cooked recipes. 

Zimmern explained that "a lot of times if you're using a lamb neck or a hog neck, it's [about] patience." So how long does it take to cook? "It is going to cook all day long," he said. "It'll braise for eight hours. It'll roast for 10 hours. It'll go on the smoker for 14 hours, but the results are really second to none."

Similar to both lamb and pig necks, chefs also make great use of beef neck by slow-cooking the underrated cut. While some lower neck muscles of a cow are found in chuck beef – which is widely considered to be the "poor man's brisket" – the rest of the cow's neck meat is often braised or used in stews to become incredibly tender and flavorful.   

Static Media owns and operates Tasting Table and The Takeout.