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Meat Atlas

Everything About Meat

Beef chuck to pork belly, lamb rack to chicken oyster, plus tuna sashimi cuts — anatomy charts, grading systems and doneness temperatures. Hover a cut for a quick card; click through for the full story.

The chart is the navigation

Hover a cut for a summary, click to open its page — local names, dishes it suits, recommended doneness and how to pick it at the counter.

Beef Primals TOOL-LIFES / MEAT ATLAS
CHUCKChuck RIBRibeye LOINStriploin SIRLOINSirloin ROUNDRound BRISKETBrisket PLATEShort plate FLANKFlank ShankShank HEADHead & cheek Oxtail
Cut colours
FIG. 1 — BOS TAURUS / PRIMAL DIVISIONtool-lifes.com/meat

Marbling is not something you explain in words

The BMS 1–9 scale, drawn rather than described. Japanese A5, Korean 1++, USDA Prime and Australian MSA all sit on this one axis, so grades from different countries can finally be compared by eye.

Doneness is a colour, not a guess

Drag the slider and the cross-section repaints along the real myoglobin curve. Core temperature and resting time move with it.

57 Medium rareRest 3 min
46°C52°C57°C63°C69°C77°C

One axis ties the whole atlas together

Myoglobin shifts with oxygen and heat: deep purple-red when deoxygenated, bright cherry when oxygenated, grey-brown once fully cooked. Those three points are this atlas's entire palette — and the shared visual language of the freshness, doneness and ageing pages.

Temperatures are guidance for whole-muscle cuts. Ground meat and poultry need 71°C / 160°F throughout.

Pork is a fat map before it is a meat map

On a pig, where the fat sits decides everything — which is why the belly became bacon and samgyeopsal on opposite sides of the world, and why the same loin is a schnitzel here and a tonkatsu there.

Pork Primals TOOL-LIFES / MEAT ATLAS
JOWLJowl SHOULDERShoulder PICNICPicnic shoulder LOINLoin TENDERLOINTenderloin BELLYBelly LEGLeg Hock & trotter
Cut colours
FIG. 2 — SUS DOMESTICUS / PRIMAL DIVISIONtool-lifes.com/meat

Lamb is a map of feast days

From Easter roast to Eid shoulder, from rack for two to shank that wants hours — lamb cuts are sized for occasions. Fat caps and bone keep flavour in a way lean beef rarely does.

Lamb Primals TOOL-LIFES / MEAT ATLAS
NECKNeck SHOULDERShoulder RACKRack LOINLoin LEGLeg Shank BREASTBreast
Cut colours
FIG. 4 — OVIS ARIES / PRIMAL DIVISIONtool-lifes.com/meat

A chicken is really seven different meats

White muscle for short bursts, dark muscle built for standing all day. That single split explains why the breast dries out at the temperature the thigh needs, and why no bird should be cooked as one thing.

Chicken Portions TOOL-LIFES / MEAT ATLAS
BREASTBreast WINGWing THIGHThigh Drumstick Tenderloin Oyster
Cut colours
FIG. 3 — GALLUS DOMESTICUS / PORTION DIVISIONtool-lifes.com/meat

Gopchang, makchang and daechang are three different organs

The names blur together in menus, but gopchang is small intestine, daechang is large intestine, and makchang is the fourth stomach. Fat, chew and cook time are completely different — seeing where each sits in the animal settles the confusion at once.

Beef Offal Map TOOL-LIFES / MEAT ATLAS
Tongue Heart Liver Rumen Omasum Abomasum Small intestine Large intestine
Cut colours
FIG. 5 — BOS TAURUS / EDIBLE OFFAL LAYOUTtool-lifes.com/meat

Raw fish needs its own axis

The way a single tuna divides into otoro, chutoro and akami follows a different logic from beef butchery. Fish are modelled on fat content and position rather than muscle group.

Bluefin Tuna Cuts TOOL-LIFES / MEAT ATLAS
Kama Akami Otoro Chutoro Tail belly
Cut colours
FIG. 2 — THUNNUS / CUTTING DIVISIONtool-lifes.com/meat

What should I buy?

