A5 Wagyu..and from Costco?

I’ve noticed a few premium vendors where you can order A5 wagyu online, if you have extra arms and legs to spare. I was surprised to learn recently that Costco now has a partnership to offer this too. I’m curious about anyone’s experience with this product from Costco (or other US vendors). How did you prepare this?

Are you familiar at all with searing tuna? It is similar to that. You need to eat it rare. If you don’t like rare steak I personally would not invest in wagyu

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I had Wagyu beef ranging from fully rare (sashimi like) to sear to boiled (shabu shabu). It kind of depends on the cut. Looking at the Costa selection here, most all looked to be for grill/pan fried.

https://www.costco.com/beef.html?brand=authentic-wagyu&refine=ads_fbrand_ntk_cs%3A%22Authentic%2BWagyu%22|

I think the important thing is to keep it as simply seasoned as possible. I probably won’t want the seasoning starts to overwhelm the intrinsic flavor from the beef itself. Just try to be light-handed on the seasoning. Have fun.

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I’ve posted this elsewhere, but here goes again.

In Japan top grade Wagyu beef is sliced extremely thinly and served in dishes like Sukiyaki or Shabu Shabu. A typical portion is maybe a 100 grams or 4oz. Usually it is cooked briefly in broth like a fondue, then dipped in a beaten egg, soy sauce or ponzu mixture, and eaten over rice.

The other way that it is served is on the Teppan, or flat top, as part of a Teppanyaki menu. In this case it is still sliced thinly, no more than a cm or so, and cooked quickly on an extremely hot iron plate.

It is then allowed to rest, and sliced into hashi friendly pieces before serving. It is eaten again dipped in a really good Japanese soy sauce.

The Teppan restaurant most familiar to Americans is Benihana.

To replicate at home you should slice the beef into 1 cm thick pieces and bring to room temperature. Season with only a little sea salt. Use an extremely hot carbon steel or cast iron pan and cook for 90 seconds a side. Let it rest 5-10 minutes, slice thinly and enjoy with a good soy sauce (I like Yamasa) for dipping.

It will be pretty rare and that’s the point. You want to taste all the delicious fat, which has an unctious feel on the tongue and significant Umami flavor.

Cutting it thicker and trying to grill it like an American corn fed ribeye would be a waste. And you probably would loose the delicate flavor of the fat in all the char and smoke.

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Are you going to order this online?

Also please take some pictures and if it says it, can you let me know what ranch it came from? They may list it.

Costco does not include the farm information.

https://www.costco.com/Authentic-Japanese-Wagyu-Filet-Mignons%2C-A-5-Grade%2C-8-count%2C-4-oz-Steaks.product.100327598.html

Here is what it says:

Features:
4 oz
8 count
100% Fullblood Wagyu from Japan
Authentic Japanese Wagyu Beef
Product is flash frozen before shipping

$215 a lb.
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Authentic Japanese Wagyu Filet Mignons, A-5 Grade, 8-count, 4 oz Steaks
★★★★★
★★★★★ 4.2 out of 5 stars. Read reviews.
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Item # 1127180
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Your Price429.99$
Price Per POUND: $215.00
Shipping & Handling Included*

Features:
4 oz
8 count
100% Fullblood Wagyu from Japan
Authentic Japanese Wagyu Beef
Product is flash frozen before shipping
Qty
1
The estimated delivery time will be approximately 2 - 3 business days from the time of order.

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Product Details

Due to the perishable nature of this product orders do not ship over the weekend. Orders will only ship Monday through Wednesday (orders placed after 11:00 am PST on Wednesday will ship following the Monday) for Wednesday through Friday Delivery.

Cut from the heart of the tenderloin, Authentic Wagyu Filet Mignons are outstandingly rich, yet mellow, where succulent taste and an abundant amount of marbling are found. Each bite of our Authentic Wagyu Filet Mignons will provide a complex beef flavor that you will remember long after you have cleaned your plate. Each bite you will experience an unbelievably tender, intense flavor and mellifluous, “melt-in-your-mouth” texture.

If you have never tasted A5 Fullblood Authentic Wagyu, the experience can be next to impossible to describe. The one description beef connoisseurs the world over can agree upon is your opinion as to what a steak should taste like, will be changed forever. With phrases such as, “melts in your mouth”, “beef perfected” and “unlike any other steak I have ever tasted before”.

