CarneAtlas

Aguja norteña

Beef · Chuck
Grill
Raw Aguja norteña — Beef Chuck cut
Also called
🇺🇸🇬🇧Chuck eye steak🇦🇷🇪🇸Aguja🇫🇷Basses côtes🇵🇹🇧🇷Acém🇮🇹Reale🇩🇪Hochrippenkern

A bone-in chuck eye steak cut thin for grilling, prized in northern Mexico — particularly Monterrey. It comes from the chuck eye roll, the ribeye muscle as it extends into the chuck primal, giving it more marbling than a standard chuck steak. Traditionally cooked hot and fast over direct heat and served well-done.

Names by country

CountryNameNotes
🇺🇸United StatesChuck eye steakSold bone-in in US Hispanic markets as agujas or bone-in chuck eye steak
🇬🇧United KingdomChuck eye steak
🇲🇽MexicoAguja norteñaprimaryDefining cut of northern Mexican (Monterrey) grilling culture; also called flecha informally
🇦🇷ArgentinaAgujaSame anatomical zone but used as a braising/stewing cut in Argentina rather than a thin grill steak
🇫🇷FranceBasses côtesPrimal-level equivalent; the specific sub-cut is the noix de basse côte (chuck eye)
🇪🇸SpainAgujaSpanish butchery uses aguja for the chuck zone; typically braised rather than grilled
🇵🇹PortugalAcémAlso historically spelled agulha in older Portuguese nomenclature
🇧🇷BrazilAcémBrazilian chuck equivalent; the specific sub-cut is sometimes called acém comprido (chuck eye)
🇮🇹ItalyRealeThe chuck eye in Italian butchery — extension of the entrecôte muscle into the shoulder.
🇩🇪GermanyHochrippenkernSometimes called 'Falsches Filet' — the eye of the chuck where the rib-eye muscle ends.

Similar cuts

Paleron
Paleronapproximate

Both are chuck primal cuts; paleron comes from the shoulder blade center while aguja norteña is from the chuck eye roll closer to the rib

Flat iron steak
Flat iron steakapproximate

Both are chuck primal steaks; flat iron is from the top blade (infraspinatus) while aguja norteña is from the chuck eye roll

Ribeye
Ribeyeapproximate

The chuck eye roll is a continuation of the ribeye muscle into the chuck; aguja norteña is often described as a more affordable alternative to ribeye

Denver steak
Denver steakapproximate

Both come from the chuck primal and are prized as more affordable alternatives to ribeye; aguja norteña is the chuck eye, Denver is the under-blade.

Diezmillo
Diezmilloapproximate

Adjacent chuck cut — aguja is the chuck eye (more like a single muscle), diezmillo is the 3-muscle chuck-roll group around it. Both are northern-Mexican carne asada staples.

TenderloinRoundBottom SirloinRibPlateChuckShort LoinBrisketFlankSirloinShankShank

Classic recipe

Asado de Aguja Norteña30 min

Aguja norteña — the blade from the northern Mexican frontier — is the classic parrilla cut of the north, where cattle ra…

View full recipe →

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All Chuck cuts →

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