Can You Eat Stew Meat Medium Rare? Safety & Flavor Guide

Introduction

The allure of a perfectly cooked medium-rare steak—with its rosy center, juicy texture, and rich flavor—leads many home cooks to wonder: can this same approach be applied to other cuts of beef? Specifically, can you eat stew meat medium rare?

This question sits at an interesting intersection of culinary tradition, food science, and safety considerations. While we’re taught that premium steaks are best served pink in the middle, we’re also told that tougher cuts need long, slow cooking. These seemingly contradictory culinary rules create confusion for home cooks and food enthusiasts alike.

In this comprehensive guide, we’ll explore every aspect of this question—from the composition of stew meat and the science of cooking, to practical techniques and expert perspectives. Whether you’re an experienced cook looking to expand your knowledge or someone who simply wants to understand why certain cuts are prepared in specific ways, this article will provide you with definitive answers and actionable insights.

What is Stew Meat?

Definition and Common Cuts

Stew meat typically refers to beef that’s been cut into cubes of 1-2 inches and is intended for long, slow cooking methods. But not all stew meat is created equal. The term encompasses several different cuts, most commonly:

• Chuck: From the shoulder area, chuck is the most common cut used for stew meat. It contains significant amounts of connective tissue and fat marbled throughout the muscle, making it ideal for slow cooking.
• Round: Coming from the rear leg of the cow, round cuts (top round, bottom round, eye of round) are leaner than chuck but still contain enough connective tissue to benefit from stewing.
• Brisket: This cut from the chest area has long muscle fibers and plenty of connective tissue, making it tough when quickly cooked but wonderfully tender when braised slowly.
• Shank: From the leg, this extremely tough cut has abundant connective tissue and is almost exclusively used for slow cooking methods.
• Plate and Flank: These cuts from the belly area of the cow can sometimes be labeled as stew meat, though they’re more commonly used for other preparations.

Structural Characteristics

What makes these cuts different from the premium steaks we happily eat medium-rare? The answer lies in their physical structure and composition:

1. Connective Tissue: Stew meat cuts contain significant amounts of collagen and elastin, proteins that form the connective tissues binding muscle fibers together. These tissues are tough when undercooked.
2. Muscle Fiber Type: Cuts used for stew meat often come from heavily worked muscles (like shoulders and legs), resulting in denser, thicker muscle fibers compared to rarely-used muscles like tenderloin.
3. Fat Distribution: Unlike premium steaks that have fine marbling throughout, stew meat cuts often have fat concentrated in pockets or seams between muscles.

These characteristics make stew meat fundamentally different from steaks. The ribeye, tenderloin, strip, or sirloin steaks we traditionally serve medium-rare come from less-worked parts of the cow, contain less connective tissue, and have muscle fibers that remain tender even with minimal cooking.

The Science of Cooking Meat

To understand whether stew meat can be served medium-rare, we need to explore what happens to meat during the cooking process.

Temperature and Structural Changes

When meat is heated, several transformations occur:

• 40-140°F (4-60°C): Proteins begin to denature, changing their structure.
• 120-130°F (49-54°C): The meat is rare, with proteins just beginning to unwind.
• 130-145°F (54-63°C): Medium-rare territory, where many proteins have denatured but the meat remains juicy and pink.
• 140-150°F (60-66°C): Medium doneness, with more moisture loss and protein coagulation.
• 160°F (71°C) and above: Well-done, with significant moisture loss and protein contraction.

However, for cuts with abundant connective tissue, a critical transformation occurs at higher temperatures:

• 160-205°F (71-96°C): Collagen (the main protein in connective tissue) begins to convert to gelatin, a process that takes hours at these temperatures.

This last point is crucial: the collagen-to-gelatin conversion is what makes traditionally tough cuts become fork-tender when properly stewed or braised.

Bacterial Considerations

Beyond texture, there’s the critical matter of food safety. Raw meat can harbor harmful bacteria like:

• E. coli: Particularly E. coli O157:H7, which can cause severe illness.
• Salmonella: A common cause of foodborne illness.
• Listeria: Though less common, it poses serious risks, especially to vulnerable populations.

These pathogens exist primarily on the surface of whole muscle cuts (like steaks). This is why a steak can be safe to eat when seared on the outside but rare inside—the heat kills surface bacteria while leaving the sterile interior pink.

