Meat your beef
Australian Blackmore Wagyu beef, which from what FooDiva tasted recently at Al Maha is good enough to rival original Wagyu from Kobe in Japan (pre-Fukushima nuclear disaster). Incidentally, Tomo, Chef Takahashi’s new Japanese restaurant at Raffles is serving Japanese Wagyu – more on that when I review. Anyhow digressing, good news, UAE restaurants are now dishing up Blackmore’s Wagyu.
100 per cent full blood Wagyu (‘Wa’ means Japanese and ‘gyu’ cow) cattle are sustainably raised on rich, fertile pastures in Victoria and fed for 500 to 600 days on a Japanese-style ‘secret’ ration low in grain allowing for natural digestion and eliminating the need for growth hormones, antibiotics and genetically modified food. 98 percent of this beef receives the highest marbling grade of 9+, denoting the high monounsaturated fat that is distributed evenly throughout the muscle with more omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids than typical beef. Depending what you read, claims out there imply this particular marbling can reduce cholesterol levels, but beware the fat content.
Whether you opt for Chef David’s tartare, carpaccio, rib-eye, or all three like we did when charming Ben Blackmore himself was in town for the UAE trade launch at Al Maha, all interpretations are so tender, almost butter-like with an intense sweetness to the flavour. So rich, they don’t require much in terms of accompaniments. Impeccably good.
So if you fancy a Blackmore Wagyu fix then here are the restaurants that serve it – Atmosphere at Burj Khalifa, Hunters Room & Grill at Westin Dubai, Nobu and Seafire at Atlantis Dubai, 55th & 5th at St Regis Saadiyat Island, Rodeo Grill at Beach Rotana Abu Dhabi, plus Al Maha Desert Resort & Spa off the Dubai – Al Ain road and Six Senses Zighy Bay in Oman.
Meanwhile, if you prefer your meat grass-fed, the beef from Black Angus cattle on Spirit View ranch in Canada’s Northwest Alberta is available here in restaurants through distributor Prairie Halal Foods. FooDiva savoured it at Baker & Spice who has been serving this particular beef since the opening of its first cafe at Souk Al Bahar nearly four years ago.
The herds are all grass fed (without an inch of hormone or antibiotic supplements) at the forage based operation on perennial pastures with no annual cropping, which maximises the grazing period. They are free to roam immense tracts of prairie land bound by three rivers in a pure air environment far from industrial plants. FooDiva should point out though, the cattle are fed grain (free of maize and corn however) for the final 150-200 days, which due to the very cold climate is required to enhance meat tenderness and flavour. Once slaughtered the meat hangs for two days, and is then aged for a minimum of 21 days. Canada’s beef grading system rigorously ensures that only beef under 30 months of age with bright red meat can qualify for Grade A status.
The three dishes FooDiva tasted pictured here – a grilled rib-eye steak, a burger with 80% lean and 20% fat minced beef seasoned only with salt and pepper, and homemade beef sausages (with the help of @landofsand I should add) – were all tender, succulent and bursting with a deep, robust flavour. The burger served in a brioche bun with a generous dollop of horseradish (all homemade) and juicy tomatoes from the local, organic Al Shuweib farm (priced at AED85) will go down as a FooDiva burger fave. The sausage scored highly for @landofsand, “Sublime, just how a sausage should be. As close as it gets without being oink oink. Marvellous.”
Aside from Baker & Spice cafés, the Canadian Heritage Angus beef is available at Lafayette Gourmet, The Palace Hotel Old Town, Okku at the H hotel, Movenpick Ibn Battuta Gate, Seafire and Ronda Locatelli at Atlantis The Palm, plus Beach Rotana Abu Dhabi and Banyan Tree Al Wadi.
It would be unfair to compare the Wagyu with the Black Angus – each so different. If you’re a carnivore and love intense flavours then you’re better off with a beef like the Black Angus and a steak cut like the rib-eye. As Yael Mejia, the brains behind Baker & Spice says, “If you’re gonna eat a steak then why eat a fillet which lacks flavour.” My dad says the same. Alternatively if you’re only looking for a taster, then opt for the richer and more expensive Wagyu – it is the champagne of beef after all.
