Meat Expander

Ever see expanded metal? If not, click on the link. It's made by making offset cuts through a sheet of metal and then stretching the metal. The result is a lattice-like screen or grid often used for making grates.

This is a proposal to prepare beefsteak or similar meat in like fashion.

A series of disconnected through-slices would be made in the cut of meat. This would probably be most effectively done with a press of sorts using a plate fitted with blades in the proper configuration.

A frame, made of stainless steel and maybe 3 times the length of the steak (length meaning the dimension perpendicular to the slices), surrounds the steak. Springs, hooks or other suitable tying mechanisms are used to tie the 2 ends of the steak to the frame in such a way that the meat is stretched and the slices open up in to diamond shapes.

The steel construction permits the meat to be cooked (grilled, broiled, pan fried, whatever) while in the frame thus causing the meat to set in the stretched configuration. After cooking, the meat is removed from the frame and served.

Other patterns could undoubtedly be produced but the simple lattice was easiest to demonstrate.

Why would one want to do this?
* Novelty is often a good selling point. I imagine this could be the gimmick of a particular restaurant.
* For the health conscious: it could make that recommended 4 ounce portion of meat at least look like more.
* The increased surface area would help the meat take marinade.
* The meat would cook faster
* For the less health conscious: the voids in the meat, beef for example, could be filled with correspondingly shaped bits of pork, lamb, chicken, spam, etc.
* For the not-health conscious: think of all the extra surface area for chicken fried steak breading/grease absorption.
* Why not?