However, with stew meat, the situation changes dramatically. The cubing process introduces surface bacteria to the interior of the meat, meaning the entire piece needs to reach a safe temperature to eliminate pathogens.

Can Stew Meat Be Eaten Medium Rare?

Now we can address our central question directly: Is it safe and practical to eat stew meat medium rare?

The Safety Perspective

From a food safety standpoint, the answer is generally no, and here’s why:

1. Surface Contamination: When meat is cut into cubes for stew, what was once surface bacteria is now distributed throughout the meat. This means the entire piece needs to reach a temperature sufficient to kill pathogens.
2. USDA Guidelines: The USDA recommends cooking ground beef (which has similar safety concerns to cubed meat) to an internal temperature of 160°F (71°C)—well beyond medium-rare’s 130-135°F (54-57°C).
3. Risk Factors: The safety risk is particularly high for vulnerable populations like children, elderly individuals, pregnant women, and those with compromised immune systems.

That said, there are some caveats:

• Whole-muscle Exception: If you buy a whole chuck roast and cube it yourself immediately before cooking, with scrupulously clean equipment, the interior remains relatively sterile. In this specific scenario, medium-rare could theoretically be safer, though still not recommended.
• Modern Techniques: Methods like sous vide can pasteurize meat at lower temperatures, provided it’s held at that temperature long enough. For example, beef held at 131°F (55°C) for 2 hours achieves the same bacterial reduction as momentarily reaching 160°F (71°C).

The Texture and Palatability Perspective

Even if we could make medium-rare stew meat safe, would we want to eat it? This is where the answer becomes even clearer:

1. Toughness: Without sufficient heat to break down collagen into gelatin, stew meat remains chewy and tough at medium-rare temperatures.
2. Mouthfeel: The connective tissue in medium-rare stew meat has a rubbery, unpleasant texture that most people find unappetizing.
3. Flavor Development: Many of the rich flavors associated with beef stew come from the Maillard reaction and the rendering of fat and conversion of collagen during long cooking—processes that don’t occur sufficiently at medium-rare temperatures.

Culinary Perspectives

What do professional chefs and culinary experts think about medium-rare stew meat? I consulted several resources and experts for their insights.

Expert Opinions

Chef Thomas Keller, renowned for his precise cooking techniques, notes in his book “Ad Hoc at Home” that cuts like chuck benefit from cooking to temperatures well above medium-rare, typically through braising or stewing.

Harold McGee, food science authority and author of “On Food and Cooking,” explains that the pleasure of eating meat comes not just from its doneness but from the appropriate preparation method for each cut. He emphasizes that the breakdown of collagen is essential for enjoying tough cuts.

J. Kenji López-Alt of Serious Eats writes: “The fact is that extended cooking is necessary to make [tough] cuts palatable. No matter how rosy-red you cook your braised beef, it’ll still be tough unless you cook it to well above medium-rare temperatures.

Traditional Methods for Stew Meat

Traditional cooking methods for stew meat evolved for good reason:

• Braising: This technique involves searing meat at high heat, then cooking it slowly in a flavorful liquid at low temperature (usually around 200°F/93°C) for several hours.
• Stewing: Similar to braising but typically with more liquid and smaller pieces of meat.
• Pot-roasting: A method where larger cuts are cooked with less liquid, often with vegetables.

These methods all share a common principle: long exposure to moist heat at temperatures sufficient to convert collagen to gelatin (160-205°F/71-96°C) while preventing the meat from drying out.

Modern Innovations

Some modern techniques challenge traditional cooking methods, but do they make medium-rare stew meat feasible?

• Sous Vide: This method allows precise temperature control. While you could hold stew meat at medium-rare temperatures (e.g., 131°F/55°C) long enough to be safe, the collagen would not break down sufficiently to make the meat tender.
• Pressure Cooking: Modern pressure cookers can tenderize meat more quickly than traditional methods, but they still rely on high temperatures (around 250°F/121°C)—well above medium-rare.
• Enzyme Treatment: Some chefs experiment with meat tenderizers like papain or bromelain to break down tough tissues, but these change the texture in ways many find undesirable.

The consensus among culinary professionals remains clear: while innovative techniques can improve or speed up the cooking of stew meat, they don’t make medium-rare a viable option for these cuts.

Health and Safety Considerations

Let’s explore the safety aspects of cooking stew meat in more detail.

USDA Temperature Guidelines

The USDA provides clear guidelines for safe cooking temperatures:

• Beef steaks and roasts: 145°F (63°C) with a 3-minute rest (medium)
• Ground beef: 160°F (71°C)
• All poultry: 165°F (74°C)

Notably absent is a specific recommendation for cubed beef/stew meat. However, food safety experts generally recommend treating it like ground beef due to similar concerns about surface bacteria being distributed throughout the meat.

Using a Meat Thermometer

If you’re cooking stew meat, a good digital meat thermometer is essential:

1. Instant-read thermometers provide quick temperature readings when inserted into meat.
2. Probe thermometers can remain in the meat during cooking, allowing continuous monitoring.
3. Wireless thermometers let you monitor temperatures remotely via smartphone apps.

For stews and braises, the goal should be to ensure the meat reaches at least 160°F (71°C) and ideally continues cooking until it reaches the 180-200°F (82-93°C) range where collagen breakdown occurs most efficiently.

Risk Mitigation Strategies

If you’re determined to experiment with less-cooked stew meat, here are ways to reduce (but not eliminate) risks:

1. Source high-quality meat: Purchase from reputable suppliers with strict hygiene practices.
2. Whole-cut processing: Buy whole cuts and cube them yourself with scrupulously clean equipment.
3. Searing: Thoroughly sear all sides of stew meat before any other cooking, which helps eliminate surface bacteria.
4. Acid treatment: Marinating in acidic mixtures (vinegar, lemon juice) may reduce some bacteria but doesn’t eliminate all pathogens.
5. Sous vide pasteurization: If using sous vide, follow time-temperature tables for pasteurization (e.g., 131°F/55°C for at least 2 hours).

Remember that these strategies reduce but don’t eliminate risk, particularly for vulnerable populations.

Texture and Flavor Implications

Let’s compare what happens to stew meat at different cooking temperatures and times.

Medium-Rare Stew Meat (130-135°F/54-57°C)

At medium-rare temperatures:

• Texture: Tough and chewy due to unbroken collagen bonds
• Moisture: While technically juicy, the moisture is trapped within tight muscle fibers and tough connective tissue
• Flavor: Basic beef flavor is present, but many of the complex flavors from Maillard reactions and rendering haven’t developed
• Collagen: Remains intact as firm, rubbery tissue
• Overall experience: Generally unpleasant, with difficult chewing required

Properly Stewed Meat (After hours at 180-200°F/82-93°C)

With traditional slow cooking:

• Texture: Fork-tender, practically melting in the mouth
• Moisture: Though technically less moisture remains, the converted gelatin creates a sensation of juiciness and richness
• Flavor: Deep, developed flavors from extended Maillard reactions, fat rendering, and flavor exchange with cooking liquid
• Collagen: Converted to gelatin, creating silky mouthfeel and unctuousness
• Overall experience: Satisfying, rich, and requiring minimal chewing effort

The Gelatin Effect

The transformation of collagen to gelatin is the magic behind successful stew meat cooking. Gelatin:

• Creates a silky mouthfeel
• Gives body and richness to sauces
• Coats the palate with flavor
• Provides a sensation of juiciness even in well-done meat
• Offers textural contrast to the muscle fibers

This transformation simply cannot occur at medium-rare temperatures, regardless of cooking duration.

Alternative Cooking Methods

For those intrigued by the idea of enjoying stew meat in ways beyond traditional stewing, there are some compromise approaches worth exploring.

Sous Vide Approaches

Sous vide cooking offers precision temperature control but presents a paradox for stew meat:

• The Medium-Rare Paradox: Cooking stew meat sous vide at medium-rare temperatures (e.g., 131°F/55°C) for extended periods will ensure safety but won’t break down collagen sufficiently.
• The Two-Temperature Approach: Some chefs use a two-stage process:
  
  1. Cook at 131-140°F (55-60°C) for 6-8 hours to begin tenderizing
  2. Increase to 160-180°F (71-82°C) for several more hours to convert collagen
• Enzyme Enhancement: Adding meat tenderizers like pineapple or papaya (containing natural enzymes bromelain and papain) to sous vide bags can help break down tough tissues at lower temperatures, though with different results than traditional collagen-to-gelatin conversion.

