How to Dry Age Beef at Home
Dry aging beef allows naturally occurring enzymes to break down molecules within the muscle into more flavorful & tender forms. While you probably want to leave extended dry aging to experts with specially built facilities, it’s easy to dry age beef for short periods in your refrigerator. Here’s how:
What Cuts to Dry Age:
When dry-aging you want to use large roast cuts (whole ribeyes, whole top sirloins, whole striploins, etc). Once they’ve been aged you can roast them whole, cut into smaller roasts or slice into steaks.
Equipment You’ll Need:
A sheet pan or half-sheet pan (a baking sheet with edges), roasting pan or large plate – – to catch juices
A heavy-duty cooling rack or roasting rack – – to keep the meat out of the juices
Lots of room on the bottom shelf of your refrigerator
instructions
At least four days before you’re planning on cooking your beef, unwrap it & dry off all the surface moisture.
Move any foods that are pre-cooked or will be eaten raw away from the spot in your fridge where you’ll be aging the beef. This is simply an extra safety precaution to avoid any escaped beef juices contaminating other foods.
Put the sheet pan or roasting pan on the bottom shelf of your refrigerator. Put the rack on top of it, then put your beef on top of the rack. Do not cover the beef.
Before cooking, trim off any partially dry/discolored portions of meat & fat on the surface and discard them.
Culinary Techniques