New U.S. Beef Dishes with Outside Round Flat Introduced in Taiwan
As inflation and rising prices pressure foodservice customers in Taiwan, USMEF continues to develop ways to keep U.S. beef on their menus. Alternative cuts ‒ more affordable, but which typically require creativity and additional preparation ‒ are helping to accomplish this objective.
USMEF’s Taiwan office has been actively promoting the outside round flat to Taiwan’s foodservice sector as a flavorful and nutritious alternative. Earlier this year, USMEF began collaborating with one of Taiwan’s most popular barbecue brands ‒ Umai Catering Group ‒ to develop new signature dishes with this cut.
Umai chefs spent several months experimenting with the U.S. outside round flat, studying its versatility and applications. Four separate dishes were eventually developed, each tailored for separate divisions of the catering group: yakiniku, hot pot and Korean-style cuisine.
“Umai is a loyal U.S. beef customer and put a lot of effort into developing and publicizing these new products,” says USMEF Senior Marketing Manager Alex Sun. “We appreciate Umai’s efforts in adopting this relatively affordable U.S. beef round item and integrating it into its diverse food segments.”
Prior to launching the new menu items, restaurant staff underwent internal training to ensure each dish was presented to customers with detailed explanations of its features and recommended tasting methods. Umai hosted a dedicated tasting event for dozens of major food media journalists and collaborated with food-related influencers to produce engaging short-form videos to introduce the new U.S. beef dishes.
Funding support was provided by the Beef Checkoff Program.