Scotch fillet
The steak most people mean when they say they want a good steak. Boneless, heavily marbled, and forgiving on the grill.
- Also called
- Ribeye
- Section
- Rib
- Fat
- High, well marbled
- Best cooked
- Hot and fast: grill, pan or charcoal
- Best doneness
- Medium rare to medium
Tap a section to explore its cuts.
Chuck
The shoulder. Hard working muscle and rich flavour, where the short ribs begin.
Rib
The richest marbling on the animal, and the home of the scotch fillet.
- Scotch filletAlso called RibeyeYou are here
- Rib eye on the boneAlso called Bone-in ribeyeRead guide
- TomahawkRead guide
- Beef back ribsRead guide
Striploin
Along the back. Firm, beefy steaks with a fat cap down one edge.
Tenderloin
Tucked under the loin, doing almost no work. The most tender cut there is.
Rump
The hip. Big beef flavour for the price, and a favourite on the grill.
Plate
Below the ribs. Loose grained, intensely flavoured and quick to cook.
Flank
The belly behind the plate. Lean, long grained steaks made for a marinade and a hot grill.
Round
The hind leg. Lean, hard working muscles such as topside and silverside, used for roasts and corned beef.
Shank
The hind leg from below the round to the knee. Very lean and tough, so it is slow cooked or minced rather than served as a steak.
What is scotch fillet?
A scotch fillet is cut from the rib section, from the muscle butchers call the cube roll. It is sold boneless, and it is the same steak Americans call a ribeye.
What sets it apart is marbling: fine threads of fat running through the meat rather than sitting around the outside. As it cooks, that fat melts into the muscle, which is why a scotch fillet stays juicy even when it is cooked a little past where you meant.
Look at a cross section and you will usually see two parts: the round eye in the centre, and a curved outer muscle called the rib cap, or spinalis. The cap is the most prized mouthful on the whole steak.
What part of a cow is scotch fillet?
Scotch fillet comes from the rib section of the cow, in the upper middle of the back, sitting between the chuck (shoulder) at the front and the striploin behind it.
Location and anatomy
It is cut from the ribs numbered roughly five to twelve, sitting along the top of the rib cage just below the backbone.
The eye of the rib is the large, round centre muscle that makes up most of the steak. The rib cap (spinalis) is the curved, heavily marbled outer muscle wrapped around the eye, often called the best bite on the animal.
How to cook it
High heat, a short time, and a proper rest. Take it out of the fridge half an hour before cooking, season well with salt, and put it onto a very hot grill or pan. Turn it once or twice, render the fat on the edge, then rest it for about as long as it cooked.
Because of the marbling, medium rare to medium suits it best. Too rare and the fat has not had a chance to melt; well done and you lose what you paid for. For a thick steak of four centimetres or more, cook it gently first and sear it hard at the end.
Scotch fillet or eye fillet?
They are opposites. The eye fillet is the most tender cut but lean and mild. The scotch fillet gives up a little tenderness in return for far more flavour. If you are choosing one steak to love, it is usually this one.
Also from the rib: Rib eye on the bone, Tomahawk, Beef back ribs.
Where to order scotch fillet
Sydney has plenty of places to order a good steak, and our pick of the best steak restaurants in Sydney is a good place to start.
Our venues serving scotch fillet are Elements Bar and Grill in Walsh Bay and Pyrmont (MB7 wagyu scotch fillet) and Elements Brasserie in Belmore (scotch fillet).
Cuts to compare with scotch fillet
Frequently asked
Is scotch fillet the same as ribeye?
Yes. Scotch fillet is the Australian name for the boneless steak Americans call ribeye. Both are cut from the rib section.
Why is scotch fillet so juicy?
Marbling. The fat runs through the meat rather than around it, so it melts into the muscle as it cooks.
What is the best doneness for scotch fillet?
Medium rare to medium. That gives the marbling time to render without drying the steak out.
Is wagyu scotch fillet worth the extra?
It depends on appetite. A highly marbled wagyu scotch fillet is so rich that a smaller portion is plenty, while an Angus scotch fillet is leaner and suits a bigger, beefier steak.
