Dry ageing meat

[Malcolm Loades]

I've just received these dry ageing bags from Amazon
https://tinyurl.com/yca992xc

I learned of them in a very roundabout way. It all started last week
when I found a collar of pork in a supermarket, I'd never seen a collar
joint in a supermarket before so bought it. Now what to with it? Of
course slow cooking or roasting came to mind and then I remembered
Coppa, the Italian dry cured meat which is made from pork collar.

Firstly the meat is cured in salt and flavourings for several days.
Mine is currently in a ziplock in the fridge having been flavoured with
black pepper, juniper berries, bay leaves and cinnamon.

Next the collar needs to be put into an ox bung and left to dry for +/-8
weeks and as an alternative to using an ox bung these dry ageing bags
were recommended. They are quite expensive at nearly £5 each and appear
to be single use. I hope they do the job.

With 2 more bags to use I'll certainly have a go at dry ageing some
beef. Possibly a sirloin joint for later slicing into steaks and some
rib. Updates to follow.

Malcolm

[Chris Green]

Post by Malcolm Loades
Firstly the meat is cured in salt and flavourings for several days.
Mine is currently in a ziplock in the fridge having been flavoured with
black pepper, juniper berries, bay leaves and cinnamon.

Isn't the *fundamental* reason for curing/salting meat to preserve it?
I.e. it's not really a way to make it better than (relatively) fresh
meat, it's a way to make it possible to eat it at times when otherwise
no meat would be available.

Now that we have refrigeration available it's not so significant and
the 'nice flavourings' that are added as part of the curing process
can be added to 'fresh' meat. That's not to say that keeping meat for
*some* time is a bad idea but I do feel that long-term preservation
with salt is not conducive to good flavour. I personally don't really
like bacon/ham/salt beef, I prefer the fresh versions. :-)

[Malcolm Loades]

Post by Chris Green

Post by Malcolm Loades
Firstly the meat is cured in salt and flavourings for several days.
Mine is currently in a ziplock in the fridge having been flavoured with
black pepper, juniper berries, bay leaves and cinnamon.

Isn't the *fundamental* reason for curing/salting meat to preserve it?
I.e. it's not really a way to make it better than (relatively) fresh
meat, it's a way to make it possible to eat it at times when otherwise
no meat would be available.

No. It's the other way round! The *fundamental* reason today is to
make it better/different. It's in the past that the fundamental reason
was to preserve it.

Ever since the invention of the freezer curing to preserve against
deterioration is not the reason for continuing to do it. It is a way to
make fresh food neither better, nor worse, just different. You may not
like bacon and ham but that's proof that they are different to uncured
pork. Like Marmite some will love this different meat and others not.

Salt cod is no longer produced to preserve fish ahead of long journeys,
ensuring that sailors had the nutrition they needed for months at sea.
It's now the main ingredient in the classic southern French dish
Brandade. And in the West Indies as Salt Fish and Akee. Fresh cod just
wouldn't work. Not forgetting Gravadlax, salted and flavoured salmon
from Scandinavia.

Do the Jews filling New York delis choose salt beef when they'd rather
have 'regular' beef?

Other methods of preservation also continue because of the taste change
they apply to foods. Smoking: kippers and fresh herring are nothing
like each other. Drying: dried peas taste nothing like fresh peas.

Post by Chris Green
Now that we have refrigeration available it's not so significant and
the 'nice flavourings' that are added as part of the curing process
can be added to 'fresh' meat. That's not to say that keeping meat for
*some* time is a bad idea but I do feel that long-term preservation
with salt is not conducive to good flavour. I personally don't really
like bacon/ham/salt beef, I prefer the fresh versions. :-)

Malcolm

[Chris Green]

Post by Malcolm Loades

Post by Chris Green

Post by Malcolm Loades
Firstly the meat is cured in salt and flavourings for several days.
Mine is currently in a ziplock in the fridge having been flavoured with
black pepper, juniper berries, bay leaves and cinnamon.

Isn't the *fundamental* reason for curing/salting meat to preserve it?
I.e. it's not really a way to make it better than (relatively) fresh
meat, it's a way to make it possible to eat it at times when otherwise
no meat would be available.

No. It's the other way round! The *fundamental* reason today is to
make it better/different. It's in the past that the fundamental reason
was to preserve it.

Er, yes, what I meant was that the *function* of curing/salting was to
preserve the meat. If it also enhances the flavour (for some people)
then that is just a side effect and it might be that there are
actually better ways to enhance flavour.

[Richard Tobin]

Post by Chris Green
Isn't the *fundamental* reason for curing/salting meat to preserve it?
I.e. it's not really a way to make it better than (relatively) fresh
meat, it's a way to make it possible to eat it at times when otherwise
no meat would be available.

This is the original reason for all kinds of foods. Pickling, drying,
preserving in sugar (jam). These have all become ways of producing
interesting flavours, and are applied to things that no longer need
such preserving.

Post by Chris Green
Now that we have refrigeration available [...]

And it's happened with refrigeration itself too. It has become a
"flavour" - who would drink room-temperature milk now? And again,
it's applied to things that don't need it: just imagine, people used
to drink white wine at room temperature! (Mind you, rooms used to be
colder.) Fortunately some still hold out against chilled beer.

-- Richard

[Malcolm Loades]

On 04/03/2022 23:31, Richard Tobin wrote:
Fortunately some still hold out against chilled beer.
Hear, hear!

It hits the stomach like a stone.