Most foodies I meet tend to have a preference for a particular beef supplier, a cut, as well as a strong opinion on grass or grain fed. Love to hear yours. For an insight into local chefs’ opinions on beef, check out this month’s issue of The Pro Chef Middle East (page 24). And if you fancy cooking up your own, here is Chef for hire Andy Campbell’s roasted rib of beef recipe.
As an aside, I know many of you have been asking about the return of Baker & Spice’s farmers’ markets, well Yael has been busy championing the cause so watch this space.
A bientôt.
FooDiva. x
I buy all my beef from Prime Gourmet I have an unpublished article on the matter which I should get out there soon 🙂 I adore a good piece of ribeye and I am not bothered whether is is grass or grain just as long as it is fed!!
xx
LOL good one GA. Prime Gourmet is my local butcher too 🙂
It is good to see that you have highlighted that the tastiest beef is not the fillet. The surprising thing is that it is the most expensive despite other cuts being tastier……
Did not know that Wagyu beef could help reduce cholesterol – thanks for this info.
I’d love to conduct an audit Johan to see which cut sells more in steakhouses here. I expect it’s the fillet and why they can get away with charging more. It is the leanest cut though. I have added in another link on the Wagyu – beware the fat content!
This is really informative Sam, as I adore steak. Whilst I am an adequate cook, I cannot seem to get Steak right, and have had to make a point of only eating it ‘out’ and I am rarely disappointed – It’s Blackmore Wagyu for me next time for sure!
Thanks Kellie. Steak is so simple yet so tricky. Try Gaucho’s recipe here – scroll down and it includes a video! http://foodiva.net/2011/09/meet-the-man-behind-gaucho-dubai%E2%80%99s-restaurant-opening-next-month-plus-how-to-cook-a-steak/ And enjoy the Blackmore!
Good research Foodiva!! Personally I do not eat red meat but how would one recognise that he/she eats the specific beef and not any other beef? Also people should not believe that by eating regularly the Wagyu beef will reduce their cholesterol levels….
Thanks Kelly. Unless you’re a beef connoisseur which as much as I love it am not, I would always grill (excuse the pun!) the waiter or butcher. Sometimes what’s on the menu is not always true. And yes you’re right, there’s always two sides to every claim – Wagyu does have a high fat content.
Six Senses Zighy Bay – another mention here after I read your post earlier on the place… SYMBOLIC, have to probably call them up! A very informative post on Beef. The other day we had Wagyu at the TRibes.. but probably not Blackmore Wagyu Beef. Is this Blackmore Wagyu a recent addition to Al Maha? Or was it already there when we had gone on a Twittereti lunch organised by Debbie. If so tasted it without knowing so much about Wagyu beef apart from the info on Wiki!
I know this post was about Wagyu but where would you buy sushi grade salmon in Dubai/Abu Dhabi?
One where there is no odour…
The gourmet grocer and deli, Market & Platters in Dubai Marina: http://foodiva.net/2012/09/new-deli-in-new-dubai/ Seafood selection including sashimi is second to none.
I think a pretty easy recipe is Heston Blumenthal’s steak recipe. Against all notion, you are flipping the steak every 20 seconds – I didn’t believed it, but when I tried it really made a very good steak [consistently] – just don’t forget to let it rest [you can check it out on youtube].
I have to say, that I actually love tenderloin. Not only. I like rib eye as well. And T-bones [especially T-bones], And sometimes even flank, hanger, minute steaks [and so on]. It really depends, how you are preparing them. I just think, that tenderloin has a great texture – I am not a big fan of sinews and other “not muscle flesh” substances. This can be changed, if you sous vide a cut of beef – but traditional I enjoy just tenderloin being without anything I don’t like. And the flavor? I usually really like it.
Grain fed vs. grass fed? I would say both! Depending what you are doing with that – or just your mood.
To be honest, I am pretty ok with the Australian and New Zealand beef in the Supermarkets [Carrefour and Géants] – love to buy only at Prime Gourmet – but my paycheck doesn’t allow that. However I think you should not buy Brazilian beef there, which is very pale and inferior to the others [looks like, the Brazilian cows go through a lot of stress].
Wow Dominik am gonna try Heston’s recipe for sure thanks for the tip! I have only bought Brazilian beef once (from Waitrose) and wasn’t impressed at all. I too am a fan of Prime Gourmet but agree it’s a little expensive for weekly shopping 🙁 You pay for quality though. Thanks for dropping by.