Hard to tell with that photo, maybe a little darker.
I say noticeably darker but Iām 1600 miles away plus thereās always the different angle of the sun factor, but Iām sticking with my gut reaction of darker.
Iām honestly very color blind. It looked darker to me but that doesnāt matter. The taste is what will matter, and/or the tenderness. I think this will be good or a failure and I will mess it up in the drying process. Again, I realize this isnāt aging but it is a cheaper and cheating way to get a better steak.
@jcostiones and vk, do you guys ever do any traditional dry aging? I never have.
Iām too big of a chicken to try dry ageing but Iām wishing the best for yours and Iām looking forward to the report.
My mega HEB grocer has a great meat market and sells dry aged in house prime for 30 bucks but Iāll have to double check the price.
Iām a chicken too lol. I decided to try this fake aging method to maybe get my confidence up. Iāll report back in a few days. I realize it isnāt aging but maybe this is the step I need to gain confidence. If this doesnāt work I hope it wonāt scare me off. I want to buy some fridge off craiglist and see if I can really do some dry aging. I wonder if the work is worth the reward.
FYI I got this crab covered bad boy at One 18 Bistro in Deal which is my official go-to good steak place now, itās official. (Up charges over the $24 menu price for the steak)
I know you know the manager or owner there. Do you know the bartender Mike? Skinny kid, looks like Iggy Pop?
Looking good! Did they cook that crab with any butter or give you any?
I āthinkā I met him last Sunday which is actually when this picture was taken. I know the big guy,
āBeefā I know the guy with the pony tail in the band, last Sunday was a new ākidā younger, thin, with some scruffy facial hair. (personally I wouldnāt compare him to Iggyā¦lol)
No, it was just placed on top, there is actually some crumbled blue cheese on there also.
Yep. I have a dedicated beer fridge in the basement that I use for stuff like this. You want to use a fridge you donāt open on a regular basis, so the temperature and humidity stay constant.
You also want to do a whole strip loin or a prime rib, at least 6-7 lbs. You will lose 25 % to water loss and trimming of mold on the finished steak. Thatās why you do bigger pieces, less loss to trimming.
I usually go 21 days.
I rotate cover the cut with cheesecloth on a rack and rotate on a regular basis, but donāt use a fan.
Thereās a whole series of photos on CH that I posted showing progress.
I have done this for a Christmas prime rib before (which you can get on special at Thanksgiving) with spectacular results.
PS. Helga complains about the smell in the fridge afterwards, so if you donāt like an off bleu cheese smell in the fridge you may want to reconsider.
I use the same fridge for gravlax too, so there is a serious conflagration of funk in that box.
I think Iāve mentioned this before, but I have a (former chef) pal who works with/for Steakager, which he swears is a fantastic piece of kitchen hardwareāand he generally doesnāt rave about gadgets. Evidently theyāre launching a new streamlined (and cheaper, iirc) version soon; Iāll certainly post about it (or get him on here) when it does, as some of you may be interested in it.
He was there from opening day, so probably not the same guy. Friend of mine from old man hockey team in red bank. Still need to go down there and see him.
Is this the one?http://www.foodrepublic.com/2017/02/13/steakager-dry-aged-beef-to-your-kitchen/
Iām looking to keep this gangster as hell. I want to spend like 20 bucks on a used beer fridge lol
@joonjoon any ideas on budget aged beef?
If you had enough room in the fridge you could suspend it from a hook, which would be better than the rack and cheesecloth.
Main thing is to get air circulating around it as wet spots give rise to nasty bacteria.
Usually after 3-4 days it dries out so the problem is solved after that
Yeah I just donāt have the room. I could maybe stash a beer fridge under my deck. Iām just asking myself, āis it worth the effort?ā Like home brewing, itās a labor of love. Iām not sure if buying locally dry aged beef would be more cost effective.
It could just be easier to grow some oregano
Whatās the power source for the fan and the microbe light?
Does the microbe light affect beneficial molds?
Yes! He really raves about it. @NotViking I donāt know squat about this stuff, but I know you get all of the info on their site, and as I said, Iām going to try to get him on HO to discuss. Heās insane with the info on this; Iāve only tasted some of his āexperimentsā and they were WONDERFUL.
https://www.amazon.com/Xultrashine-Sterilizer-Germicidal-disinfection-sterilization/dp/B075W86X63
And a used Amana for $ 100 on Craigslist.
https://jerseyshore.craigslist.org/app/d/white-amana-fridge/6609665345.html
Complete set up for $ 119.49, and I will bet you can bargain them down on the fridge. All you need is a 12v power source.
Includes plenty of room for beer and a handy freezer for crabs and moose meat too.
As Red Green used to say
If the fridge has a 12v socket for the light bulb you should be able to wire things up directly. Youād just have to bypass the switch in the door which turns off the light bulb.