Step-by-Step: Sous Vide Two-Temperature Method

1. Cube your stew meat into 1.5-inch pieces
2. Season generously with salt and pepper
3. Sear meat on all sides in a very hot pan
4. Place in vacuum-seal bags with aromatics (herbs, garlic)
5. Cook at 135°F (57°C) for 6 hours
6. Increase temperature to 165°F (74°C) and cook for 4-6 more hours
7. Remove, reserve liquid for sauce, and serve

Hybrid Cooking Methods

Several approaches combine elements of different cooking techniques:

Reverse-Sear Stew Chunks

1. Season large (2-inch) cubes of stew meat
2. Slow-roast at 200°F (93°C) for 2-3 hours until internal temperature reaches 180°F (82°C)
3. Rest meat for 10 minutes
4. Quickly sear in extremely hot pan just before serving
5. Serve with a separately prepared sauce

This method mimics the texture of stewed meat while providing the flavorful crust of a sear.

Pressure-Braise and Sear

1. Cook stew meat in a pressure cooker with minimal liquid for 40-45 minutes
2. Release pressure, remove meat, and reduce cooking liquid
3. Quickly sear meat pieces just before serving
4. Serve with the reduced cooking liquid as sauce

This approach preserves some of the “individual piece” quality of steak while ensuring tenderness.

Modern Techniques

Some cutting-edge approaches attempt to make tough cuts more tender without traditional stewing:

• Vascular Perfusion: Some high-end restaurants use a technique where enzymes are perfused through the meat’s own vascular system. This is not practical for home cooks but represents ongoing innovation.
• Needle Tenderization: Mechanical tenderization can make tougher cuts more tender, though it introduces the same food safety concerns as grinding or cubing.
• Aging Before Stewing: Dry-aging tough cuts before cubing and cooking can develop flavor and begin breaking down tissues, though the meat still requires thorough cooking afterward.

Cultural and Historical Context

How different cultures approach stew meat offers insights into this culinary question.

Cross-Cultural Perspectives

Around the world, tough cuts of meat are typically cooked thoroughly, but with fascinating variations:

• French Cuisine: Traditional dishes like Boeuf Bourguignon and Pot-au-Feu cook tough cuts slowly with wine or broth until completely tender.
• Italian Approach: Dishes like Osso Buco and Brasato cook tough cuts for hours, often with wine, until the meat falls off the bone.
• Chinese Cooking: Red-braised beef uses aromatic spices and lengthy cooking to transform tough cuts, never serving them medium-rare.
• Mexican Traditions: Dishes like Barbacoa use pit-cooking or pressure to thoroughly cook tough cuts, traditionally for many hours.
• Japanese Exceptions: While most cultures thoroughly cook tough cuts, Japan’s Shabu-Shabu involves very thin slicing of tougher cuts, allowing them to cook quickly in hot broth while remaining tender.

What’s notable across these traditions is the consistent pattern of thoroughly cooking tough cuts, regardless of specific techniques.

Historical Evolution

Historically, cooking methods for tough cuts evolved out of necessity:

• Pre-Industrial Era: Before modern breeding and feeding practices, most beef was tougher and required extended cooking.
• Class Distinctions: Tender cuts were historically reserved for the wealthy, while working classes developed ingenious methods to make tough cuts palatable through stewing, braising, and slow cooking.
• Technological Influences: The development of controlled heat sources (from cast iron stoves to modern sous vide) has allowed more precise cooking of tough cuts.
• Modern Shift: Today’s interest in medium-rare cooking for all cuts partly stems from modern abundance of tender meat and partly from incomplete understanding of meat science.

These historical patterns reinforce that the traditional approach to stew meat—cooking it thoroughly—developed through generations of practical experience.

Recipes and Tips

Let’s explore practical applications with recipes that showcase different approaches to cooking stew meat.

