Updated 30 September 2026
What is the best meat? Honestly, it depends on the meal. The best meat for a Friday-night steak is not the best meat for a batch of chilli, and the best-value meat for a family freezer is different again. So here is our butcher's pick of the best meat for each job, with the cuts we would choose and the packs we sell for delivery to your door.
Best meat for steak
For flavour, it's ribeye. Marbled with fat, it is juicy and forgiving in a hot pan. For a leaner, classic steak, choose sirloin. For the most tender steak, choose fillet. For big beefy flavour at a lower price, choose rump.
| Steak | Why | Best cooked |
|---|---|---|
| Ribeye | Most flavour, marbled | Medium-rare to medium |
| Sirloin | Balanced flavour and tenderness | Medium-rare |
| Fillet | Most tender, very lean | Rare to medium-rare |
| Rump | Beefy, great value | Medium-rare, sliced thinly |
Our Ribeye Steaks 8x6oz (£38.99) is eight 6oz ribeyes, a proper freezer stock. See types of steak and rump, sirloin or ribeye for more.
Best meat for a Sunday roast
- Beef: topside for lean slices, sirloin for a special occasion, rib for the full show. See roast beef cooking times.
- Lamb: a Whole Carvery Leg of Lamb 2.2-2.7kg (£34.99) feeds six to eight. See the leg of lamb cooking times.
- Pork: loin for neat slices and crackling, belly for the best crackling of all. See roast pork cooking times.
- Gammon: easy to cook ahead and brilliant cold. See how to cook a gammon joint.
Best meat for protein
Skinless chicken breast is the best everyday meat for protein. UK composition data (CoFID) puts raw chicken breast at about 24g of protein per 100g. Lean beef mince, pork loin steaks and lean steaks such as fillet and sirloin trimmed of fat are good too. Our Chicken Breast 1kg (£8.99) is the staple. Read how much protein is in chicken breast and browse our lean meat.
Best meat for mince dishes
For bolognese, chilli and cottage pie, lean beef mince gives you flavour without a pan full of fat. For burgers, you want a little more fat, so they stay juicy. Try our bolognese and homemade burgers.
Best meat for slow cooking
The cheaper, harder-working cuts are the best meat for slow cooking, because their connective tissue melts into rich, tender meat: beef brisket, chuck and braising steak, short ribs, lamb shanks and pork shoulder. See how to cook braising steak and beef brisket.
Best meat for the barbecue
Burgers and sausages are the crowd pleasers. Chicken thighs and drumsticks stay juicier than breast over the coals, and ribeye or rump are the steaks to grill. Our BBQ packs put a mix together.
Best-value meat
If you want to fill the freezer, bulk packs and bundles work out best. Chicken thighs and drumsticks, pork steaks, sausages and diced beef give you the most meals for your money. Browse our meat bundles.
Best meat for a quick midweek dinner
When time is short, choose cuts that cook in minutes: chicken breast or thighs, pork loin steaks, gammon steaks and thin-cut steaks. A gammon steak with egg and chips is on the table in 15 minutes (see how to cook gammon steaks). Diced chicken breast makes chicken fajitas in 20. Keep a few packs in the freezer and move one to the fridge the night before.
Best meat for feeding a family
Mince, sausages, chicken thighs and a good roasting joint go the furthest. A roasting joint on Sunday gives you leftovers for Monday's sandwiches or a pie. A kilo of mince makes a bolognese and a cottage pie. Sausages make toad in the hole one night and a casserole the next. Our family packs and bundles are built around exactly these meals.
How to store meat at home
Keep raw meat covered on the bottom shelf of the fridge, below cooked and ready-to-eat food. Use or freeze fresh meat by its use-by date. Defrost frozen meat in the fridge, never at room temperature, and cook it within 24 hours of defrosting.
Buying meat online
Everything is packed and sent by DPD. Weekday delivery is free on orders over £85 (£6.95 under), and Saturday delivery is available. See our delivery page for full details, including Scotland and postcode restrictions. When your order arrives, put everything in the fridge or freezer straight away. Frozen packs can go straight in the freezer, and fresh meat can be frozen on the day it arrives.
Shop the cuts in this guide
How we pack your order
Your order is packed at our butchery at St Stephen, near St Austell, in a double-walled box with a sealed thermal liner and gel ice packs, then delivered by DPD next-day on the day you choose. Free delivery over £85.
Extra strong boxWhite double-walled corrugated cardboard
Thermal linerAir-infused, padded and sealed
Gel ice packsRecyclable film, non-toxic food-grade gel
DPD deliveryOn the day you choose
Best meat FAQs
What is the best meat to buy?
It depends on the meal. For steak, ribeye has the most flavour. For roasting, choose a leg of lamb or beef topside. For protein, chicken breast. For slow cooking, brisket or chuck. For value, bulk chicken thighs and sausages.
What is the healthiest meat?
Skinless chicken breast and lean cuts of beef, pork and lamb, trimmed of visible fat, are the leanest options. The NHS recommends limiting processed meat and choosing lean cuts.
What is the best meat for protein?
Chicken breast is one of the best, at about 24g of protein per 100g raw according to UK CoFID data. Lean beef mince and lean steaks are good alternatives.
What is the best cut of steak?
Ribeye for flavour, fillet for tenderness, sirloin for balance and rump for value.
Can I get meat delivered to my door?
Yes. We deliver across most of the UK by DPD, with free weekday delivery on orders over £85. Some postcodes are restricted; see our delivery page.
