The Best Cuts for the Grill on a Budget
Nine cheap cuts of beef, pork, and chicken that grill up great, with prices per pound and how to cook each one.
A ribeye at $18 a pound is easy.
The skill is making a $4 cut taste like you spent $12, and that comes down to picking the right cheap cut and cooking it the way it wants to be cooked.
These nine cuts all punch above their price. Rough per-pound prices sit below (they move with your region and the season, so treat them as a guide).
Chicken thighs are the best value at the grill
Boneless, skinless thighs run about $2 to $4 a pound, and bone-in with skin can be even less. Dark meat stays juicy well past the point where a breast turns to sawdust, which makes thighs nearly impossible to ruin.
Grill them over medium-high direct heat for about 5 to 6 minutes a side, and pull them at 175 to 185 F.
Yes, that runs higher than the 165 F safe line, and it is on purpose. Dark meat gets more tender the higher you take it (up to a point).
Season simply and they are the most forgiving thing you can put on a grill.
For a crowd, a pack of thighs feeds more people for less money than almost anything else.
Chuck steak and chuck eye, the poor man's ribeye
Chuck eye steak comes from right next to the ribeye and tastes remarkably close for about $6 to $9 a pound, roughly half the price. Regular chuck steak runs a bit tougher and carries the same beefy flavor.
Cook these hot and fast, 3 to 4 minutes a side over high heat, and pull at 130 F for medium-rare.
Slice against the grain in thin strips to shortcut any chewiness.
A generous salting 40 minutes ahead does a lot here.
Sirloin and tri-tip, lean and honest
Top sirloin runs about $7 to $11 a pound and gives you a lean, genuinely beefy steak without the marbling tax of a ribeye. It rewards restraint, so take it to 130 F and stop.
Tri-tip, a triangular roast popular on the West Coast, is a budget hero at roughly $7 to $10 a pound.
Grill it over a two-zone fire. Sear all sides hot, then move it to the cooler side to finish to 130 F, about 25 to 35 minutes total for a 2-pound roast.
Slice it against the grain, and watch for the grain changing direction partway through the roast.
Flank and skirt are made for marinade
Flank steak and skirt steak are thin, fibrous cuts loaded with flavor, running about $9 to $14 a pound. Prices have crept up as they got trendy, and they still stretch.
One pound feeds three people in tacos or fajitas.
Marinate them 2 to 8 hours, then grill hot and fast, 3 to 4 minutes a side, and pull at 130 F.
The non-negotiable step is slicing thin against the grain. Cut with the grain and even a perfect skirt steak chews like a rubber band.
Pork shoulder, the low-and-slow bargain
At $2 to $4 a pound, pork shoulder (also sold as pork butt) is the cheapest path to a pile of pulled pork that feeds a party. It is tough and fatty raw, which is exactly why it turns tender and rich over a long, slow cook.
Smoke or indirect-grill it at 250 F for roughly 1.5 hours per pound, until it hits 203 F internal and pulls apart with two forks.
An 8-pound shoulder takes 10 to 12 hours and feeds 10 to 12 people. Pork steaks, cut from the same shoulder, run $3 to $5 a pound and grill fast over medium heat in about 12 to 15 minutes.
Every cut at a glance
Nine cuts, what they cost, and where to pull them.
| Cut | Rough price/lb | How to cook | Pull temp |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken thighs | $2 to $4 | Direct medium-high, 5 to 6 min/side | 175 to 185 F |
| Pork shoulder | $2 to $4 | Indirect 250 F, ~1.5 hr/lb | 203 F |
| Pork steaks | $3 to $5 | Direct medium, 12 to 15 min | 140 F |
| Chuck eye steak | $6 to $9 | Direct high, 3 to 4 min/side | 130 F |
| Sirloin | $7 to $11 | Direct high, 4 to 5 min/side | 130 F |
| Tri-tip | $7 to $10 | Two-zone, 25 to 35 min | 130 F |
| Whole chicken (spatchcocked) | $1.50 to $3 | Indirect 375 F, 45 to 60 min | 160 F breast |
| Flank steak | $9 to $14 | Direct high, 3 to 4 min/side | 130 F |
| Skirt steak | $9 to $14 | Direct high, 2 to 3 min/side | 130 F |
The two rules that make cheap cuts taste expensive
Slice against the grain. Look at the direction the muscle fibers run, cut straight across them, and every fiber in the bite comes out shorter.
That one move is the biggest lever on tenderness for cheap beef.
Then keep lean cuts off the heat the moment they hit temp. Sirloin, flank, and skirt carry little fat to protect them, so five extra minutes turns them gray and tough.
A $25 thermometer and a 130 F target save more budget steaks than any marinade. Pick up a pack of thighs this weekend and start there.
Frequently asked questions
What is the cheapest cut that still tastes great grilled?
Chicken thighs, at $2 to $4 a pound. They stay juicy well past the point a breast dries out, and a pack feeds a crowd cheaply. For beef, chuck eye steak at $6 to $9 a pound tastes close to a ribeye for about half the price.
What is the poor man's ribeye?
Chuck eye steak. It comes from right next to the ribeye on the cow and carries a similar beefy flavor and marbling for roughly $6 to $9 a pound, so cook it hot and fast to 130 F.
Why does slicing against the grain matter so much?
Cutting across the muscle fibers shortens them, so each bite is far more tender. It is the biggest single fix for tougher, cheaper cuts like flank, skirt, and chuck. Slice with the grain and even a good steak chews like rubber.
Do budget cuts need a marinade?
Thin, fibrous cuts like flank and skirt benefit from a 2- to 8-hour marinade. Beefier cuts like chuck eye and sirloin do better with just salt applied 40 minutes ahead, so match the method to the cut.
How do I make cheap steak tender?
Salt it 40 minutes before cooking, grill it hot and fast, pull it at 130 F for medium-rare, rest it 5 minutes, and slice thin against the grain, since overcooking is what ruins most budget steaks.
What is the best budget cut to feed a crowd?
Pork shoulder at $2 to $4 a pound, since an 8-pound shoulder smoked to 203 F pulls into enough meat to feed 10 to 12 people for the price of a couple of steaks.