Slicing bavette against the grain: a practical guide
Did your bavette turn out tough even though the doneness seemed right? Check how you sliced it as well. Bavette has long, clearly visible muscle fibres. Slicing across those fibres after resting makes the fibres in each bite shorter. This guide explains how to identify the grain and carve the meat. For ingredients, rub and cooking instructions, use the complete bavette BBQ recipe.
How to identify the grain in bavette
Before grilling, look at the visible lines running through the meat. They show the direction of the muscle fibres. Remember the direction or take a photo before a crust forms; the fibres can be harder to see after cooking. On an irregular piece, the grain can change direction.
The name bavette varies by country and butcher. English-language guides may use flank steak or flap steak, but these are not automatically the same anatomical cut. Look at the fibres in the actual piece on your board rather than relying on a translated name.
Why slice bavette against the grain?
Slicing with the grain leaves long fibres that take more chewing. Slicing across them shortens those fibres. This can make the meat more pleasant to eat without changing the rub or grilling method. Cutting against the grain does not restore dried-out or poorly cooked meat, and does not guarantee tenderness.
Slicing bavette in four steps
- Rest the cooked meat according to your recipe. Use a stable cutting board and a clean, sharp knife, not an unwashed board previously used for raw meat.
- Find the grain again. Follow the lines in the meat, not the grill marks: these may run in a different direction.
- Cut thin slices with the cutting line perpendicular to the fibres, about 90 degrees in the plane of the board. You can also tilt the blade for wider slices; tilting does not replace cutting across the grain.
- If the grain changes direction, turn the meat or divide it into manageable sections first. Slice each section across its own grain.
What if the bavette is still tough?
Check both the slicing direction and the thickness of the slices. Then consider the cooking method and the particular piece: a thin steak can cook further faster than expected. Use a food thermometer while cooking rather than relying only on time, colour or crust. Slicing across the grain is a texture technique, not a food-safety check.
For preparation, rub and grilling instructions, return to the bavette recipe with dry rub. For other beef cuts, visit the BBQ beef guide.