Touch it or leave it?

[Rob Jones]

So it’s been 11 days since I embarked on my first dry aging mission. To my delight (and surprise, if I’m being honest) there appears to be no leaks or “ballooning” of the bag. I haven’t, however inspected the boneless ribeye roast for fear of disturbing it. It’s fat side up. The color is a deep mahogany to date and I’m not sure what other warninnsigns to look out for. My question is should I flip it fat side down, which would give me a visual of the meat and if anything looks amiss?

[Ron Pratt]

Sounds like a success story in the making! Personally I would leave it alone. There is no need to inspect it as long as it is laying on a wire rack. Ron

[Rob Jones]

Follow up question… I’ve read a few posts about the sight of white mold. I’m curious where would this be visible? On the meat? On the bag? With exactly 14 days to go to my goal date the only suspicion I have is the sight of small whitish dots on the corner of the bag that’s not making contact with fatty surface. I’m still confident as there’s been no change to the composition of the bag, I haven’t disturbed my primal, and the smell is uniquely plseant and by no means foul. Any and all thoughts are welcome.

[Ron Pratt]

You are fine – the discussion of mold spots normally are on threads about charcuterie not dry aging. I have yet to ever find mold on any of my dry aged sub primal. Ron

[john moran]

I started same boneless ribeye roast on 6/13 – Got good bark on it after 10 days. My first from Costco…was graded USDA Prime ($11/#). Never bought anything there but I was in the big city (Green Bay) and couldn’t resist getting a membership and walking out with $350 worth of meat and Makers Mark…..MMMMMMM.

[Rob Jones]

Well, I lasted 20 days, 10 days short of my goal. I trimmed the bark, and cut into filets. I’ll post my pictures and check back in tonight to share how I prepared it and the taste. Overall, it was a fun experience. It turns out the odor was more than the family could handle in the fridge. I’ll be on the search for a spare full size fridge I can keep in my garage. As the pictures will show I think everything looks good before tasting it. There are a few small slots that look oxidized but I doubt it will taste poor or sour. Looking forward to everyone’s thoughts on the pics.

[Rob Jones]

Can you load pics on this forum?

[Ron Pratt]

Yes you can, but you need a host such as PhotoBucket to launch it from. Ron

[john moran]

I’m perplexed about the odor you mention – Mine have never had any odor other than maybe if you put your nose right up to it, it kind of smells like a butcher shop. I do mine in our main kitchen fridge and spousal unit has not noticed any smells either. I’ve done 4 or 5 so far.

What type of odor? Rotting? Moldy?

[Ron Pratt]

I questioned that as well – especially since it was only 20 days old. By then it could be starting to smell nutty or earthy, but only up close – especially in a refrigerator which is working properly plus one that is opened and closed daily exchanging the air. I guess is his wife and kid(s) already had a preconceived notion it wouldn’t smell good from day 1. Perhaps he will post a follow up. Ron

[Rob Jones]

The smell was neither rotten or moldy but it was a funky smell that has gone away since I removed it. I would describe it as an earthy smell but it certainly was pronounced. Not offensive, though.

[Ron Pratt]

How about a report on the steaks cook last night. Ron

[Rob Jones]

The odor was too offensive to most but enough where I wasn’t disappointed to end the process. I don’t have photobucket so I won’t be posting any pictures but I cooked up a filet yesterday. The steak was very good but I’m not sure I can taste the difference (yet). I’ll be doing a taste test comparing it to a fresh cut.

[Ron Pratt]

These are posted on the request of Jonesy3336:

[Rob Jones]

Thanks for posting for me, Ron. As you can see I may have trimmed more than necessary. I was being overly thorough. As for the taste test, it tasted very good. I heated a cast iron skillet on my Traeger at 450 degrees. I seared both sides (5minutes per side) and basted with butter and carmalized onions. I overcooked for my taste. The next time I prepare them I’ll smoke the steak at 250 on the Traeger for 30 minutes and sear both sides on the stovetop until medium.

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