Dry aged beef is beef that has been aged for weeks or even months in a temperature and humidity controlled environment This long aging process transforms the beef, making it incredibly tender and giving it a rich, intense beefy flavor While all beef benefits from some aging after slaughter, dry aged beef takes the process to the extreme, resulting in one of the most delicious and coveted types of steak.
How Dry Aging Works
After cattle are slaughtered, their carcasses are hung in large, specialized coolers called dry aging rooms. These rooms tightly control temperature, typically between 32°F and 36°F, as well as airflow and humidity. Entire primal cuts like ribeyes or strip loins are aged, often still attached to the bone for protection. The meat is left uncovered, allowing its exterior to be in constant contact with the circulating air.
Over the next several weeks or months, natural enzymatic and microbial processes take place that tenderize the beef and intensify its flavor. Here’s a look at the three main changes that happen during dry aging
Tenderization
- Enzymes naturally present in the meat act to break down tough muscle fibers and connective tissue. This makes dry aged beef incredibly tender and easy to chew.
Flavor Enhancement
- Microbial activity on the meat’s surfaces produces new flavors. Compounds like peptides and sugars are created, giving dry aged beef its characteristic nutty, cheese-like taste.
Moisture Loss
- As moisture evaporates from the beef’s exterior, it becomes concentrated and intensified in flavor. Up to 30% of the meat’s weight can be lost.
The end result is intensely marbled, tender and flavorful beef unlike any you can find in a regular grocery store.
Length of Aging
There’s no set aging time for dry aged beef. Age can range from a few weeks to over 120 days depending on personal preference. Most experts agree that 30-45 days creates an optimal balance of tenderness and flavor. Here’s how length impacts the final product:
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14-30 days – Meat becomes tender with slight enhancement in flavor. A good entry point for dry aged beef.
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30-60 days – Peak window for both tenderness and flavor The beef develops a nutty, cheese-like taste
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60-120 days – Very intense flavor, but potentially unpleasant funkiness develops. Mostly done for novelty.
At home, it’s difficult to replicate the exact conditions needed for proper dry aging. Specialized commercial facilities are required to age beef beyond a few weeks with quality results.
Why Dry Aged Beef Costs More
There are several reasons why dry aged beef commands a higher price than regular beef:
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Time – Dry aging is extremely time consuming, with meat occupying space in climate controlled rooms for weeks or months. This ties up inventory.
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Waste – Up to 30% of each dry aged piece is lost as moisture evaporates. The outer layer also gets trimmed off, resulting in less usable meat overall.
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Technology – Expensive climate control systems are needed to regulate temperature, humidity and airflow perfectly for long periods.
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Expertise – Butchers must have specialized knowledge and skill to properly dry age beef.
For these reasons, dry aged beef is considered a premium product and sold at higher prices. The extensive aging results in an exceptionally delicious and tender steak that is well worth the added cost to serious beef lovers.
Differences from Wet Aging
Not all aged beef is dry aged. Most beef, even high quality cuts sold at nice grocery stores or served at restaurants, goes through a process called wet aging.
With wet aging:
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Beef is vacuum sealed in plastic bags to retain moisture.
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Ages for a much shorter time, usually only a few days or weeks.
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Does not lose any moisture.
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Produces more tender but not more flavorful beef.
Since all moisture is retained, wet aged beef can be sold for a lower cost. But it does not achieve the same level of flavor or tenderness as true dry aged beef.
How to Cook Dry Aged Beef
Dry aged steaks require special care in preparation due to their leanness. Follow these tips when cooking your dry aged steak:
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Bring meat to room temperature before cooking to prevent cold centers. Let sit 35-40 minutes.
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Use a hot pan or grill. Dry aged beef needs higher heat to properly sear and develop a crust.
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Cook quickly over high heat. Aim for just 1-2 minutes per side for medium rare doneness.
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Add butter toward the end of cooking to compensate for lean meat. Baste continuously.
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Do not overcook! Cook to 125°F internally at most to prevent toughness.
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Let rest 5 minutes before slicing to allow juices to redistribute.
With proper cooking, a dry aged steak’s tenderness, juiciness and beefy flavor really get to shine. Savor it and enjoy this highest level of steak perfection!
How does dry aged beef not spoil?
The key to dry aging is consistency — controlling the decomposition so that the meat ages, not rots. It all comes down to three key factors: air flow to help form a crust, humidity control to slow down the migration of moisture and keep natural juices from running out, and temperature control to stop the meat from spoiling.
The meat is also protected by the bones and fat which is why, if you’re dry aging at home, it’s important to choose high quality large cuts with the bones still in. (Think of it like a bone shield.) Once the aging process is completed, the dried-out layers around the exterior are cut away, leaving you with a beautifully aged, edible dark-red piece of meat.
What’s the deal with dry aging?
When you walk into Peter Augustus’s butchery in New Farm, a craft butcher in Brisbane, Australia, you’ll see an impressive dry aging cabinet that looks like it belongs in a science lab. “This is the original dry aging process, how steaks were stored,” says head butcher Aaron.
In fact, dry aging is a process that goes back thousands of years. Before the invention of refrigeration, dry aging (whether it was in a chamber, a cellar or a cave) was one of the only methods of keeping meat fresh, other than smoking, brining or pickling. It is a time honoured technique that both enhances the flavour and tenderness of meat.
In essence, dry aging is when you take a piece of meat and put it into a controlled open-air environment to go through a flavour transformation. By exposing the meat to air, moisture is pulled out and the natural enzymes in the beef break the muscles down slowly over time, making it more tender. When the surface of the beef dries, it creates a crust over the muscle, but what’s inside stays moist and red.
The meat is also subjected to other environmental impacts during the aging process — various molds and yeasts that land on it — all of which play a role in the final flavour profile of the beef. The longer you age it, the stronger it gets. (Think of it like science for meat lovers.)
“We normally dry age our meat for 40 to 50 days. Two months is the maximum we’ll go”, says Aaron. “After that the flavour can become much too intense.”
What is dry aged beef? Since when is drier meat good?
FAQ
What is special about dry-aged beef?
Dry-aged beef is a premium cut of beef aged in a temperature and humidity-controlled environment, usually a refrigerated room. The dry-aging process allows the meat’s natural enzymes to break down the connective tissue, resulting in a more tender steak.
How does dry-aged beef not go bad?
The main thing is that dry aged meat is kept cold, reducing the ability of bacteria to grow on it. They also keep the air constantly moving, so that it doesn’t become too humid near the meat. The surface quickly dries out, making it inhospitable to microorganisms.
Is it safe to dry age beef at home?
With careful attention and patience, it’s possible to dry age beef at home, for steaks with unparalleled flavor and tenderness. Kenji is the former culinary director for Serious Eats and a current culinary consultant for the site.
How can you tell if beef is dry-aged?
As it ages, a crust or bark forms on the meat. Here’s a close-up of a strip loin dry-aging. You can see that the exterior of the meat has lost its moisture and a bark is forming.