Brisket Aging Question

[Capn Kev]

Okay, so I have been aging my briskets for a while now. The one I put on the smoker last night I aged for exactly 40 days. It wasn't by choice, rather by circumstance (since I had one left over from last week's competition). I normally age around 30 days. So, I opened the package and the meat had a distinct "funky" smell. It wasn't rancid smelling, but definitely funky. It went away a couple of minutes after I started trimming. I had my daughter smell it, and she said it smelled like "meat". I've since cooked the brisket, and I'm in the final stages. I've tasted some samples as I'm foiling and cubing, and it tastes absolutely perfect.

Question: when and how do you know if a brisket is "bad" after aging?

 

[jimmyinsd]

meat comes into our country from overseas that is covered in maggots and mold/fuzz. all they do is power wash and scrape it down and then off to market with it. i know its gross, but i dont think its as much about the freshness as it is with reaching a temp where the harmfull bacteria is dead. if you think about it...the aging process is taking advantage of "rotting".

good luck.

 

[Bbq Bubba]

meat comes into our country from overseas that is covered in maggots and mold/fuzz. all they do is power wash and scrape it down and then off to market with it. i know its gross, but i dont think its as much about the freshness as it is with reaching a temp where the harmfull bacteria is dead. if you think about it...the aging process is taking advantage of "rotting".

good luck.

Where the fark do you buy your meat???

 

[UDS]

Where the fark do you buy your meat???

lol no kidding, I buy from a store that gets its meat from the packing plant a couple towns over...

 

[SmokeJumper]

meat comes into our country from overseas that is covered in maggots and mold/fuzz. all they do is power wash and scrape it down and then off to market with it. i know its gross, but i dont think its as much about the freshness as it is with reaching a temp where the harmfull bacteria is dead. if you think about it...the aging process is taking advantage of "rotting".

good luck.

Reminds me of the meat markets I saw in the countryside in India...

 

[Chef Jim]

Power wash? Ugggg

 

[jimmyinsd]

Where the fark do you buy your meat???

this is at the shipping ports not the packing houses. there have been documented stories for years about the condition of imported meat that gets passed by the usda.

even local meat counters have games they play with cuts of meat to extend their shelf time.

as far as my meat, i have a local butcher shop that i usually go through, although i also have my own herd of mixed cattle, i choose not to butcher my own since there are only certain cuts from the animal that i want and i can only eat so much hamburger. better for me to take mine to the sale barn.

i grew up in a midwestern meat packing town, there is nothing people can tell me about meat that would shock me or make me not eat meat.

 

[jeffboyette]

ah come on. BS! maggots and pressure washing, As an electrician at a packing house, it was amazing at the prefectly good meat that didnt get passed. Shipped overseas and got maggots?..... Vacuum sealed and frozen. Where are the flies getting in?

 

[Neil]

Where the fark do you buy your meat???

You're farking beautiful Bubba!:lol::lol:

 

[jimmyinsd]

i am not saying it is a norm, i know i read an article a few years ago that talked about it though. i am unsuccessfully trying to find an old link.

 

[Capn Kev]

So, I guess the answer to my question...

If it don't kill you, it's okay? :wink:

 

[RobKC]

Question: when and how do you know if a brisket is "bad" after aging?

When the funky smell doesn't go away.

Rinse and trim off the dark patches and you'll end up with a nice piece of meat to cook.

 

[jimmyinsd]

So, I guess the answer to my question...

If it don't kill you, it's okay? :wink:

:thumb: words to live by my friend...that and "its easier to ask forgiveness, than it is permission.":-D

 

[Capn Kev]

Thanks for the feedback Rob...that's what I kind of figured. Just needed some confirmation.

 

[Bacon_99]

Found an article that will make maggots in your meat seem normal - apparently FDA allows all kinds of great stuff in things like mushrooms, tomato juice, etc before it being considered not for human consumption...

For your reading pleasure... http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/13/opinion/13levy.html?_r=2

 

[Capn Kev]

btw...the "brisket in question" cooked up great, and the flavor is amazing! :thumb:

 

[vr6Cop]

Nice ends Cap'n!

Like Rob said, you'll know when it's bad because the smell is nasty and won't go away. The funky meaty smell takes a couple of times to get used to. It is a little musky, but in a good way. Smells like beef. :wink: