Why, we wondered as we enjoyed another intoxicating steak, does the meat at Cas Costas taste so tender and full of flavour? The secret is in the beef: from Galicia, the much-prized Rubia Gallega breed supplies Cas Costas with its fine meat. We’re talking about a meat that undergoes a long maturation process and comes from a breed with a peculiarity: the cows have to be over eight years old and can be up to 17 years old. The animals are left to graze for longer than cows raised specifically for steakhouses and butchers. During this time, the beef gains a distinct deep flavour as the marbling matures (intramuscular fat develops). This means that when it is grilled the fat renders out, the marbled beef remains tender and, most importantly, it takes on a flavour that meat from younger cows can’t match.
