The Chuck-Eye Steak, for some, is an enigma. I've had it a few times over the years, but it's not very well-known in the NW. As far as sourcing, it's comparable to the Picanha, which is also unavailable up here. If you ask a meat cutter or butcher, they will look at you with a blank stare. Do you want Tri-Tip? They are abundant in every store.
What is a Chuck-Eye Steak? To many, it's called the "Poor Man's Ribeye," but let me tell you, it's anything but poor. Rich in flavor, surrounded by different muscles and rich in fat. There are only two per steer, which is cut from the Chuck Primal from the fifth rib, and the Ribeye is cut from the sixth to the twelfth rib.
Some refer to this cut as the Delmonico, but there is no consensus or strict definition. Spruce Eats "Origins of the Delmonico Steak "Unfortunately, no one can say for sure exactly what cut of meat Delmonico's was serving when it created the Delmonico steak, because it happened in around 1840, and there's no one around who remembers." My favorite quote "As it happens, it's an increasingly common practice among butchers to take chuck eye steaks, tie them up with string and call them Delmonico steaks, which is about the same as taking a Chevy, sending it through the car wash, and calling it a Cadillac."
Why Delta-T? There was no valid reason for using this method other than creating a gradient texture for my guests to try. This approach is usually reserved for very tender cuts in which you want to reach the target temp quickly or substantial cuts like a Rib-Roast, whereas you can save about 30-45% of processing time. Here are a couple of examples: #1: A Whole Beef Tenderloin with a diameter of 3.5 inches might take four-plus hours to reach equilibrium, but depending on your Delta-T, the target temp could be achieved in half that time with no diminishing results. #2: You want to process about 20-Chicken breasts at a busy restaurant but don't have 3-Hours to reach the target temp and pasteurize. You could use Delta-t and do it in 60-Minutes. #3: And my best example would be a 14-Lb Rib Roast I did last year at EQ for yet another experiment. It measured 5.69 inches and took 14:23:00 to reach EQ. Had I used a 2c or 3.6-degree Delta-T, it would have reached Target at 08:30:00.
You can find more links and info on Equilbirum and Delta-Y Processing in this
LINK.Treated with 1% Kosher Salt, Vac Sealed and Dry-Brined for 36-Hours.
For clarification, Bath Temp for Delta-T was 136.6f. Once the internal temperature reached 132.1f, I added ice to the bath to hasten its descent to 133f. The residual heat helped the protein reach 133f (64-Minutes), and it peaked at 133.3f. The total time from start to finish was 6-Hours.
I've never personally prepared a Chuck-Eye steak using any other method than Sous-Vide, so I can only offer this advice as it pertains to this method. With SV, I add an extra 15% time with Chuck-Eye Steak instead of similar size Rib-Eye.
It was a blind taste, and the guests were not told which one was which until after they gave me their impressions. I asked a lot of questions which helped with the analysis.
The steaks were equally good, and guests seemed to like both. Some preferred the gradient texture of the Delta-T, whereas some liked the EQ one for the uniform chew. Some guests said the Delta-T one is something they would expect from a High-End Steakhouse and the other one was what they'd expect from that was processed using SV. I liked them both equally.
Update: I did a few at 135f using the Equilibrium method at 6-Hours. I was happier at 135f than 133f because the fat seemed to render down a little bit more. The Chuck Eye steak only has a few inches of the Longissimus Dorsi muscle, where the Ribeye steaks come from, and the rest is surrounded by connective tissue and other less tender muscles.
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