Meat aging question

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RUGER

RUGER

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Ok so I never thought about it before but I guess the secret (one of them) of really tender steaks is to age the meat.

Yes you can buy aged beef, but what about this?

Buy me a couple of nice looking ribeyes or something like that and put them in a ziplock bag with some kind of marinade.

Put them in the fridge for say, 3 days and then take them out and grill them.

Would that be a good way to age it so that it would be tender?
 
Not sure if aging is what I'd call it, but I just did that exact thing with two ribeyes and 3 fillets this weekend. Put them in a marinade on Friday night and grilled them Sunday evening. They was somemorekindagood!!!
 
Not sure about "wet ageing", but some places "dry age" thier steaks, so they lose moisture and weight, but they have a more concentrated "steak" flavor.
 
I just now got through crying. Took me while to get over the fact that someone marinated a filet.
 
Poser said:
No, don't do that -no need to marinade them. You want to dry age them. There was an episode of Alton Brown about dry aging steaks at home. I believe the premise of the show was how to have a $150 steak dinner for $15. You might look for that episode on Youtube or on the Food Netwok website.

In the meantime, here is the general idea:

http://www.evilshenanigans.com/2011/03/dry-aged-steak/

You'll need little more than a cooling rack and paper towels. If memory serves, Alton Brown didn't even use a cooling rack, he just made a "rack" out of wooden skewers and a plate.
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You beat me to it. Alton Brown. The answer will always be Alton Brown.

That being said, I've never had an aged steak that really blew me away.
 
Aha...missed it. Must've been a subliminal response to avoid crying about it.... :D
 
I've had some great aged steak. ONly thing I would add to Poser's link is some dalloop of butter with garlic salt and chives mixed in with it on top of the foiled steak...and I'd take the sugar and peprika out of the rub. Never tried Peprika or sugar just know how I like em.
 
Aging beef is awesome.

Find a local grass fed beef producer and a couple friends to split a beef.

What you are looking for is someone who doesn't use hormones and heavy grain rations to finish a beef. Grow on grass, finish on a supplemental grain ration to enhance marbling and flush the onions etc... out of the system. Max of 60 days.

Then have the processor hang 1 day for every 100lbs dressed. We like ours 12-14 days. ( a little extra)

Once you get away from factory farmed beef you buy at the grocery, it will be near impossible to ever eat it again.

Some of the best steaks I have had anywhere came from a beef my father in law fed out for us.

Wet marinating is a good way to make a poor quality piece of meat better, but it usually overpowers the flavor of the meat and turns it into a salt lick.
 
I honestly can't tell a difference. But my mom can. I don't think her sensitive palate is accustomed to such strong meat flavors, as her entire diet is storebought.

I don't think dad cares.
 
fishboy1 said:
Aging beef is awesome.

Once you get away from factory farmed beef you buy at the grocery, it will be near impossible to ever eat it again.
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I agree...my grand uncle had a 1100 acre cattle farm in Hardeman Co, and would finish his meat calfs this way. Usually butchered them to finish around 800#. It was devine. Burger couldn't be touched.

I can't tell the difference in deer, but I'll start to have to pay attention.

Anyone around Louisville want to split a beef?
 
I marinate filets. But for flavor, not tenderness. I find that filets have a much milder flavor than other cuts of beef. I like a heartier beef flavor.
 
RUGER said:
Ok so I never thought about it before but I guess the secret (one of them) of really tender steaks is to age the meat.

Yes you can buy aged beef, but what about this?

Buy me a couple of nice looking ribeyes or something like that and put them in a ziplock bag with some kind of marinade.

Put them in the fridge for say, 3 days and then take them out and grill them.

Would that be a good way to age it so that it would be tender?
Click to expand...

You will achieve some tenderness by using the marinade by chemical break down of the tissue, the ingredients such as vinegar, citris, etc. True/natural aging is a bacterial break down in the tissue under a controlled environment(temp, humidity, time)

I have not aged any beef, as I don't buy it at all from a store. But, every single bit of my harvested venison goes through the aging process before being packaged and stored in the freezer.

Min. of 7 days, up to 10, on racks in drip pans at between 35-38 degs in the reg. Covered with plastic wrap to prevent total drying of the outside. I will tell you there is a "definate" difference in aged meat and from the hoof to the plate.

FDXX75
 
The best\closest thing that I have found was posted here some time back. Completely coat both sides of a near room temperature steak with a coarse salt. Allow it to sit this way for an hour. Rinse, season to taste and cook. The salt will pull much of the moisture{blood} from the cut.
 
Kingston said:
The best\closest thing that I have found was posted here some time back. Completely coat both sides of a near room temperature steak with a coarse salt. Allow it to sit this way for an hour. Rinse, season to taste and cook. The salt will pull much of the moisture{blood} from the cut.
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No no no no no no no no no no......

Do not rinse. The steak should already have been rinsed, patted dry prior to the aging process. A properly aged steak is ready to cook. Season it, let it come to room temperature, then cook.

The salt will draw moisture (not blood) to the surface of the meat, where it will then dissolve the salt. The now "dry" interior of the steak will then begin to reabsorb salted water, thereby fully permeating the steak with salt.

DO NOT RE-INTRODUCE MOISTURE TO AN ALREADY AGED CUT OF MEAT!
 
Sorry PASCHAL-I didn't mean aged beef. This is beef either store or farm bought and straight from the fridge. I rinse the salt off, then pat dry just prior to grilling.
 
