Best Cut of Beef for Biltong: Silverside, Topside and Eye of Round
Published UpdatedThe best cut of beef for biltong is silverside — a lean, dense, single-grain muscle from the outside of the hind leg. Topside, eye of round and rump all work too.
What the good cuts share matters more than what they're called: almost no marbling, no seams of connective tissue through the middle, and a grain that runs one clear direction so you can slice across it at the end. Get those three right and the butcher's label is a detail.
I'm Calvern Tong — South African, Austin-based, raised on the stuff. Nobody asks this question back home, because somebody's father already answered it. Here it's the first thing people want to know the moment they decide to hang their own.
The best cuts of beef for biltong, ranked
| Cut | US butcher name | Why it works |
|---|---|---|
| Silverside | Bottom round / outside round | The classic. Lean, uniform, one grain direction, holds a thick strip without collapsing. |
| Topside | Top round | Slightly more tender, dries a touch faster. Excellent, and easy to find in Texas. |
| Eye of round | Eye of round | Almost perfectly cylindrical and dead lean. Gives tidy, even slices. |
| Rump | Rump / sirloin tip | More flavor, a little more fat. A richer, softer result. |
| Flank | Flank steak | Works, with a pronounced grain and a chewier bite. Popular for thin, fast-drying strips. |
Why silverside is the traditional choice
Silverside sits on the outside of the animal's hind leg and does steady, unglamorous work. That gives you a muscle that's dense, low in intramuscular fat and — the part that actually matters — undivided. You can cut a six-inch strip out of it without hitting a sheet of silverskin or a fat seam halfway through.
Fat's the enemy here, and not for the reason people assume. Fat doesn't dry. While the beef around it gives up moisture over four to seven days in moving air, the fat just sits there unchanged, and eventually it turns.
So the marbled cuts you'd pay most for at a steakhouse make the worst possible biltong. A ribeye is a magnificent thing to grill and a genuinely terrible thing to hang.
The cuts to avoid
- Ribeye, sirloin, strip loin. Too much marbling. Expensive, and the fat goes rancid before the meat's ready.
- Chuck and shoulder. Riddled with connective tissue. You'll spend an hour with a knife and still find gristle in the finished slice.
- Brisket. People do try it. The fat cap and the two-muscle structure fight you the whole way.
- Anything pre-cut into steaks. You want to pick your own grain direction, which means you want the whole muscle.
Grain direction decides the texture more than the cut does
This is what separates good homemade biltong from the stuff people quietly stop making. You cut the raw strip with the grain — long fibers running the length of the strip — so it holds together while it hangs. Then, once it's dried, you slice the finished piece across the grain to eat it.
Cutting across shortens every fiber, and short fibers are what make biltong give way like dry-aged steak instead of chewing like a boot lace. Get this backwards and even a perfect silverside eats badly. Get it right and a mediocre cut is still pleasant.
The full method, gram by gram, is in the traditional biltong recipe.
How thick should the strip be?
About an inch to an inch and a half across, and as long as the muscle allows. Thinner than that and you're heading toward a crisp; much thicker and the center stays wet long after the outside's done.
Thickness is also how you control wet versus dry. The same strip pulled at day four is soft in the middle; pulled at day seven, it's dense throughout.
Does grass-fed beef change the cut you choose?
Not the cut, no — but it changes what the cut gives you. Grass-fed silverside is typically leaner and denser than grain-finished, so it dries a little faster and comes out with a deeper, more mineral beef flavor.
It's also less forgiving, because there's less fat to hide behind. If the beef is poor, air-drying will tell on it in a way a marinade never would.
The cut we spec
Ours is whole-muscle beef — beef, salt, pepper, coriander, Worcestershire sauce and white vinegar — no MSG, no artificial additives; full ingredients on the bag — then air-dried for days: a traditional South African cure, made by our maker, Backcountry Beef, a USDA-inspected South Carolina kitchen, for an Austin brand. No oven at any point. If you'd rather eat it than hang it, that's what the shop is for.
FAQ
What is the best cut of beef for biltong?
Silverside — known in American butchery as bottom round or outside round — is the traditional and best cut for biltong. It's lean, dense, has a single grain direction, and carries no internal seams of fat or connective tissue.
Is sirloin good for biltong?
No. Sirloin carries too much marbling for biltong, and intramuscular fat doesn't dry with the surrounding meat — it stays soft and turns rancid over the four to seven days the strip needs to hang. Sirloin tip (rump) is the exception: leaner, from the hind leg, and it makes a richer, softer biltong.
Topside or silverside for biltong?
Silverside is the traditional choice and topside is a close second. Silverside is denser and holds a thick strip better over a long hang; topside is slightly more tender and dries a touch faster. Both are lean hind-leg muscles with one grain direction, and either gives a good result if you cut with the grain and slice across it to eat.
Can you make biltong from ribeye or sirloin?
You can, but you shouldn't. Marbled cuts carry intramuscular fat that doesn't dry with the rest of the meat and turns rancid over the four to seven days biltong needs to hang. Lean hind-leg cuts are the correct choice.
Should biltong be cut with or against the grain?
Both, at different stages. Cut the raw strip with the grain so it holds together while drying, then slice the finished biltong across the grain to eat. Slicing across the grain shortens the muscle fibers and produces the tender texture biltong is known for.
How thick should biltong strips be cut?
Roughly one to one and a half inches thick. Thinner strips dry into something crisp rather than tender; much thicker strips stay wet in the center long after the surface has dried.
What is silverside called in the United States?
Bottom round or outside round. Topside is sold as top round. Eye of round keeps the same name on both sides of the Atlantic.
The store isn't open yet, so the only thing you can buy right now is a numbered spot in the Founding 50 first-batch box — $100, fully refunded if we never launch. Everything above still works with a bottom round from the grocery store and a box fan, which is the point.
New to all this? Start with what biltong actually is · then how it's made · or settle the argument with biltong vs jerky.
Related reading
Eating low carb? Start with is biltong keto? and how many carbs are in biltong, or see carnivore diet snacks.
