Dry aging beef

[hnd]

pm me if you'd like directions to building your own fridge as well as how to properly age your meat.

[boogiesnap]

Originally Posted by hnd

pm me if you'd like directions to building your own fridge as well as how to properly age your meat.

no need to PM this sorta info. just lay it out there for all to learn!

[hnd]

Originally Posted by boogiesnap

no need to PM this sorta info. just lay it out there for all to learn!

its in a doc file. here's hoping this works!

[shdybrady]

I sure will take that in to consideration for future times. But Reallhy I do have a dedicated fridge for just dry aging. Is there something the fridge wont give me?

[hnd]

Originally Posted by shdybrady

I sure will take that in to consideration for future times. But Reallhy I do have a dedicated fridge for just dry aging. Is there something the fridge wont give me?

a beer fridge or some other fridge taht isn't opened regularly is best. we used a program that showed the temp difference on different occasions of a regular used fridge and the temp raises were just not worth the risk.

i've done a few in the crisper of my normal fridge with fine results, but in the end it was easier and i felt safer to do it in an isolated fridge.

[landarc]

I do not like dry aged beef cooked to medium simply due to it being a little dry to my palate, taste is the same. By dry aging, you are removing a lot of moisture, cooking too long removes any that is left from a steak.

[hnd]

Originally Posted by landarc

I do not like dry aged beef cooked to medium simply due to it being a little dry to my palate, taste is the same. By dry aging, you are removing a lot of moisture, cooking too long removes any that is left from a steak.

definitely the complete opposite for me. we have alot of people in our family that are medium-medium well type people and they love the dry aged because even though its cooked to a higher temp, it retains the juices and they routinely say its the juiciest steak they ever had.

[Nick@ParkAQ]

I cant wait. I've never done it but the best steak house around is Izzys in SF and I have their 21 day aged beef everytime I go its the best. They do use cheese cloth and you can see the beef aging in the display. Post pics! Yum

[SmokeInDaEye]

I always dry age a giant ribeye before the holidays then cook it as you would a Prime Rib. I also cut a hunk with two or three bones off to keep dry aging for New Years Eve. Here's a short video of last year's steaks. http://www.youtube.com/user/SmokeInD.../6/Cbo6rjPzALg

[landarc]

Really? Izzy's? I prefer Harris Steak House myself.

[shdybrady]

Ill take week pictures for you so I dont have to open the fridge too much. then Ill take more pictures during the skinning and cooking process. So you cook the dry aged meat at a higher temp

[shdybrady]

alright Im two weeks in to the process. I will post a pics and maybe a write up at the end of it all. But after two weeks its starting to get a odor. Its not nearly what 2 week old rotten beef would smell like but there is some. This is normal right?

[atvottawa]

Alton Brown aged a steak in the fridge on one of his Good Eats shows.

[MadCityJim]

At 10 days to 2 weeks it should start to smell "musty" or "cheesy". I've done it 3-4 times. I was worried the first time too. But one of my buddies was over for a poker game and he said he knew exactly what the smell was and that I had nothing to worry about. He'd done it many times. (the aging fridge is next to the beer fridge) It is surprising how strong the smell is. I couldn't get away with it in the kitchen fridge. Fortunately I have a fridge in the basement that we use for extra milk and meat etc.

I like the steak aged 14-21 days. One time we went 28, but that was too much for our taste.

I'll buy a whole choice loin in the cryopac at the one of the warehouse stores and cut steaks of for one Friday. Wrap the rest in cloth. Change the cloth (flour sack towels from the warehuse store) 2-4 times the 1st week. The next Friday I'll cut a couple of more... And so on until its gone. By the time you figure how much you trim from edges on the longer aged beef you don't save money from buying the fresh steaks, but on the other hand, dry aged strip steaks run $18/lb. The cryo of loin runs $6-$7.

I trim the meat all the way to clear white fat (leave 1/8 to 1/4 inch when I can) or bright red meat. the black and extra dark red meat carries the flavor of the smell you're experiencing. When you cut the steaks, you'll see the line around the edge where the bright red ends and the dark reds starts. Definately trim the black edges off. When you first cut the steaks, cut one thin one, give it a quick pan fry and taste the edge vs the the middle. You'll be able to decide how much you want to trim your steaks.

[jaymo]

Shdybrady, I know you have a dedicated fridge already, but for others looking to do this, here is a good option:

Homebrewers often use chest freezers to store kegs of beer. You can get temp controls that plug into the outlet, then you plug the freezer into this. It has a probe that monitors the temp in your fridge/freezer and cuts off the electricity when it gets down to whatever temperature you set.

Using a chest freezer with one of these is nice because the temp stays MUCH more constant than a normal fridge. Here is a link to the temp control. They also make a non-digital one.