The more weight bearing muscles develop more collagen. It’s a fact. And that makes them tough to chew. These cuts like shoulder, which are less desirable, are where chuck steaks come from. They’re less expensive as well. The butcher runs them through a mechanical tenderizer that literally “Pre-chews” the meat so it’s easier for you to chew. These are often called cubed steaks minute steaks because they are thinner than traditional cuts of steak. They also have a characteristic pattern in them from the mechanical tenderizing. You can also perform this tenderizing process yourself in your own kitchen using a mallet-like device pictured. Methionine is blamed for the advanced aging effects of high animal protein diets. Another amino acid - glycine - is known to offset the undesirable effects of methionine overload. Collagen is approximately 35% glycine by weight. We no longer get enough glycine in our diets because we no...
