Even if you can’t bear the bugs this year, it’s worth it to set up some mosquito coils or other repellants and head outdoors in long pants to grill a hanger steak, the latest cut in our summer steak series. (Past featured cuts include: the Denver, the picanha, the flank and the skirt.)
We asked Corey Meyer of ACME Meat Market about this cut. There are reasons to take him seriously when he talks about meat.
More than a NAIT-trained butcher and the owner of ACME, Meyer is a member of Butchery Team Canada, a handful of meat-cutting pros from across the country aiming to continue their ascent towards becoming the world’s best butchery team at the Olympic-like World Butchers’ Challenge. “It’s held every three years,” Meyer says. “The first one I did, we were in Sacramento and we finished 10th in the world. Then we were in Paris in 2025 and we finished fifth in the world.” The next competition takes place in Brisbane, Australia in 2028.
It involves breaking down and displaying a side of beef, a side of pork, a whole lamb and five chickens — in three hours. “That includes cleanup and the whole works,” Meyer says. Teams are judged on the precision, the amount of waste (“The less waste the better,” he says), and how well they follow a preset display theme.
He’s here to tell us about the elusive hanger steak.
“I hesitate to call it an obscure cut,” Meyer says, “but it’s a unique cut, not always easy to find.”
It comes from the plate area of the animal, a diaphragmatic muscle from the upper front belly. At one time, this cut might have found its way into ground meat, but because it is so tender and flavourful it became known as “the butcher’s steak.”
“Back in the day butchers would just take it when they were breaking down the animal, because nobody ever asked for it,” Meyer says. A hanger is rare because there is only about a pound and a half of this cut on any given animal, depending on its size. “It gets bought and shipped to larger stores,” Meyer says, “Because Alberta beef is so highly desired it gets shipped around the world too.”
You won’t find it in a supermarket, so order it through your local butcher, and plan ahead, because of the cut’s rarity. “They tend to be a little bit pricey,” Meyer warns. Ask for a hanger steak, but know that the cut can also be called a hanging tenderloin or an onglet if you feel fancy.
A hanger steak has a seam of tough membrane running down the middle, so ask the butcher to trim it or remove it yourself before grilling. That will leave you with two long, narrow pieces of steak, each of which has a slightly thicker end. This cut is tender if cooked right, and flavourful enough that you can season it with a little flakey salt and pepper and grill it that way.
“But it does take marinade quite well,” Meyer says, “You can use a base like soy and pretty much any herbs, and just let it marinate for a couple of hours. I like to make sure the grill is screaming hot,” Meyer says. He advises people to aim for rare or medium rare on a meat thermometer to avoid toughening up the well-grained steak.
“It has a very prominent grain,” Meyer says, “and you want to make sure that when you’re carving it, you cut against the grain.” He adds that if you cook and cut it correctly, it’s similar to, but more flavourful than a ribeye or striploin.
Serve the slices plain on a platter, family style, plain or with a dollop of blue cheese butter. It’s perfect for any grill-season favourites, such as roast potatoes, grilled cabbage wedges, and lightly grilled quartered bell peppers.
ACME Meat Market
Ritchie | 9570 76 Ave NW, Edmonton | acmemeatmarket.ca
