Dry aging beef

I've never had the chance to do this, and thought it might be cool to try it out and see what happens I guess. I saw in a certain sausage making catalog that they sell dry aging bags that you can use in the refrigerator.

Has anyone ever used these dry aging bags?
Will I need to tightly control the temp and humidity using these bags or are they pretty fool proof if the fridge is working properly?
Are there any other options besides using something like these dry age bags? I do not have a separate fridge for charcuterie(yet!), so these would be sharing a smaller beer fridge in the basement while the aging process takes place.

They are $25.00 for 3 12"X24" bags, so it's not real cheap to just give it a whirl blindly.

I think John Solak has done it before using those bag's, So maybe he'll respond.

T Perkins said:

Has anyone ever used these dry aging bags?
Will I need to tightly control the temp and humidity using these bags or are they pretty fool proof if the fridge is working properly?
Are there any other options besides using something like these dry age bags? I do not have a separate fridge for charcuterie(yet!), so these would be sharing a smaller beer fridge in the basement while the aging process takes place.

Click to expand...

We have used them a couple of times and really like the results. They are virtually fool proof in any fridge as long as you have a good seal on the bags and you have them on a rack where airflow can go all around the meat. Our fridge has glass shelves so we needed to lay the meat on a wire cooling rack to get proper airflow. I wouldn't use anything but the recommended bags for something like this.

I've dry aged beef a few times at home following techniques I picked up from Alton Brown. A lot of the better steak houses dry age their own beef or have it dry aged for them for as long as 60 days or even longer. But at home, you can get really good results even if you dry age your beef for as little as 3 days, but typically a week is good.

You do not need special bags. Use cheesecloth or paper towels which I tend to favor. I put beef on a wire rack on the lowest shelf in my refrigerator with about 1" clearance below it for max air circulation. My fridge runs coldest on the lower shelf (measures 36 to 37). Temperature control is very important. Wrap the beef in a single layer of paper towel and change this daily or until liquid stops running - day 2 or 3.

After 4 or 5 days your beef will start to develop a dry exterior and some exterior fat or beef parts may also develop crust. After 6 or 7 days you'll have a nice dry aged piece of beef. Trim parts that are very crusty or off color - it'll be obvious. There's not much waste after this period of time, but if you were to age the beef longer, you will end up trimming quite a bit more.

Dry aging a steak 3 or 4 days does enhance its flavor and worth doing. I've done large rib roasts for up to 8 days and had excellent results.

ATK has a good 60 sec primer

This link has some good info also. http://tvwbb.com/showthread.php?45571-Aging-Individual-Steaks-and-other-Pleasures

I bought dry age bags from a company called Umai. I don't remember exactly, but with shipping the bags were maybe a bit over $20 for three bags that were big enough to hold a 13.5 lb beef strip loin.

The bags are used in conjunction with a vac food sealer that I had already. The bags are made from a very thin, semi permeable material that allows moisture to escape but outside air won't get to the meat.

Umai has videos on their website that help get you started. I admit it is a challenge to get it right the first time...it takes some practice. Your goal is to get the bag to seal against the meat tightly with minimal air pockets.

I started with a strip loin from Sam's that was UDSA Choice. It was a decent piece of meat, but not Prime as I would have preferred. After sealing, I put on a rack (to allow circulation) in the bottom of my second fridge in my storeroom. I chose this one since I am not in and out much and the temp stays constant. I did note strong meaty smells during the curing process, and I put a few charcoal briquettes on a paper plate near the meat to absorb odors. These odors are not bad like spoiled meat....just a meaty kind of earthy odor.

I cured for 30 days before taking off bag. The meat was dark and the outside reminded me of a beef jerky look. I cut into steaks and trimmed off the crusty exterior. The interior was a deep burgandy red with a wonderful feel to the knife.

The joy was in the taste and texture. Wow..I mean wow. This is a $50+ dollar strip steak in a fine steak house. Of course there is some loss of moisture and trimmings. I calculated I had 13.5 pounds when I started, and ended up with 10 pounds of finished product. I can find dry aged beef at Whole Foods grocery store, and I did mine for half the price per pound that they sell there. Plus I have the satisfaction of doing it at home and controlling the entire process. Highly recommend others to try this as well!