Which Cut of Beef Makes the Best Biltong?
The cut of beef you choose has a bigger impact on your biltong than almost anything else. Here's what works, what doesn't, and why.
Most guides on making biltong spend pages on spice ratios and drying times. The cut of beef barely gets a mention. That’s the wrong priority. Choose the wrong cut and you’ll end up with something too tough, too fatty, or with a texture that never quite works — regardless of how well you season it.
What you’re looking for in a biltong cut
Biltong is sliced thick and dried slowly over several days. The ideal cut has:
- A consistent grain — so you can cut cleanly with it, and the finished biltong tears apart in satisfying strips
- Low connective tissue — sinew and gristle don’t break down during air-drying the way they do in slow cooking. They stay tough
- Moderate fat content — some fat is good for flavour, too much and the outer layer won’t dry properly
- A reasonable size — you want strips you can actually hang
The cuts that work
Silverside is the standard. It comes from the outer part of the hindquarter, has a clean consistent grain, minimal connective tissue, and dries evenly. It’s also widely available and reasonably priced. Most traditional South African biltong is made with silverside. There’s a reason for that.
Topside is a close second. Slightly leaner than silverside, with a similar grain structure. Works well if silverside isn’t available. Some people prefer it specifically because of the lower fat content.
Eye of round is the premium option. A very lean, very uniform muscle with almost no fat or connective tissue. It produces exceptionally clean, consistent biltong — but because it’s so lean, you lose some of the richness you get from a bit of natural fat. Worth trying once you’ve got the process dialled in.
The cuts that don’t work
Chuck and blade — too much connective tissue running through them. Fine for braising, wrong for biltong.
Rump — inconsistent grain and often too fatty in patches. You can make it work but you’ll be trimming a lot and the result is uneven.
Sirloin and fillet — expensive cuts that don’t benefit from the process. The premium qualities that make them good for a steak — tenderness, marbling — don’t translate to biltong in a meaningful way. Save your money.
Brisket — too fatty and the grain is too coarse. It won’t dry consistently.
Fat-on vs trimmed
Traditional biltong often has a strip of fat left on one side of the cut. Done well, this fat dries to a slightly chewy, intensely flavoured layer that a lot of people prefer to the lean meat itself.
The key word is “done well.” Fat needs airflow to dry properly. If your box isn’t maintaining good circulation, fat-on biltong is more likely to develop surface issues. For your first few batches, trimmed is lower risk. Once you understand how your setup behaves, add the fat back in.
Thickness
Whatever cut you choose, slice it at 20–25mm thick, with the grain. This gives you enough mass to develop proper texture during the drying period without the strip being so thick it stays wet in the centre.
Against the grain gives you something that crumbles rather than tears. It’s a different product — some people like it — but it’s not traditional biltong.
The short version
Start with silverside. Cut it 20–25mm thick with the grain. Trim the excess fat for your first batch. Everything else is detail.
Kured uses silverside and eye of round, cut thick and dried for six days in a temperature-controlled environment. Join the waitlist to be notified when we launch.