Answer a few preference questions and the atlas ranks every cut that fits — same meters the charts already use, no black box.

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Dishes by cut

You know the dish. The atlas maps it back to the primal — galbi, tonkatsu, shawarma and more.

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Butcher names

Aguja, sot-l'y-laisse, gopchang — the counter names that confuse travellers, listed next to the atlas cut.

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Cut swaps

Counter substitutions that keep the cooking method honest — not random swaps.

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Doneness by animal

Beef can stay pink. Poultry cannot. One slider does not fit every species — use the right axis.

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Find a cut by cooking

You know what you want to cook — not which cut to buy. Pick a method and the atlas ranks every cut that scores well for it.

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Calories & protein

Change the cut and calories can triple. Here are 38 cuts side by side on a 100 g basis.

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Storage, thawing & aging

Fridge days, freezer months, and how to thaw safely. Most meat is wasted in storage, not in the pan.

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Portion calculator

Pick a headcount and an occasion and you get a shopping weight. Grill nights and soup nights use very different per-person baselines.

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Grading systems

BMS is the shared visual axis. Hanwoo, Wagyu, USDA and MSA hang different labels on the same fat — here is how to read them without mixing the systems up.

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Same craving, different animal

Ribeye vs pork belly, lamb rack vs beef rib — cross-species comparisons for the decisions shoppers actually make.

→Ribeye vs Belly→Striploin vs Loin→Ribeye vs Rack→Brisket vs Shoulder→Leg vs Round→Shank vs Shank→Belly vs Breast→Thigh vs Jowl→Flank vs Breast→Otoro vs Ribeye→Chuck vs Shoulder→Short plate vs Belly→Loin vs Striploin→Breast vs Loin→Chutoro vs Belly→Akami vs Flank→Jowl vs Head & cheek→Shoulder vs Shoulder

Take the chart with you

Every chart on this page is also a standalone image, labelled in this language. Save it to your phone for the butcher's counter, or print it for the kitchen wall.

Beef Primals — Butcher chart
Beef Primals — Butcher chart Download image Vector (SVG)
Pork Primals — Butcher chart
Pork Primals — Butcher chart Download image Vector (SVG)
Lamb Primals — Butcher chart
Lamb Primals — Butcher chart Download image Vector (SVG)
Chicken Portions — Butcher chart
Chicken Portions — Butcher chart Download image Vector (SVG)
Beef Offal Map — Butcher chart
Beef Offal Map — Butcher chart Download image Vector (SVG)
Bluefin Tuna Cuts — Butcher chart
Bluefin Tuna Cuts — Butcher chart Download image Vector (SVG)

Compare

→Chuck vs Brisket→Chuck vs Shank→Chuck vs Head & cheek→Ribeye vs Striploin→Ribeye vs Short plate→Ribeye vs Sirloin→Striploin vs Sirloin→Striploin vs Flank→Sirloin vs Round→Sirloin vs Flank→Round vs Shank→Round vs Oxtail→Brisket vs Short plate→Brisket vs Shank→Short plate vs Flank→Shank vs Oxtail→Shank vs Head & cheek→Brisket vs Head & cheek→Brisket vs Oxtail→Striploin vs Short plate→Sirloin vs Short plate→Jowl vs Shoulder→Jowl vs Belly→Jowl vs Loin→Shoulder vs Picnic shoulder→Shoulder vs Leg→Picnic shoulder vs Hock & trotter→Picnic shoulder vs Leg→Loin vs Tenderloin→Loin vs Belly→Shoulder vs Loin→Jowl vs Tenderloin→Tenderloin vs Leg→Shoulder vs Belly→Leg vs Hock & trotter→Loin vs Leg→Shoulder vs Hock & trotter→Tenderloin vs Belly→Neck vs Shoulder→Neck vs Shank→Neck vs Breast→Shoulder vs Rack→Shoulder vs Leg→Rack vs Loin→Rack vs Breast→Loin vs Leg→Loin vs Breast→Leg vs Shank→Shoulder vs Shank→Shoulder vs Breast→Rack vs Leg→Shoulder vs Loin→Breast vs Tenderloin→Breast vs Thigh→Breast vs Wing→Wing vs Drumstick→Wing vs Thigh→Thigh vs Drumstick→Thigh vs Oyster→Drumstick vs Oyster→Wing vs Tenderloin→Thigh vs Tenderloin→Breast vs Oyster→Tenderloin vs Oyster→Wing vs Oyster→Tongue vs Heart→Tongue vs Abomasum→Tongue vs Liver→Heart vs Liver→Heart vs Abomasum→Liver vs Omasum→Rumen vs Omasum→Rumen vs Abomasum→Rumen vs Small intestine→Omasum vs Abomasum→Abomasum vs Small intestine→Abomasum vs Large intestine→Small intestine vs Large intestine→Tongue vs Large intestine→Tongue vs Small intestine→Kama vs Otoro→Kama vs Akami→Akami vs Chutoro→Otoro vs Chutoro→Akami vs Tail belly→Chutoro vs Tail belly→Akami vs Otoro→Kama vs Chutoro

