This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this steak temperature by adding citations to reliable sources. Experts differ about how large the tenderloin must be to differentiate T-bone steak from porterhouse. The United States Department of Agriculture’s Institutional Meat Purchase Specifications state that the tenderloin of a porterhouse must be at least 1.
T-bone must be at least 0. T-bone steaks are generally considered one of the highest quality steaks, and prices at steakhouses are accordingly high. Porterhouse steaks are even more highly valued owing to their larger tenderloin. Some British on-line butchers also offer American style porterhouse steaks. To cut a T-bone from butchered cattle, a lumbar vertebra is sawn in half through the vertebral column.
T-bone and porterhouse steaks are suited to fast, dry heat cooking methods, such as grilling or broiling. Since they contain a small amount of collagen relative to other cuts, longer cooking times are not necessary to tenderize the meat. Bistecca alla fiorentina, or ‘beefsteak Florentine style’, consists of a T-bone traditionally sourced from either the Chianina or Maremmana breeds of cattle. The same cut of meat, but from a calf, is used for Cotoletta alla milanese, which consists of 1. 5 cm-thick cuts which are battered in breadcrumbs and fried in clarified butter with salt.