Welcome to Meat Matters – your prime cut of carnivorous wisdom. We slice through the fat to bring you expert tips, meaty advice, and everything you never knew you needed to know about steak.

Grab a fork, sharpen your knives, and dig in. Your appetite for knowledge starts here.

Heritage Day Braai Essentials: ​Choosing the Best Wood

In South Africa, a braai is far more than just a way to cook — it’s a ritual, a celebration, and a social gathering that brings people together. But if there’s one thing that can make or break your braai, it’s the wood you use.

The kind of wood you burn affects everything: the temperature of your fire, the smokiness of your meat, how long the coals last, and even how your guests remember the night. Whether you're planning a quick weeknight braai or a slow Sunday feast, choosing the right braai wood is essential.

​Can Steak Make You Slim?

​Steak is often seen as a decadent treat — something to cap off the week, best enjoyed with loosened belts and a good glass of red. But what if steak wasn’t just indulgent... what if it was healthy?

What to Look for When Buying Steak

​At the end of the day, the best steak is the one *you* love. Maybe it’s a buttery, bone-in ribeye or a lean, flavour-packed New York strip. Whatever your preference, there are a few universal traits that set great steaks apart.

Science of Meat

Cooking a delicious piece of meat over a grill, barbecue or in a pan often requires knowing top-secret culinary tricks, and many hours in the kitchen. Speed, experience and timing are important – as is the chemical reaction that takes place. Time to dust off the cobwebs, and spark up the Bunsen burner again. 

The Best Steak You’ve Never Heard Of

There’s a steak out there that might just beat the rest of the herd. It’s called Txuleta (pronounced choo-letah), and it's quietly revolutionising the steak scene.
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How To Salt A Steak

Here’s the truth: salt isn’t just a seasoning—it’s a game-changer. It enhances aroma, balances flavour, and helps tenderize the meat. Seasoning your steak properly draws out juices and helps develop that crave-worthy seared crust.

​What is Wagyu beef?

Many beef buffs are familiar with Wagyu, invoking visions of marbled cuts from pampered cows being fed beer and listening to classical music. Wagyu is renowned for being so tender it literally melts in your mouth.

​Steak Pairing 101

Pairing steak with the right drink can transform your meal into a truly memorable experience, elevating the flavours of both the beef and your beverage. 

Nutritional Advantages of Grass-Fed Beef

As health-conscious eating continues to rise, so does the demand for grass-fed beef. Once a niche option, it’s now widely available in grocery stores and restaurants. But what exactly makes it different from conventional, grain-fed varieties?

​Steak Thickness

When it comes to cooking steak, thicker is better. Achieving that perfect sear on the outside and juicy goodness in the inside is just a lot easier to do with thicker cuts.

Dry vs. Wet-Aged Beef

Whether dry-aged or wet-aged beef is better is often a conundrum many diners ponder when faced with a selection of steak cuts.

How Much Charcoal to Use When Grilling

You’ve just spent a small fortune on top quality meat, so don’t screw it up by getting short-sided on coals. 

​Steak Doneness

Can you tell when steak is medium-rare from a rare one? What about a medium-well from one that's well done?

Meat's Carbon Footprint

Meat certainly gets a bad rep when it comes to its Carbon Foodprint. And to a degree it deserves most of it; climate change is increasing rapidly and agriculture is one of the largest producers of greenhouse gases.

The Don Pedro

Ah – the Don Pedro. A retro-classic dessert drink synonymous with lively dinner parties. Traditionally served with whiskey, this vintage tipple is still hugely popular as an after-dinner treat.

The Humble Potato

The simple chip can be served thick or thin, curly or crinkly. And no pie, battered hake, burger – or steak – is complete without it. If that fillet could speak, it would say: “You complete me”.

5 Reasons to Eat More Steak

Maybe you like yours pan fried in Parisian butter. Or perhaps grilled, over a proper wood-fire braai.

​Hopefully not stuffed with cheese and mussels..

How to Slice Steak

The way slice your steak can make a world of difference. You've probably read time and again that meat should be sliced "against the grain." Well – I hope you have. In fact it’s just as important as resting the meat if you want to enjoy the tenderest steak.

Healthiest Steaks to Eat

There are few things in life better than a perfectly cooked juicy steak. And while experts will bleat on about how unhealthy it is, numerous studies show that the link between red meat and cancer is weak at best. And that means you do not have to ditch steak altogether.

Reverse Sear: a Perfect Steak Every Time

It’s payday and you’ve picked up a couple of thick, dry-aged matured bone-in ribeye steaks. Make sure you cook those babies perfectly every time. This may just be the best way to cook steak at home.

How Many Steaks from a cow?

Ay caramba – how long is a piece of string? When will Medupi be completed? How tall is a Prasa train? These are the things that keep me up at night. It all really depends on what types of steaks and what other kinds of cuts you may want.

Boring ole Fillet

What makes a great steak – flavour or tenderness? In today’s modern world we are conditioned to eating meat from grain-fed animals raised in feedlots, and slaughtered when relatively young.

Secret Butcher's Cuts

Butchers are a cunning bunch. There are a handful of cuts that most customers don’t know to ask for; they’re known as “butcher’s cuts” – and are often a delicious tasting chunk of meat. So we're going to let you in on the secret cuts that butchers have been keeping to themselves. Read on, take notes, then hightail it to your nearest butcher.

Wood or Gas?

The most frequently asked question since "What is the Meaning of Life?" - the flame war between wood purists and gas hotheads burns brighter than the debate between Mac and PC users.

Things you Didn't Know about steak

The red liquid in your steak is not blood! Nearly all blood is removed from meat during slaughter. “Red” meats are composed of a fair bit of water, which mixed with a protein called myoglobin, ends up making up most of that red liquid.

The World's Most Expensive Steak!

I promise I'll never moan about the cost of a steak again. A young sixth generation French breeder/butcher continues his family legacy of producing some rather unique - and expensive - meat.  How much you ask? The 2000 vintage cote de boeuf (rib steak) can command $3,200. Not the kinda steak you want to order with a cheese sauce!

What your Steak says about You

I love steak. Well – red meat really. Moist beef biltong. Thick juicy lamb loin chops. I love it so much that when my doctor said I’ll die of heart disease one day, I changed doctors.

What makes a Great Steak?

Judging good steak can be a complicated decision process; as there are a myriad of factors that influence the final product. Meat judging can be assessed “on the hoof”, “on the hook” and “on taste”.