What Makes Australian Wagyu Picanha So Damn Good? (2024)

FAQs

Why is Australian Wagyu better? ›

American Wagyu is often raised in feedlots, where the cattle are confined and fed a high-calorie diet to encourage the development of marbling. In contrast, Australian Wagyu is often raised in more open conditions, allowing the cattle to move around more freely and potentially leading to leaner meat.

About this Cut

The whole Australian Wagyu picanha is also known as the sirloin or rump cap. It is a larger piece that is fantastic for slow cooking, which allows for the fat to break down creating an extremely juicy and tender piece of meat. It has incredible flavor, and its size makes it perfect for larger gatherings.

Marbling. Fat equals flavor, and Wagyu is packed with thin lines of fat or marbling that melt into the steak once the meat hits the heat. It's like buying a steak that bastes itself in the most mouthwateringly tasty bath of beef fat. Intense umami taste.

Key Differences

The Australian has a marbling pattern more akin to the Japanese while still retaining that ruby coloring of a good steak. The American has beautiful marbling and deposits of creamy fat typical of the ribeye cut. And finally, the Japanese A5 wagyu is so full of marbling, that the steak is nearly white.

The Australian Wagyu cattle are linked to the Japanese cattle breed as they may share bloodline relations. But the Australian Wagyu cattle are not 100% “genuine”. Most of the Australian cattle are crossbred. About 95% of the Australian cattle are crossbred with other cattle breeds.

With marbling resembling an artistic masterpiece and a level of tenderness so superior you might as well be eating butter itself, there is no wonder why Japanese Wagyu beef is renowned for being 'the best beef in the world'.

This is a big mistake, because cooking it too long causes it to lose the beautiful, juicy fat that makes it so special. It's not that the beef gets tough and chewy, it's just that it's diminished when you cook it too long. Going too heavy on the seasoning.

Wagyu beef, originating from Japan, is renowned for its extraordinary marbling, which results in unmatched tenderness and a rich buttery flavour. The key differences between Wagyu and other beef types lie in the genetics, breeding methods, and feed. Japanese breeders know the breeding history of all their Wagyu cattle.

What Part of the Cow Does Picanha Come From? The picanha cut of beef comes from an area on the rump of the cow above a fat cap. In the US, the picanha cut is known as a rump cap or sirloin cap.

Place the Picanha fat side down over the hottest part of the grill (about 250°F) and sear for 5–7 minutes. Turn and sear an additional 3–4 minutes. Be prepared for flare-ups as the fat softens and soaks into the meat and the grill. Remove the Picanha and slice into 3 or 4 sections with a sharp knife.

Is Wagyu picanha tender? ›

An incredibly versatile cut, always juicy, tender and a guaranteed crowd pleaser. In South America the Picanha has achieved cult status.

The production of Wagyu cattle places Australia 2nd to Japan while the US comes in third. You can buy Australian Wagyu from local Melbourne butcher shops like The Meat Inn Place and supermarkets.

These cows are frequently born in Japan before being transported to Australia for additional raising and breeding—all of which is an expensive process. Not only that, but the care to keep Australian wagyu cows healthy and continue to breed them is no small task.

Japan's "top three" wagyu brands — specifically Matsusaka Ushi, Kobe Beef, and Ohmi Beef — all hail from the Kansai region of Japan. While their bloodlines all trace their origins to Tajima beef, a subspecies of Japanese Black cattle from Hyogo Prefecture, each of these wagyu brands boasts a unique flavor profile.

Australian beef exceeds internationally recognised food safety and animal health standards. In addition, Australia's supply chain traceability systems and product integrity are second-to-none.