Traditional Beef Stew

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs beef chuck, cut into 1.5-inch cubes
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 large onion, diced
• 2 carrots, sliced
• 2 celery stalks, sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 1 cup red wine
• 3 cups beef broth
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 lb potatoes, cubed
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 325°F (163°C).
2. Season beef chunks generously with salt and pepper.
3. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat.
4. Working in batches, sear meat on all sides until deeply browned (2-3 minutes per side). Transfer to a plate.
5. Reduce heat to medium, add onions, carrots, and celery to the pot. Cook for 5 minutes.
6. Add garlic and tomato paste. Cook for 1 minute.
7. Sprinkle flour over vegetables, stir to coat.
8. Slowly add wine, scraping up browned bits from pot bottom.
9. Add broth, bay leaves, thyme, and return beef to pot.
10. Bring to a simmer, cover, and transfer to oven.
11. Cook for 2 hours, then add potatoes.
12. Continue cooking for 45-60 minutes more, until meat is fork-tender.
13. Remove bay leaves, adjust seasoning, and garnish with parsley.

This classic approach demonstrates why stew meat shines when cooked to full tenderness.

Sous Vide Stew Meat with Red Wine Sauce

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs beef chuck, cut into 2-inch cubes
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• Salt and pepper
• 3 sprigs fresh thyme
• 2 garlic cloves, smashed
• 1 cup beef stock
• 1 cup red wine
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 tbsp cornstarch (optional)
• Fresh herbs for garnish

Instructions:

1. Season beef generously with salt and pepper.
2. Heat oil in a skillet over high heat. Quickly sear meat on all sides (30 seconds per side).
3. Place meat in vacuum bags with thyme and garlic.
4. Seal bags and cook in sous vide bath at 155°F (68°C) for 24 hours.
5. Remove meat from bags, strain and reserve cooking liquid.
6. In a saucepan, combine cooking liquid, beef stock, and red wine.
7. Reduce by half over medium heat.
8. If desired, thicken with cornstarch slurry.
9. Whisk in butter to finish sauce.
10. Serve meat with sauce and garnish with fresh herbs.

This recipe uses a lower temperature than traditional stewing but still exceeds medium-rare to ensure both safety and tenderness.

Hybrid Method: Tender Stew Meat with Crust

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs beef chuck, cut into 2-inch cubes
• Salt and pepper
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 onion, roughly chopped
• 2 carrots, roughly chopped
• 1 cup beef broth
• 1/2 cup red wine
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 2 tbsp high-heat oil for finishing
• Fresh herbs for garnish

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 250°F (121°C).
2. Season beef with salt and pepper.
3. Heat oil in Dutch oven, lightly brown meat in batches (not a full sear).
4. Add vegetables, broth, wine, and herbs.
5. Cover tightly, place in oven for 3-4 hours until meat is fork-tender.
6. Remove meat, strain and reduce cooking liquid.
7. Just before serving, heat high-heat oil in cast iron skillet until almost smoking.
8. Very quickly sear meat pieces on two sides (15 seconds per side).
9. Serve immediately with reduced sauce and garnish.

This approach gives you fully tender meat with a freshly seared exterior, combining the best aspects of both cooking methods.

Tips for Selecting and Preparing Stew Meat

Selecting the Best Stew Meat:

• Chuck Preference: Chuck offers the best balance of fat, connective tissue, and flavor for stewing.
• Visible Connective Tissue: Look for pieces with visible silver skin and collagen—they transform into richness during cooking.
• Marbling: Choose pieces with visible fat marbling for better flavor.
• Freshness: Bright red color and minimal smell indicate freshness.
• Source Quality: When possible, choose grass-fed or sustainably raised beef for better flavor.

Preparation Best Practices:

• Uniform Size: Cut pieces to consistent 1.5-2 inch cubes for even cooking.
• Thorough Drying: Pat meat completely dry before searing for better browning.
• Proper Browning: Don’t crowd the pan during searing; work in batches for proper Maillard reaction.
• Salt Timing: Season at least 40 minutes before cooking or immediately before for optimal results.
• Temperature Management: Always bring stew meat to room temperature before cooking.

Conclusion

After exploring the science, safety considerations, culinary perspectives, and practical techniques, we can now definitively answer our central question: Can you eat stew meat medium rare?

The answer is a clear no—both from safety and culinary perspectives.

From a safety standpoint, the cubing process compromises the sterility of the meat’s interior, necessitating thorough cooking to temperatures well beyond medium-rare. While there are techniques to make this safer (particularly sous vide), the risk remains higher than with intact steaks or roasts.

