Dry Aging: A whole Rib Eye Loin Roast Pictorial

[FrankZ]

* hat trick
** 5.08cm thick

Nice of you to translate to Canadian for him.

 

[Rocklobster]

Yeah, how will you know?
Are you just going by time? Is there a firmness (or lack of) you are checking out? A color?

And I opt for one steak cut and cooked like you normally would just to see. Kind of like an appy for you and your boss, but the home run* would be a nice 2" thick** cut reverse seared. mmmm






* hat trick
** 5.08cm thick

We'll see what we can do. He is keeping a pretty close eye on it. It is ready to eat when it starts to resemble one of Gump Worsley's goalie pads. I was schooled just before the conversion to the metric system so I pretty much go by the old skool rool...er

 

[Rocklobster]

Two weeks in. Three more to go....

 

[Andy M.]

You can really see some dramatic changes now.

 

[4meandthem]

Are you planning on roasting it whole or carving steaks and grilling them?

 

[Rocklobster]

You can really see some dramatic changes now.

For sure. The photo doesn't show the true color. Probably because of the flash. Is seems a lot darker with more greyish tones in person. It is getting very hard also. Might be like beef jerky by the time it is finished...

 

[Rocklobster]

Are you planning on roasting it whole or carving steaks and grilling them?

I guess that depends on how big of a piece we get out of it. My buddy/boss plans on having eight of us out for dinner, so if we can get 8 decent steaks out of it then I think that is what he plans to do. A few of us are big eaters so we would like for the steaks to be fairly substantial after all of this anticipation. It would be fun to roast whole, in a charcoal cooker. But, any party I have been to at his place, its has been hard to concentrate for a long period of time. He likes to keep the glasses full.

 

[pacanis]

... He likes to keep the glasses full.

Well somebody must be emptying the glasses then

Big changes on this photo.
Could you stop, trim and eat it at any time or once you start dry aging it are you committed for the whole duration?

 

[Aunt Bea]

Does anyone know how this dry aging process differs from wet aging?

This is an excerpt from a post by BigJim68 on wet aging.

Aging is important. Most supermarket steak has little, if any age. There are two reasons, cost, and the fact that aged meat loses the bright red color that some buyers favor. The choices with the consumer concerning aging are to pay the price for dry aged restuarant quality staek, somewhere in the $12 +/lb range, or purchase sub primal cuts in Cryovac and age it wet yourself. Prime grade ribeyes here are about $8/pound. Around 45 - 60 days works for me, from packing date. The date of packing is stamped on the box, and the butcher should be able to get it for you. Just store the unbroken package in the referigerator.

 

[Andy M.]

Does anyone know how this dry aging process differs from wet aging?...

If you buy a whole cut of meat, such as a strip loin, ribeye (like roch's) they usually come in a vacuum sealed heavy plastic wrapper. Storing the meat in that plastic package and aging it is wet aging.

 

[Aunt Bea]

If you buy a whole cut of meat, such as a strip loin, ribeye (like roch's) they usually come in a vacuum sealed heavy plastic wrapper. Storing the meat in that plastic package and aging it is wet aging.

I understand that.

What I don't understand are the pros and cons of one method vs the other.

The wet aging appeals to me because it requires no work and little chance of error.

My gut tells me that dry aging is the superior way to go but, I don't really know why.

 

[pacanis]

I recall seeing one of those food shows, Steak USA or something, that showed the steak houses in NYC dry aging their steaks on racks in a climate/humidity controlled cooler. Of all the restaurants they showed none were wet aging, so I imagine there is a difference in end quality or a reason they went this route. None were doing whole loins either. They had the beef already cut into steaks. They did not show if they trimmed the meat or not.

 

[Rocklobster]

Could you stop, trim and eat it at any time or once you start dry aging it are you committed for the whole duration?

Sure. You could eat it any time. We just chose a certain date because it was a long weekend and we planned to have a bit of a party. I would have been happy with 4 weeks, but it looks like it will be 5 weeks or more.

 

[Rocklobster]

I understand that.

My gut tells me that dry aging is the superior way to go but, I don't really know why.

I have read that the meat has natural enzymes that break down the muscle fibers which would make it more tender. And by removing moisture it becomes more concentrated in size and flavor. Same principal as reducing a broth or sauce, I would think. Except this is a solid substance.

 

[Rocklobster]

I recall seeing one of those food shows, Steak USA or something, that showed the steak houses in NYC dry aging their steaks on racks in a climate/humidity controlled cooler. Of all the restaurants they showed none were wet aging, so I imagine there is a difference in end quality or a reason they went this route. None were doing whole loins either. They had the beef already cut into steaks. They did not show if they trimmed the meat or not.

I am assuming the humidity is fine in this fridge. The piece is very dry, no mold is forming on it. It is about 8 feet away from the fan so there is good air circulation around it. I am not sure how much is going to have to be trimmed away. Your guess is as good as mine. We will see and I will take pictures of it for everybody.

 

[pacanis]

Sure. You could eat it any time. We just chose a certain date because it was a long weekend and we planned to have a bit of a party. I would have been happy with 4 weeks, but it looks like it will be 5 weeks or more.

I see. I wasn't sure if there was a period of... chemical unrest... A period in the middle where it was unsafe as compared to the end result.

Carry on

 

[dcSaute]

rock -
been watching this thread; I'm surprised no one has ever taken the time to look into the dry aging thing.

few places dry age past 20 days - 'just so they can say..' and I'm aware of only one place that roams into the 30-40 day range.
you will find many opinions that anything past 10 days is 'wasted'
I do one week in my home fridge; I like the results.

your conditions:
34-36'F is the recommended temp; 2'C is spot on
humidity - this is a problem. recommended for long term is 75% RH at 34-36'F
the walk is likely more in the 35%RH range. you may wind up with beef jerky. when it gets too dry, the enzymes no longer do their thing.

from your last pix, that chunk is not likely to feed 8 people after trim.
dry aging over long periods is usually done in a special super-clean, uv-circ'd air-germ-zappers, etc etc.

as a Plan B you might want to consider hanging another pc at the "10 day before eating" point....

 

[Rocklobster]

Thanks for the info. I felt the time frame was a bit long, but that is what he wants to do. I may try to convince him to eat it earlier. The walk in fridge is only a couple of years old and holds temp spot on. One thing I would like to do is get the piece out of the direct air flow of the fan. This may prevent it from drying out. I may try to move it into a mesh bag on a lower wire shelf in the fridge. Neither of us have ever done this to this extent so we are just winging it. I have done it in my fridge with 5 lb roasts and such, but never longer than 10 days or so but I'm not driving the bus on this trip.

Thanks for your interest and input.

 

[buckytom]

i'm fascinated by this thread, rock, and i'm sure i'm not the only home cook who envies you for having both the professional equipment, and the "bus driver" willing to experiment with you.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

i'm fascinated by this thread, rock, and i'm sure i'm not the only home cook who envies you for having both the professional equipment, and the "bus driver" willing to experiment with you.

That is for sure. I worked for a guy who would tell me "There's 6 cans of (blank) I'm never buying it again, figure out somehow to get rid of it." Then I would come up with something the customers really liked and he would have to start buying it again.