A5 Fullblood Wagyu beef is truly in a league of its own. The legendary, sometimes mythical process of Authentic Wagyu cattle raising in Japan has been handed down through the generations, all in an effort to protect their national treasure. Wagyu (WA meaning Japanese and GYU meaning cow) Beef. Intensely satisfying in small portions, one must taste this beef to really speak to the mouthwatering, buttery flavor with extreme tenderness and smooth texture.

The A5 Wagyu steaks secured for our Costco members are the most rare and single most prized beef steaks found globally. In 2016, only 200 metric tons are imported duty free into the United States. With a much smaller percentage of that total weight graded in Japan as A5 quality. The Japanese beef grading scale is quite different than the USDA scale of Select, Choice and Prime. In Japan, there are 12 different categories of beef quality. With the “A5” selection being the best of the very best.

Authentic Wagyu in partnership with Costco, has secured this exquisitely distinct beef utilizing their direct relationships with the farmers of Japan, their genetics and mythical process of cattle raising that has been passed down from multiple generations. When you take your first bite of Authentic Wagyu Filet Mignon you will encounter something like never before.

Authentic Wagyu has established relationships with all 10 USDA approved processing facilities in Japan. Giving them the advantage of hand selecting the “very best” cuts and grades for our Costco members.

Whether it is to be enjoyed with your family, or a party with friends and colleagues, one thing is for certain, everyone will be talking about the “one of a kind” steak you just prepared them and dreaming of when they will be able to experience it again.

Features:
Authentic Japanese Wagyu Beef
100% Fullblood Wagyu from Japan
Procured by Authentic Wagyu, LLC
Marbling far beyond USDA Prime Grade
Highest Japanese Grade
Filet Mignons, 2 lbs.
Package Form: Individually Vacuum Sealed
Product is flash frozen before shipping to lock in flavor and will arrive frozen or partially thawed
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I’ve never been a big fan of the filet mignon cut, but the strip steak sounds interesting. I was just originally told about the 12 and 13lb options, which of course would make it much harder to justify splurging on without knowing much of the product.

I’m not a huge beef eater myself, but I’m curious and I do enjoy an occasional steak. There are a few legit looking purveyors online but the price is closer to $300/lb - and they also have smaller units for order so it’s a toss up as to which might be better value as a first try. I might give this a shot over the long weekend from either Costco or another vendor, and if I get something, I’ll be sure to post some pictures here.

Strips are A4.

https://m.costco.com/A4-Wagyu-Center-Cut-New-York-Strip-Steaks%2C-12-oz%2C-4-count.product.100344490.html

I think you are going into this with the same misconception that I had, which is you can eat this as a “steak”. (see my post on April 12th in the copied thread). Let me start with I am a steak guy, I don’t occasionally enjoy a steak, I live, breath and love steaks. Prime, dry aged beef runs through my veins and I will tell you that the Wagyu / Kobe was very un-enjoyable. As my review clearly says too much of a good thing isn’t always a good thing.

As others have mentioned if cut thin and enjoyed in limited quantity perhaps it’s more enjoyable, but having it as a steak as I did it was completely overwhelming, too rich and not enjoyable.

You have been warned!!! (I really don’t care to try it again any time soon, it turned me off)

Kobe 101. Amount of meat on plate shall never exceed the sum total of salt/pepper/garlic/wasabi. :slight_smile:

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Listen to this man.

I’d honestly recommend not buying this beef unless you are a total steak freak and/or have a lot of money. As Jr mentioned, you can easily ruin it and the flavor may not be for you. I personally would bathe in it but it isn’t for everyone.

Try buying good quality yellowfin. Once you can cook that to your liking it will be similar to real wagyu. And yes, don’t buy filet mignon lol.

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There are A5 strips too, but for a good $100 more gulp. Well, I sucked it up and put in an order! Should come in 2-3 days, so pictures are coming soon…

And I appreciate the word of caution from the others. I think it’s actually even better that this shouldn’t be enjoyed as a whole steak, since I’m not a “crave a giant steak” type of gal. It’s so fatty, that I imagine a small portion will be enough to sate my curiosity. I I really enjoy the experience of trying something different and new, especially something that is supposedly a real luxury (btw, I have an acquaintance who did buy an A5 and enjoyed it as a steak and loved every bite of it). I’ve had small portions of wagyu in Japan, though nothing of this quality. So after this Memorial day holiday, I can tell you the scoop.