All cuts

Beef Primals

→Chuck→Ribeye→Striploin→Sirloin→Round→Brisket→Short plate→Flank→Shank→Head & cheek→Oxtail

Pork Primals

→Jowl→Shoulder→Picnic shoulder→Loin→Tenderloin→Belly→Leg→Hock & trotter

Lamb Primals

→Neck→Shoulder→Rack→Loin→Leg→Shank→Breast

Chicken Portions

→Breast→Wing→Thigh→Drumstick→Tenderloin→Oyster

Beef Offal Map

→Tongue→Heart→Liver→Rumen→Omasum→Abomasum→Small intestine→Large intestine

Bluefin Tuna Cuts

→Kama→Akami→Otoro→Chutoro→Tail belly

Common questions

Which beef cut is the most tender?
Among the primals on this chart, the ribeye and striploin are the most tender, because they come from muscles along the spine that barely work during the animal's life. Tenderness tracks workload: the harder a muscle works, the more connective tissue it builds. That is why shank and brisket are the toughest raw — and the most rewarding after long cooking.
What does the marbling grade actually measure?
Marbling grades measure intramuscular fat — the fat inside the muscle rather than the layer around it. Japan's BMS runs 1 to 12, Korea grades 1++ down to 3, and the USDA uses Prime, Choice and Select. They are scored on different scales but they are all looking at the same thing, which is why they can be laid on a single axis.
What core temperature should steak be cooked to?
Roughly 52°C for rare, 57°C for medium rare, 63°C for medium and 71°C and above for well done. These figures apply to whole-muscle cuts. Ground meat and poultry must reach 71°C throughout, because grinding spreads surface bacteria into the interior.
Why does meat need to rest after cooking?
Heat drives moisture towards the centre of the cut and tightens the muscle fibres. Resting lets both settle, so the juice redistributes instead of running out onto the board when you cut. Two to five minutes is enough for a steak; larger roasts need longer.
What is the difference between otoro and chutoro?
Both come from the belly of the tuna, and the difference is fat content and position. Otoro is the forward belly and the fattiest part of the fish; chutoro sits further back and between the belly and the loin, balancing fat against the leaner flavour of akami. Otoro is richer, chutoro is easier to keep eating.
Why does slicing against the grain make meat more tender?
Muscle is built from long fibre bundles. Cutting across them leaves very short fibres on the plate, so your teeth have far less to break down. On a coarse-grained cut like flank the difference is dramatic — the same piece can feel chewy or tender depending only on the angle of the knife.
What temperature should chicken be cooked to?
Chicken must reach 74°C (165°F) throughout, measured at the thickest part away from bone. Unlike beef, there is no safe pink stage for poultry. Breast is best pulled the moment it hits that mark, while thigh, drumstick and wing actually improve if taken to 78–80°C, because their connective tissue needs the extra heat to soften.
Does pork still need to be cooked well done?
No. Whole-muscle pork — loin, chop, tenderloin — is safe at 63°C (145°F) with a three-minute rest, and is noticeably juicier cooked that way. The old advice to cook pork grey came from trichinella, a parasite effectively eliminated from commercial pork decades ago. Ground pork is the exception and still needs 71°C throughout.