Picanha
Fat cap • Juicy • Beefy • Brazilian favorite
Scorecard
Tenderness
Fat
Beef flavor
Juiciness
Typical price$$$$$
Best donenessMedium Rare
What does picanha taste like?
Picanha is a lean cut topped by a thick layer of fat. As it cooks, that fat bastes the meat, giving a juicy steak with clean, strong beef flavor.
What does picanha look like?
A triangular cut with a thick, creamy white fat cap on one side and lean deep red meat underneath.
Choose Picanha if you like
- • strong beef flavor
- • crisp fat
- • sharing churrasco-style
Skip it if
- • you don't eat fat
- • you want a very soft steak
Where it comes from: Top of the rump, the sirloin cap — the sirloin section. See the beef cut chart.
Also called: Sirloin Cap, Rump Cap, Coulotte, Culotte.
Often seen in: Brazil, Portugal, Churrascarias.