Kobe Beef

I’m sure that many of you have seen Kobe beef or Wagyu beef either in the supermarket or on menu’s and have wondered, “What is it exactly?” “What is the difference?” Well, I thought I would take this time to explain to you what it is and why it may be a little bit more expensive than regular cuts of beef.

Wagyu is a breed of cattle that is raised to produce beef that is high in unsaturated fat as well as having great marbling, which creates a fantastic flavor. Kobe beef refers to beef that comes from the black Tajima-ushi breed of Wagyu cattle. These cuts of beef are raised to have greater flavor, tenderness and marbling than regular cuts of beef. In order to be classified as Kobe beef, there are certain conditions that need to be met. First of all, the cattle must be born, fed and raised in the Hyogo Prefecture of Japan of which Kobe is the capital. The bull must be castrated to purify the beef, slaughtered in Kobe, meet a certain marbling ratio, have a certain meat quality score and come from an animal whose gross weight of beef is 470kg or less.

There are also rumors out there that the Kobe cattle are fed beer and massaged with sake. Some say they are true, some say no way. Well, when Wagyu cattle were introduced to Japan, they were mainly used on farms to help cultivate rice. Because of the rugged terrain and isolated areas, it is said that adding beer and sake to feed was a technique used in order to aid in digestion, and induce hunger. The massaging came about because of the small farms in Japan the animals did not have enough room to sufficiently use there muscles so farm workers would massage them in order to prevent muscle cramping. This seems to be a tradition that stuck and happened to produce great quality beef.

Now with the popularity of Kobe beef in the US, cattle ranchers have taken domestically raised wagyu cattle and crossbred them with Angus cattle to create “Kobe Style” beef which is less expensive and allows the US to meet the demand the public has for Kobe beef. Although it is not Kobe, it is raised similarly and US producers swear that the only difference between real Kobe and Kobe style is purely cosmetic. That’s up to you to decide.

I hope that this has given you a little insight as to the background and traditions of Kobe beef. Next time you see it on a menu or in the market, there is no need to be intimidated, you know what it’s all about. Buen Provecho!