Consume beef, say, sliced off on top (3)
I believe the answer is:
eat
'consume' is the definition.
(to consume something is to eat it)
'beef say sliced off on top' is the wordplay.
I cannot really see how this works, but
'on' could be 'at' (I've seen this in other clues) and 'at' is located in the answer.
A single letter 'e' remains which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This may be the basis of the clue (or it may be nonsense).
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for eat that I've seen before include "Break bread" , "Have 23d [MEAL]" , "Partake of" , "Scoff" , "Be corrosive" .)