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I would order a bottle of this too, if you can’t find it at your local Asian food center:

Or you can look for an an artisinal Japanese soy like kishibori.

A steak like that deserves the best.

Hmm…I don’t think I’ve ever seen this. I actually bought a Japanese aged soy sauce when I was in Hong Kong. This might be the occasion to break that open and give it a try too. Thanks for the recommendation.

Congratulation. I think if you go by the rule of “less is more”, then you will be fine. Less seasoning, and less cooking, smaller portion, then you will enjoy your steak for a long time.

If ever there was time to open that bottle, this is it. Send photos if you have them please.

I’m a huge Yamasa fan, it’s my palate. Did business with them in my younger days and got hooked.

Beware, Chinese soy is just not the same.

You could also make ponzu as a dipping sauce.

From Wikipedia:

“Ponzu is made by simmering mirin, rice vinegar, katsuobushi flakes (from tuna), and seaweed (kombu) over medium heat. The liquid is then cooled, strained to remove the katsuobushi flakes, and finally the juice of one or more of the following citrus fruits is added: yuzu, sudachi, daidai, kabosu, or lemon.”

The ponzu is usually combined with a good soy sauce before dipping.

I use Meyer Lemons if I can find them, or Sour (Seville) Oranges. If neither is available you can use regular lemon with tangerine juice added.

Sorry for not being able to post last weekend - got a little crazy! So here’s my take on these Costco steaks after my still limited experience with them. I’ve had one that I portioned out and cooked over 3 days. I bought the A5 Wagyu NY Strip pack that comes with 4-12 oz steaks. Each steak is about 1/2 an inch thick.

Comes in a styrofoam box holding a cardboard box with 2 freeze packs. I think they can use more freeze packs myself. It was just sheer (bad) luck on my part that the day it was due to arrive, it was a 90+ degree day. And the UPS guy didn’t get to my house until 8pm. That thing was sitting in that truck for 12 hrs before it got to me. The steaks were fine, but 1 was almost thawed, and a 2nd was starting to thaw. The other two closest to the packs were fine.

The photos are from night 1 - seared with just a little salt and pepper on a cast iron pan. These things are FATTY, so they brown up really well and quickly. Definitely took a few tries to get the timing right without overcooking them. I ended up with them being medium most of the time. Absolutely did not like them with a dip in the aged soy sauce - I found it overwhelmed the steak flavor. Ended up finishing them with no dipping. I did experiment with salt first, or using a finishing salt at the end (sel gris and this fancy schmancy black salt I had). Meh…didn’t really find a huge difference. Definitely don’t need any fancy salt with this.

Definitely was done after the 3-4 oz servings - which was about 3 srips each time. It’s good, but you have to really love that steak fat taste, and while I enjoy it on occasion, I agree that it’s way too rich to have too often or even more than that in a sitting. The steak though was by far the most melt in your mouth experience I’ve had with steak, and that was fantastic.

[Sorry if these pictures are too large]

The wonky cut on the strips is because of a fatty vein that was already causing a natural separation in that area.

With some learning, I will say I had “prettier” strips and also fairly well cooked (read: cooked to my liking) steaks strips the 2nd and 3rd time, but I was too lazy for pictures by then. :stuck_out_tongue: I don’t think a cast iron is needed, and may be a bit heavy handed for such a thin cut. I used a non-stick pan for the heck of it on the 3rd night with no additional oil (I was using a bit in the cast iron) and it browned just as nicely with all the fat in the steak. It also ended up making just that hair less fatty tasting which I preferred.

I am glad I ordered this and enjoyed figuring out how to cook and enjoy this the best way. Now what to do with the other 4 steaks! :grin: I’m sure I’ll dig them out after a few weeks’ break.

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I’m glad you liked it! Costco puts out good stuff. Their return policy is top notch so they have too bring their A game.

I enjoyed the pics and thanks for sharing. I need to get back to Japan :smile:

I also agree these fatty steaks don’t need anything but some salt. Those are lovely cuts too! I don’t know what you paid but put it this way, one of those steaks in a Tokyo could cost you over 500 bucks at a good steakhouse.

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So would you order again ?