Beef shank

The beef leg (or shank, or shin) is the shank portion of a steer or heifer.

Due to the constant use of this muscle by the animal it tends to be tough, dry, and sinewy, so is best when cooked for a long time in moist heat. As it is very lean, it is widely used to prepare very low-fat ground beef. Due to its lack of sales, it is not often seen in shops. Although, if found in retail, it is very cheap and a low-cost ingredient for beef stock. Beef shank is a common ingredient in soups.

Beef leg is the cut of the beef which contains just muscles and bones; the meat is surrounding the bone. The beef leg can be found in butcher shops or in groceries stores with or without bone. The beef leg is usually de-boned before cooking. The meat is suitable for grilling, roasting, braising, but usually the preparation method depends whether the meat is cooked with or without the bone. The beef leg with the bone is usually used for preparing soup or stews or it can be roasted. The de-boning process is easy, but the beef leg can be found with or without the bone in the stores. A beef leg that has been de-boned is often cut in half to separate the sirloin and shank ends of the leg. The meat is usually marinated before grilling it. The beef leg with bone has to be boiled for couple of hours and in the meantime the vegetables and spices should be added in order to give the soup or the stew a delicious taste.