Aha....even then, I wouldn't bother rinsing the salt off, unless it's just piled on the surface. A properly salted and rested hunk of meat shouldn't have any visible salt crystals or pooled liquid on it surface. For a proper sear, dry meat is best, that's why I say don't rinse off prior to cooking.
 
Poser said:
FULLDRAWXX75 said:
RUGER said:
Ok so I never thought about it before but I guess the secret (one of them) of really tender steaks is to age the meat.

Yes you can buy aged beef, but what about this?

Buy me a couple of nice looking ribeyes or something like that and put them in a ziplock bag with some kind of marinade.

Put them in the fridge for say, 3 days and then take them out and grill them.

Would that be a good way to age it so that it would be tender?
Click to expand...

You will achieve some tenderness by using the marinade by chemical break down of the tissue, the ingredients such as vinegar, citris, etc. True/natural aging is a bacterial break down in the tissue under a controlled environment(temp, humidity, time)

I have not aged any beef, as I don't buy it at all from a store. But, every single bit of my harvested venison goes through the aging process before being packaged and stored in the freezer.

Min. of 7 days, up to 10, on racks in drip pans at between 35-38 degs in the reg. Covered with plastic wrap to prevent total drying of the outside. I will tell you there is a "definate" difference in aged meat and from the hoof to the plate.

FDXX75
Click to expand...

Only problem I see here is the temperature. At 35-38 degrees, you'll get a very slow breakdown. 50 to 55 would be much more ideal. I don't have the setup to do that, but, by aging in a cooler you can get closer to 50 degrees, get more bacteria (the good kind) and achieve more of the aging process. Large coolers setup specifically for aging with racks (which I do not have either) are probably the next best thing to having dedicated aging refrigerator (ideally, you would even use dry ice instead of wet ice). Of course, aging in 35-38 degrees is better than not aging at all, since you will get some breakdown. Also, there is no reason to age the Tenderloins. If you are going to eat one cut straight off the hoof, this is the one.

I've had the "covert-a dorm-fridge" to a meat aging/sausage curing setup on my to do list for a couple of years. Hopefully, I'll get around to it soon.
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The following was copied from a site on the proper methods of aging meat.



Aging environments:

Temperature, relative humidity, air movement and general sanitation of the aging room are essential considerations in successfully aging beef. Temperature of the aging room should be maintained at approximately 34 to 36 degrees Fahrenheit, relative humidity at 85 to 90 percent and an air flow of 15 to 20 linear feet per minute at the surface of the product.

FDXX75
 
Poser, how do you address gutting & hanging a deer in mid-50's November? Are you of the type to rush it into an ice packing or a freezer?
 
Poser said:
TAFKAP said:
Poser, how do you address gutting & hanging a deer in mid-50's November? Are you of the type to rush it into an ice packing or a freezer?
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I usually gut a deer ASAP, but my recoveries are often lengthy. So long as I have them gutted, I seldom worry about spoilage. Sometimes I butcher them in the field, especially if is in a difficult spot, sometimes I take them home. If its cold out, I don't have a problem leaving them out over night, but they are easier to skin when warm. I've never had one spoil on me, but I do try to get them on ice when I can, usually letting then age for several days, depending on how many deer I have the temps outside.

I have yet to find one decisive method. Temps and the amount of deer can be a significant factor, since I don't have a walk in cooler setup.
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Personally, I feel the final outcome of your venison is directly related to how it handled and cared for from the time the animal hits the ground (actually once the shot is taken). The quicker the animal drops and can be recovered and gutted the better the end result will be, along with the care of the processing methods.

I prefer to let my deer hang on the hook (hide on) for at least 5-7 days as long as the temps are not above 40-42 degs for any length of time during that period, if the temps are above that, skinned, quartered and placed in the cooling 'frig for 7-10 days.

I will try to debone the meat once quartered if possible but not always.


FDXX75
 
Poser said:
A buddy of mine ages his game birds (pheasant, turkey, quail etc) feathers in and with the guts intact in a 55 degree refridgerator for 3 to 7 days. I don't have the confidence to do this yet, but, same thing: thousands of years of curing practices and his meals are difficult to argue with.
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I've been doing this with turkeys for a long time now. Haven't died yet...lol
 
TAFKAP said:
Aha....even then, I wouldn't bother rinsing the salt off, unless it's just piled on the surface. A properly salted and rested hunk of meat shouldn't have any visible salt crystals or pooled liquid on it surface. For a proper sear, dry meat is best, that's why I say don't rinse off prior to cooking.
Click to expand...

I literally coat the already patted dry surface with 1/8-1/4" of salt and let it sit for a good hour. then rinse all salt off and pat dry again prior to grilling.
 
I have let deer hang for several days in 50ish temps, but always out of sunlight so it's most likely 4-7 degrees cooler there. never have had a problem with spoiling.
 
Kingston said:
TAFKAP said:
Aha....even then, I wouldn't bother rinsing the salt off, unless it's just piled on the surface. A properly salted and rested hunk of meat shouldn't have any visible salt crystals or pooled liquid on it surface. For a proper sear, dry meat is best, that's why I say don't rinse off prior to cooking.
Click to expand...

I literally coat the already patted dry surface with 1/8-1/4" of salt and let it sit for a good hour. then rinse all salt off and pat dry again prior to grilling.
Click to expand...

Gotcha....try sprinkling your steak with the salt next time. You won't waste the salt, but the flavor will be the same. Don't be afraid to use "too much", until it starts to bury the steak. I would say that a safe estimate for a typical NY Strip will be about 1tsp of Kosher salt.
 

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