Is my meat safe to eat?

[Huan Pham]

I am a newbie here. I bought $70 worth of ribeye 4 weeks ago and proceeded to use the starter bags that were included with the sealer. The first bag was vacuumed tight, however when the sealer was turned off, within a few minutes I noticed the tight bond between the bag and the meat was gone, and there were space in between the two. I did not think much of it, and put the meat away in the fridge. A day later, when I looked at the bag, all the air-tightness were gone, and the meat was sitting in the bag loosely. I then replaced the bag, and used the second bag that was shipped with the sealer. The same result occurred. Now the meat has been sitting in the fridge for 4 weeks, the color turns dark, but all the air-tightness and the bond were totally gone.

So is the meat safe to eat? and what would cause the bond to be gone?

Was it the way I sealed? I followed the instruction pretty well, watched the you-tube video, and thought I did it the right way. I really do not want to throw the meat away ($70), but I don’t feel good putting my family through this meat either.

Please help! Thanks.

[Ron Pratt]

Huan,

Welcome aboard – let’s get some more info before we go much further:

These were the Drybags you used and not the bags that came with the Sinbo – right?

What has been your temperature in your refrig all this time to the best of your knowledge?

Have you used your nose to just sniff around the exterior of the bag?

Have you removed the meat from the bag already? If so had the bag attached itself – even in spite of some air pockets? I refer to a bag being pulled off like the removal of the backing of Contact paper. It doesn’t rip, but needs a little tug to peel it off.

Once the bag is off then smell it – it should NOT smell rancid, but has a rather “earthy” smell to it.

BTW just to ease your concerns some people just leave their raw meat sitting in their refrig to age so even if you didn’t get a good bond you did have the protection and controlled moisture release that the Drybag provides.

My gut feeling is you’ll be just fine as newbie worries are commonplace!

Ron

[Ron Pratt]

huanpham wrote:

quote :

The first bag was vacuumed tight, however when the sealer was turned off, within a few minutes I noticed the tight bond between the bag and the meat was gone, and there were space in between the two.

Huan,

I just realized that I had forgotten to address this part of your post…

If you lost the seal that quickly then I suspect your setting on your sealer was way too low and never bonded the bag on to itself – a simple close inspection will show you a solid seam that is no longer as opaque as the bag itself.

Seeing that you said this happened with two bags then I’m sure the poor sealing was the issue.

Also when you said you watched the video would you mind telling me if it was the one I posted a couple years ago using a Food Saver or was it one of the more recent ones on YouTube using a VacMouse? I’m a bit confused…Thanks for replying…

Ron

[Huan Pham]

Ron,

Thanks for a graciously quick response. I watched the foodwish video that was on the UMAi website. I do think what you said about setting the sealer too low, and that might be the problem.

I am gonna open the bag and smell the meat. If it smells earthy, then I will take a chance and grill it.

I do have a foodsaver, perhaps I should try that with a VacMouse on next trial. What do you suggest?

Thanks, Huan

[Ron Pratt]

Huan,

Everything is relative as they say, but I also have to ask how large – weight wise – was your $70 piece of rib eye? Was it in one piece and not in pieces? THAT may make a BIG difference if it was already sliced before you tried to age it. Actually a really BIG difference!

I have an early Dr. appointment in the morning and have to get to bed – so please don’t think my lack of more replies tonight means I have abandoned you!…I gotta go…good night!

Ron

[Huan Pham]

Ha ha, you are too kind Ron.

Good luck with your appt tomorrow. Hope they find you 100% in perfect health.

The meat was in one piece, from Costco.

Huan

[Thea]

Huan,
It sounds like you had a very familiar experience of customers who have relied on Chef John’s FoodWishes video for instruction how to use the Starter Kit–he makes it look sooooo easy!! Getting a bond the first time can be tricky.

We have lots of suggestions for helping create the bond–merely starting the aging the the fat cap up and the meat side down with strip loins and boneless rib eyes can guarantee a good bond on the majority of the meat surface. YOu can master the process of accomplishing and excellent bond–please keep trying!

Please tell us what you smell when you open the UMAi Dry. If you have kept the meat at the appropriate storage temperatures and trim the outer crust that should have formed, you should find the steak inside is wonderfully rich and delicious.

We look forward to hearing more.

–Thea

[Scott Mark]

Huan,

I agree with both Ron and Thea. I can’t promise that everything is fine, but my first dry-aging was done in a fridge with no bag at all – open-air – and that is how much dry-aging is still done. I find that the drybag is more — controlled than open-air, but if the seal isn’t perfect I still get a good result. I agree with Ron – it’s like contact paper.

And I agree with Thea – you can do this. It might take a little practice to get the best results. BUT – unless something goes horribly wrong, your practice runs will be fine to eat, and will get even better as you get a better bond.

Some people just don’t care about the taste of food. I’m guessing that you wouldn’t be here if that were the case. So I believe that once you get this working for you, you won’t ever prefer to eat unaged beef again.

[Huan Pham]

Thank you for your reassuring message, Thea and Toasty.

I will report to you tomorrow how the meat turns out as I just promised my family a fine roast beef for dinner. I am crossing my fingers.

Huan

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