Dry Ageing Your Own Steaks

[Masterkova]

Do any of you do this? I've seen a number of articles and videos lately that suggest "ageing" your steaks by essentially airing them in your refrigerator for 3-7 days before grilling. The claim is that this will approximate the taste of dry-aged steakhouse cuts.

Has anyone tried this? If so, how did you do it and what did you think of the results?

 

[jwhite]

Dry aging individual steaks is a bit of a misnomer, what your really doing is allowing some of the moisture to evaporate. This will concentrate flavor to a degree and is an improvement, but depending on the thickness of the steaks I'd keep it to around 24 hours or you end up with a hard dry exterior that needs to be trimmed and you loose a portion, some times a lot, of your already trimmed steak. If you really want to try dry aging at home get a whole untrimmed loin so that you can allow the time for aging to occur, and have beautifully trimmed steaks that aren't too lean.

 

[SmoovD]

I believe that "over salting" steak accomplishes the same moisture removal in less time. The times I have oversalted steaks I have have had great success.

 

[global_dev]

iu don't know how people feel about seriouseats, but here is a steak salting article i read a while ago.

http://www.seriouseats.com/2011/03/the-food-lab-more-tips-for-perfect-steaks.html

 

[Alacrity59]

I believe that "over salting" steak accomplishes the same moisture removal in less time. The times I have oversalted steaks I have have had great success.

One of the better things that I've found that works on steaks is Bob Bloomer's father's secret sauce. 1 tbsp cayenne, 3 tbsp salt, dissolved in one cup of warm water. Put in a squirt bottle and use this to bast while grilling. Recipe Here

 

[jwhite]

salting is different than aging, and if not carefully done can make the meat too salty and prevent a crust from forming as the steaks exterior is wet with the moisture. I think the technique can be good, but it is very different in flavor and technique from aging.

 

[_JP_]

The way I understand it, the dry aging process not only let's some of the moisture out of the meat, it also allows bacteria to grow. That is what tenderizes and adds flavor to the meat. I think it takes a few weeks, and it is done with large chunks of meat which are cut into individual steaks after the aging process is complete. Trying it with individual steaks doesn't work as well.

 

[Jim]

I always lightly salt meat and place on a wire rack to rest for one to several days in the fridge. Covering it with a tea towel keeps it from drying out too much.

I have had some remarkable results with this technique.

 

[Masterkova]

Hmmmm... Sounds intriguing. I think I'll do some experimenting (and post results). Keep the suggestions coming!

 

[Edcculus]

There is a podcast through The Brewing Network called "The Homebrewed Chef". The main focus of the podcast is cooking with beer, but they have an episode called "Meat Your Butcher". The host goes into pretty good detail on how to age steaks at home.

From what I gathered, Wet Aging is much easier and safer at home. Most places that dry age use very clean rooms, with pretty intense UV light to inhibit bacteria growth. Since the average fridge isn't the cleanest place in the world, its not always conducive to dry aging without a more dedicated setup.

 

[RABIDMONKEY]

I got a buddy thats a chef at a upscale hotel they use larger chunks of meat they dry with salt In a sepperate special walkin fridge and then trim the rotten/ dried stuff off . Ive also been to a steak house that did this trim down in Vancouver the meat was greenish before the trim down , the finished steak was good but not as tender as veal

 

[Samurai-5]

This works for me:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/dry-aged-chimney-porterhouse-recipe/index.html

(I dry age my steaks like it is stated in this recipe)

 

[global_dev]

i saw some over at primo forum used a food-vac style system with positive results for dry aging... been a while since i saw that thread though

 

[YetiDave]

With steaks I tend to pound garlic and seasalt in a pestle and mortar and literally cover the steak in it and leave it to sit on a wire rack for an hour, maybe more depending on thickness. Draws out excess moisture while adding a nice garlicky flavour, just make sure to wash off the salt and garlic and dry the steak thoroughly before you grill it