Sirloin, rump, tomahawk, fillet, rib-eye. However it comes, is there any food that gets salivated over more than steak? Restaurant reviewers compete to outdo one another with their florid descriptions of the sensual delights of tucking into a particularly prime example.
But then steak comes loaded with far more than a dollop of garlic butter or hollandaise. More recently, tucking into a juicy slab of meat has also become a bold statement of ‘I will eat – and live – as I please’, a carpe diem rejection of vegan-botherers and eco-worriers.
Veganism is on the rise, with the number of vegans in Britain quadrupling between 2014 and 2019. This month the organisation behind Veganuary has reported a record number of people taking part in its tenth annual event, which sees people abstain from animal products for the month of January.
Yet globally, we’re also eating more meat than ever – and steak has become perhaps the last bastion of the carnivore.
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