Dry-Aged Beef Steak Series
Tri-Tip
(Newport Steak, Santa Maria Steak, Sirloin butt)
In the eyes of the butcher, every muscle in the animal has promise. There are many cuts and steaks that escape common name in grocery stores, but the more obscure cuts are often the most surprising and delicious. The Tri tip is a triangle-shaped muscle spanning from the sirloin to the top and bottom rounds.
Very defined muscle strands are well mixed with flavorful bands of fat, 2 1/2" of steak sitting underneath a tapering fat cap. Cooked to medium, it is a juicy and well developed steak with strong earthy flavors that come from the more used muscles, and have flavor similar to brisket or sirloin cap.
Presented in a cutting room with minimal surroundings and plain background, these still-lifes are attempts to present a beef cut in a glorified but humble and close view in a clean environment. The sharp angles of the steak play with the angle of the table's edge, and the varying directions of muscle texture create motion in the still-life.
The smooth texture of the butcher paper underneath the corrugated muscles contrast as much as the bright oxidized red does with cool shadows that the steak folds create.
In these photographs I hope to find beauty in the variance of muscles revealed in the art of the butcher and the substructures of muscles.
References:
Danforth, Adam. Butchering Beef. North Adams, MA: Storey Publishing, 2014.