Zebu hump (cupim) is the fatty hump muscle from a zebu-type steer. There is no true US cut. Ask a Brazilian or Latin butcher if they have cupim. It often shows up frozen at Brazilian markets. If the shop only has a fatty roast, well-marbled chuck still makes a good slow cook.
Safety instructions
Rare beef at 125 to 130°F (52 to 54°C) is below the USDA 145°F (63°C) finish. Buy whole muscle from a butcher or a named packer, and sear the outside. Higher-risk people should wait for 145°F (63°C). Ground beef stays 160°F (71°C).
At a glance
- Region: Sul
- No clean US equivalent
- Open spit: hours, 40–50 cm (16–20 in) from the embers, same band as costela
- Home wrap: one 2 1/2 lb (1.2 kg) piece, 4 to 5 hours
The long spit
Traditional cupim is a long piece on a skewer, far from the embers, turned for hours, salted with sal grosso. It is collagen and fat. It is ready when a probe slides through with little fight, often well past 200°F (93°C). Plan an afternoon. This is closer to costela than to picanha. Keep it 40–50 cm (16–20 in) from the embers. Lump charcoal (100% wood lump), not briquettes. Embers, not flames.
The home wrap (one 2 1/2 lb / 1.2 kg piece)
A common backyard method is to sear the piece over a hot bed, then wrap it in many layers of foil with butter and finish far from the coals. The foil-and-butter wrap is a home method. It is not the same as an open spit.
- 1 piece cupim, about 2 1/2 lb (1.2 kg)
- 7 tablespoons (100 g) salted butter
- Sal grosso or coarse grill salt
Method (home wrap)
- Trim only the thin tip of hard fat that will burn. Leave the rest.
- Light a two-zone fire with lump charcoal. Sear all sides over the hot bed.
- Set the meat on foil, smear the butter over it, and wrap 8 to 12 turns so it cannot leak.
- Cook on the cool side or a higher rack about 4 to 5 hours, 40–50 cm (16–20 in) from the embers if the piece is unwrapped at the end to take color.
- A wire or skewer should pass through when it is done. Rest 10 minutes. Salt at the end if the butter was already salty.
How you know it is done
A probe slides through with little fight. This is not a 125°F picanha pull. Say which method was used: open spit or home wrap.
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