Beef silverside is a boneless cut of beef taken from the back end of the cow, between the rump and tail. Chefs use many different methods of preparing and cooking the joint, according to the requirements of the dish they are making. Salt and pepper are the most commonly used seasonings when preparing the meat. Some chefs like to braise the meat before slow roasting it in the oven to make the cooked joint as juicy as possible. The cut of beef can be used in recipes such as pot-roasted beef with red wine and red onion marmalade and teriyaki beef.
Different cuts of beef are taken from different parts of the cow. Beef silverside comes from the top rear. Chefs can find the cut of meat by looking between the tail of the animal and the rump. The thick flank is directly below the silverside cut, and the leg of the animal is below that. Topside is another name for beef silverside.
A thin layer of fat surrounds beef silverside, and the cut does not contain any bones. These qualities determine the ways in which the cut is commonly used. The thin layer of fat surrounding it means that the joint stays moist during cooking because the congealed fat turns into liquid and drains into the meat. Beef silverside is often sliced into individual steaks because it contains no bones and can be cut easily.
Chefs usually season and braise the meat when preparing beef silverside for cooking. The most commonly used seasonings are salt and pepper, but other seasonings can be added in some cases. The meat is shallow-fried in oil to brown it all over before being placed in the oven. This closes off the pores in the meat and prevents fat from being lost during cooking. Additional fat in the meat makes it juicier when it is fully cooked.
Recipes involving beef silverside usually require roasting the entire joint of meat in the oven and then slicing it to serve. The cut of meat is included in recipes such as braised silverside of beef and pot-roasted beef with red wine and red onion marmalade. These recipes both involve roasting the meat as a whole joint and then serving it with a sauce and some vegetables, and are typical of most recipes for silverside. More exotic recipes such as teriyaki beef can also be made, but these usually involve cutting the meat up into smaller pieces before cooking.