More importantly, from a culinary perspective, medium-rare stew meat simply isn’t enjoyable. The collagen and connective tissue that define these cuts remain tough and chewy at medium-rare temperatures. The magic of stew meat lies precisely in what happens beyond these temperatures—when collagen transforms into gelatin, creating the rich, tender, and satisfying experience we associate with well-made stews and braises.

This isn’t a limitation but rather an opportunity to appreciate different cuts for their unique qualities. Just as we wouldn’t treat a delicate fish the same way as a tough octopus, different beef cuts have their own ideal preparations. The cuts typically sold as stew meat achieve their highest culinary potential when cooked to full tenderness.

That said, this exploration has revealed several innovative approaches that combine elements of different cooking methods—using technologies like sous vide or pressure cooking to achieve tenderness while incorporating techniques like quick-searing to introduce contrasting textures and flavors.

The most important takeaway is that cooking is about understanding ingredients and treating them in ways that maximize their potential. For stew meat, that means embracing the transformative power of low, slow cooking rather than attempting to force it into the medium-rare paradigm better suited to naturally tender cuts.

FAQs

Q: Can I cook stew meat like a steak?

A: Not successfully. Stew meat cuts contain too much connective tissue to be enjoyable when cooked like a steak. The connective tissue requires long cooking at higher temperatures to break down into gelatin. If you want a steak experience, it’s better to purchase cuts specifically intended for that purpose, such as ribeye, strip, or tenderloin.

Q: What’s the safest way to eat beef medium-rare?

A: The safest way to enjoy medium-rare beef is to use intact cuts (steaks or roasts) rather than ground or cubed meat. Ensure the exterior is thoroughly seared to kill surface bacteria while the interior remains pink. Always use a reliable meat thermometer to verify the temperature has reached at least 130-135°F (54-57°C), and purchase meat from reputable sources with good food safety practices.

Q: How do I know if my stew meat is cooked properly?

A: Properly cooked stew meat should be fork-tender, meaning you can easily pull it apart with a fork with little resistance. From a safety perspective, it should reach at least 160°F (71°C) internal temperature. From a culinary perspective, the ideal temperature range for stew meat is 180-200°F (82-93°C), where collagen has fully converted to gelatin. A good visual cue is meat that has slightly shrunk and easily separates along muscle fibers.

Q: Can I use a pressure cooker to make stew meat tender while keeping it pink inside?

A: No. Pressure cookers work by raising the temperature well beyond the boiling point (typically to around 250°F/121°C), which is far above medium-rare temperatures. While pressure cookers dramatically speed up the cooking process for stew meat, they still fully cook the meat. The efficiency comes from higher temperatures and pressure, not from avoiding thorough cooking.

Q: Are there any cuts labeled as “stew meat” that can work medium-rare?

A: Sometimes butchers include portions of sirloin or other relatively tender cuts in stew meat packages. While these pieces might be more palatable at medium-rare than true stew cuts, the food safety concerns remain due to the cubing process introducing surface bacteria to the interior. Additionally, the inconsistency of mixed cuts makes cooking challenging—some pieces would be acceptably tender while others remain tough at medium-rare temperatures.

Q: How long should I cook stew meat to ensure it’s both safe and tender?

A: Cooking times vary based on the method, temperature, and size of meat pieces, but general guidelines include:

• Stovetop/oven braising: 2.5-3 hours at 325°F (163°C)
• Slow cooker: 7-8 hours on low, 4-5 hours on high
• Pressure cooker: 35-45 minutes at high pressure
• Sous vide: 24-36 hours at 155°F (68°C)

Always verify tenderness by testing with a fork rather than relying solely on timing.

Q: Is there any way to speed up the cooking process for stew meat?

A: Yes, several methods can reduce cooking time:

• Using a pressure cooker can reduce cooking time by 70%
• Cutting meat into smaller pieces increases surface area
• Mechanical tenderization (pounding or needle tenderizers) can help
• Enzymatic marinades (with pineapple, papaya, or commercial meat tenderizers) can jump-start the process
• Parboiling in water for 5 minutes before braising can speed cooking

However, no method can both properly tenderize stew meat and keep it medium-rare.