Dry aging station
 

I just now perfected my setup for now till me and my wife move into our own house in the near future. It's a very nice vintage Marvel beverage fridge that I converted to a dry aging station. . It's a 6.77 pounder prime rib sitting on a 2lb layer of Himalayan sea salt, and i used a computer fan to circulate the air.

And of course the Ranco ETC temperature controller at a constant 34-35 degrees :)

The fridge

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4 day old prime rib

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Prime rib after a week. Starting to dry out very nicely.

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If anyone wants directions on how to do this feel free to ask :)

Is there something special about the Himalayan salt? I have heard of dry aging, but don't know anything about it, so pardon my ignorance if this is common knowledge.

Really nice I am looking to do exactly that!

Please share directions as I have always wanted to set this same thing up?

the Himalayan sea salt helps pull moisture out of the prime rib while keeping it from getting mold or other bacteria on the surface of the beef. If you don't use the salt it would take a a lot longer to get the same results.

great! Beef tastes so much better when it's dry aged :biggrin1:

Sure! All I did was to on Craigslist and found a mini fridge with no auto defrost for $20! I then got a 120mm computer fan and wired it to a 12v power adapter I had laying around. I went and picked up a calphalon roasting rack and some Anchor glassware, or any 9x13 will be fine. I picked up a 5lb bag of coarse grain Himalayan sea salt for $19 shipped from saltworks.com. Since I had a place close by and picked up a Ranco ETC 111000. I bought it unwired for $50 or you can buy it online prewired. If you ned help wiring it you can PM me. The ranco needs to be set at a constant 34-35 degrees with 70%-80% humidity. Then just put whatever you want in th fridge and wait for the magic to happen :biggrin1:

Quick update after 10 days. It's drying out very nicely. Starting to smell great!

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Drying out wonderfully :biggrin1:

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Hope you enjoy. :bow:

This is really interestin Looking forward to watching your progress

Is the salt still good for cooking after being used to age the meat?

Yes after cooking it in the oven at 400 to dry it out. Salt is antibacterial so it's still good to cook with.

Can't wait to see the finished product looks like a good start. I have been interested in doing this for a while just have not had the time to research and convert the shop refrigerator. This week I was looking around to possibly buy a few dry aged steaks to decide if the difference is worth the time & money involved.

My question for you is how did you decide on the humidity level that you are using?

The reason I ask is while looking for dry aged steaks at Pat La Frieda's website (http://lafrieda.com) they say "The environment in our aging rooms is meticulously maintained to a temperature of 35 degrees and less than 10% humidity."

Honestly the money you would spend on dry aged steaks would be about the same I have invested in everything. Which is about $150 including the prime rib.

I keep my humidity between 70-80% humidity, that is the ideal humidity for aging steaks without having the meat dry out too fast and halts enzymatic breakdown, which is what makes the beef more tender. After 34 days the enzymatic breakdown stops and after that all you get is moisture loss for a more intense beef flavor.

I'd take what any company says with a grain of salt, 10% is just too low and would desiccate the meat too fast.

75-85% is correct.
It also keeps weight loss down.

Note: the NCBA has stated that there are "no real advantages for extended aging past 14 days."

I thought the salt needed to be in contact with the meat to be of any benefit...I don't get it.

Very impressed . . . and jealous. Nice job!

If anyone want's to try dry aging they need to read up on it. I see many comments that are heresay and some that are irrelevant. Some are just plain false. Salt is not antibiotic. It drys out organisms so they can't grow. You can buy salt for $8.00 per fifty pounds. For this use only salt is salt. Dry aging requires positive ventilation. Humidity must be kept low that's why you monitor it and change the salt. It never contacts the meat. 14 days is Ok but 30 is better. High humidity and little ventilation is a perfect place for bacteria to grow. Don't take chances and don't listen to uncle Henry's advice. Wrapping the meat is a waste of time. The big boys just hang it on a hook. With proper temperature, humidity, and proper ventilation there is no reason to open the door except to change the salt. If you want to see what's going on in there put a micro camera in the box. KISS

I know what is cooking tonight! Nice job..

Thanks guys. It's a time consuming process but so worth it!

And you are correct captndan.

Hey guys just figured I'd drop in and give a quick update. I know it's not long after but I know some like to see progress after a few days just to gauge their own progress in the future. It's day 12 and I've seen the most drastic change so far. The outer layer has darkened severely and it has a beef jerky bark texture/color to it now. Won't be long till this baby is ready to be cooked. :mrgreen:

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Lookin' good so far.
Will you slice off and toss the outer layer? I've heard it both ways.

IMO that's really only needed if you have a moldy outer later. I trim it a little bit but not much. It all depends on the meat really. I've eaten dried meat before with white mold that you just brush off and I've been perfectly fine. Just comes down to the person I guess.

heres a tutorial

http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/sh...81#post2162281

At the two week mark!

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Nice and crusty :mrgreen:

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Also my other images aren't loading? Anyway I can edit my posts to fix the pictures?

That has been a fun process to watch. Looking great! How do you determine when it's ready? Is it personal preference or is there a "right" time?

Very nice. Might have to add this to my ever growing arsenal of cooking equipment!!

will do!

It's all a matter of patience. The longer you age it the more tender it becomes, up to the 34 days at least since anything after that only effects taste and not tenderness.
definitely do this if you have the extra time!

Here it is at 21 days. One more week till I cook it :mrgreen:

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At the 26 day mark! Two mor days til :grilling_smilie:

Perfect conditions!

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Looks so good. :drool

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Thanks for looking. :wave:

That is really coming out nicely!

Very cool and interesting. I will be awaiting plenty of pron from your cook!

Thanks guys! I am not sure if I am going to cut these into big steaks or cook it using the salt crust method whole. Decisions... decisions....

Awesome. Appreciate the progress pics!

Anytime! I know dry aging scares a lot of people but its not as bad as everyone thinks. Just keep temp and humidity constant and let it sit. The hardest part is not taking it out and eating it! :becky:

well????:twitch:

What he says.

ok, temp we got how do you measure humidity ? I would love to try this, however cautious of time temp humidity and spoils,