Malcolm

[Graham]

Post by Malcolm Loades
I've just received these dry ageing bags from Amazon
https://tinyurl.com/yca992xc
I learned of them in a very roundabout way.  It all started last week
when I found a collar of pork in a supermarket, I'd never seen a collar
joint in a supermarket before so bought it.  Now what to with it?  Of
course slow cooking or roasting came to mind and then I remembered
Coppa, the Italian dry cured meat which is made from pork collar.
Firstly the meat is cured in salt and flavourings for several days. Mine
is currently in a ziplock in the fridge having been flavoured with black
pepper, juniper berries, bay leaves and cinnamon.
Next the collar needs to be put into an ox bung and left to dry for +/-8
weeks and as an alternative to using an ox bung these dry ageing bags
were recommended.  They are quite expensive at nearly £5 each and appear
to be single use.  I hope they do the job.
With 2 more bags to use I'll certainly have a go at dry ageing some
beef.  Possibly a sirloin joint for later slicing into steaks and some
rib.  Updates to follow.
Malcolm

I thought that you might find this interesting. It's from the website of
the s/m I use most frequently.

Aging works magic

Aging improves two things we all love about beef – taste and tenderness.
Aging allows enzymes present in the beef to naturally improve texture
and flavour by breaking down the muscle tissue.

There are two kinds of natural aging we do at Co-op:

Wet aging – When the beef is vacuum packed in its own liquids, or “wet”.
This is the most common method.

Dry aging – Beef is stored at precise temperature and humidity levels in
a controlled environment. The combination of bacteria, enzyme breakdown
and oxidation boosts flavour and tenderness.

The difference between the two is key. Wet aging makes beef tenderer,
while dry aging improves both tenderness and taste.

While we use both wet and dry aging, there is one aging technique that
we will never use at Co-op. It’s called needling. Needles are poked into
the meat to break down the muscle tissue. The problem is you have to
cook needled meat to a higher temperature in order to kill any e-coli
bacteria that may have been pushed inside by the needles. Better to
stick to natural wet or dry aging.

What is the ideal age for beef?
Beef is aged to improve taste and tenderness, so let’s look at how aging
impacts them both.

Tenderness - Regardless of whether the beef is wet aged or dry aged, the
sweet spot for tenderness occurs between 14 and 28 days.

Taste – Remember, only dry aging impacts taste so we’ll focus on that.
The sweet spot for dry aging is between 21 and 40 days. Any longer and
you are into some pretty intense flavours and the experience becomes
very subjective. Kind of like how some people love really stinky cheese
and other people don’t.

Can you tell the difference?
Absolutely. When you have the right top-grade, well-aged beef in a dish
that is properly cooked, the experience is extraordinary. The taste, the
texture and the tenderness make every bite a delight. Cooking a meal is
a lot of work. Starting out with an excellent piece of beef is the
surest way to make that meal a hit.

[Malcolm Loades]

Post by Graham

Post by Malcolm Loades
I've just received these dry ageing bags from Amazon
https://tinyurl.com/yca992xc
I learned of them in a very roundabout way.  It all started last week
when I found a collar of pork in a supermarket, I'd never seen a collar
joint in a supermarket before so bought it.  Now what to with it?  Of
course slow cooking or roasting came to mind and then I remembered
Coppa, the Italian dry cured meat which is made from pork collar.
Firstly the meat is cured in salt and flavourings for several days. Mine
is currently in a ziplock in the fridge having been flavoured with black
pepper, juniper berries, bay leaves and cinnamon.
Next the collar needs to be put into an ox bung and left to dry for +/-8
weeks and as an alternative to using an ox bung these dry ageing bags
were recommended.  They are quite expensive at nearly £5 each and appear
to be single use.  I hope they do the job.
With 2 more bags to use I'll certainly have a go at dry ageing some
beef.  Possibly a sirloin joint for later slicing into steaks and some
rib.  Updates to follow.
Malcolm

I thought that you might find this interesting. It's from the website of
the s/m I use most frequently.
Aging works magic
Aging improves two things we all love about beef – taste and tenderness.
Aging allows enzymes present in the beef to naturally improve texture
and flavour by breaking down the muscle tissue.
Wet aging – When the beef is vacuum packed in its own liquids, or “wet”.
This is the most common method.
Dry aging – Beef is stored at precise temperature and humidity levels in
a controlled environment. The combination of bacteria, enzyme breakdown
and oxidation boosts flavour and tenderness.
The difference between the two is key. Wet aging makes beef tenderer,
while dry aging improves both tenderness and taste.
While we use both wet and dry aging, there is one aging technique that
we will never use at Co-op. It’s called needling. Needles are poked into
the meat to break down the muscle tissue. The problem is you have to
cook needled meat to a higher temperature in order to kill any e-coli
bacteria that may have been pushed inside by the needles. Better to
stick to natural wet or dry aging.
What is the ideal age for beef?
Beef is aged to improve taste and tenderness, so let’s look at how aging
impacts them both.
Tenderness - Regardless of whether the beef is wet aged or dry aged, the
sweet spot for tenderness occurs between 14 and 28 days.
Taste – Remember, only dry aging impacts taste so we’ll focus on that.
The sweet spot for dry aging is between 21 and 40 days. Any longer and
you are into some pretty intense flavours and the experience becomes
very subjective. Kind of like how some people love really stinky cheese
and other people don’t.
Can you tell the difference?
Absolutely. When you have the right top-grade, well-aged beef in a dish
that is properly cooked, the experience is extraordinary. The taste, the
texture and the tenderness make every bite a delight. Cooking a meal is
a lot of work. Starting out with an excellent piece of beef is the
surest way to make that meal a hit.

Thank you. It confirms to me that dry ageing is worth a go. I think
I'll aim for 40 day beef. If I start it tomorrow it could well be
lunch/dinner on Easter Day.

Malcolm