Dry Age "Cheating" on your steaks. Get the same great Steakhouse taste and texture at home

[Skyfall]

Rolled it just before cooking in coffee and the cooked it.

Got it from TV and was a must try.

I've made a coffee and chili dusted rib eye before, I like it for a change of pace sometime.

[Optic101]

I've made a coffee and chili dusted rib eye before, I like it for a change of pace sometime.

Same here.

[kws2004]

Very good!! I tried it! Delicious!!

[Optic101]

Very good!! I tried it! Delicious!!

[Optic101]

Hungry here, looks great.

[Skyfall]

Doing this as we speak!!!

[draca]

Can't wait to try this out - looking forward to a few days from now!

[vatche03]

Saving for later... mmmm. Will have to make a nice steak au poivre.

[Skyfall]

Bone in Ribeye & grilled leeks.

[Ghabanos]

May have asked this before. But in Hong Kong I don't have grill. Does this translate well to pan searing then them oven cooking?

[Skyfall]

May have asked this before. But in Hong Kong I don't have grill. Does this translate well to pan searing then them oven cooking?

It won't be the same, but can be done.

2 ways really:

1) If you have an stand burner, (propane or gas) that you can use outside, turn it on high, put a cast iron pan on the flame and let it get rocket sauce hot. Turn your upper broiler on high in your oven and get it pre-heated.

You're going to want to do this part outside. Sear both sides of the steak on the smoking hot cast iron pan, then move the pan into the oven for 4-7 minutes. Make sure you have a good exhaust fan.

2) All indoors: Use your stove top and get a cast iron skillet as hot as you can get it. Preheat oven with your broiler on high. move the rack all the way up to the top. Sear both sides of steak, move skillet into oven, and place something between the oven door so it won't close all the way (ball of foil), this will keep the broiler on constant. Cook 5-8 minutes or to whatever temp you like.

[headstand]

I've done this as per Skyfalls 'all indoors' method several times with much success. It comes down to heat and timing - you don't want to leave the steak too long under the broiler! Best results for me has been with rib steak followed by T-bone.

[Skyfall]

Ribeye

[TypicalSituation]

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looking tasty! Can't wait to try this once the weather cooperates. Dang rain!

[Diamondog]

Alright, so Kobe beef and Wagyu have been around for a bit. I tried a Kobe steak a couple years ago and although good didn't warrant the price. I did not use the dry age cheat process as I didn't know about it at that time. I read an article a couple weeks ago about stores really taking advantage of the word "Kobe and Wagyu", a marketing gimmick as the Kobe etc is very specific and not widespread, "Kobe/Wagyu style" if you will. I was in my local grocery store last week buying some Stirling strips and the guy pointed to the fridge display and said go have a look at those...I looked and they were strips maybe 12oz and the price tag was ludicrous - $50+ PER steak, I declined. I was in Costco today and saw that they had Wagyu strips and ribeye's, 2 per pack varying prices but 2 BIG steaks for the price of 1 at the other place. As Costco has a great reputation and their meat is excellent, the price was tolerable for something that may not be better, I bought a pack of 2 strips. I will put them through the 48 hour dry age cheat and see just how good they are. I've gotten pretty good at the process so the proof will be in the shall we say steak...Here's what I'm working with, will update as I go:




Alrighty, steaks have gone through the first 24 wrapped up in paper towels. Took them out and spiced them up. Nothing extravagant some beef bullion, cracked pepper, garlic, Montreal steak spice and some kosher salt...back in they go..to borrow a term from the prez 12:12..

Alrighty, just finished dinner. The steaks turned out excellent, very tasty and I could definitely see the difference clearly in the tenderness of the meat. Although the steaks were excellent I think I would be hard pressed to buy again any time soon as I really don't think I could make them any better than I did and the price difference is substantial over their standard meat which is excellent to begin with. I do however endorse trying them for yourself if they have them at your local Costco.

[Skyfall]

Alright, so Kobe beef and Wagyu have been around for a bit. I tried a Kobe steak a couple years ago and although good didn't warrant the price. I did not use the dry age cheat process as I didn't know about it at that time. I read an article a couple weeks ago about stores really taking advantage of the word "Kobe and Wagyu", a marketing gimmick as the Kobe etc is very specific and not widespread, "Kobe/Wagyu style" if you will. I was in my local grocery store last week buying some Stirling strips and the guy pointed to the fridge display and said go have a look at those...I looked and they were strips maybe 12oz and the price tag was ludicrous - $50+ PER steak, I declined. I was in Costco today and saw that they had Wagyu strips and ribeye's, 2 per pack varying prices but 2 BIG steaks for the price of 1 at the other place. As Costco has a great reputation and their meat is excellent, the price was tolerable for something that may not be better, I bought a pack of 2 strips. I will put them through the 48 hour dry age cheat and see just how good they are. I've gotten pretty good at the process so the proof will be in the shall we say steak...Here's what I'm working with, will update as I go:

Alrighty, steaks have gone through the first 24 wrapped up in paper towels. Took them out and spiced them up. Nothing extravagant some beef bullion, cracked pepper, garlic, Montreal steak spice and some kosher salt...back in they go..to borrow a term from the prez 12:12..

How did it turn out???

[Diamondog]

Just posted lol

[Skyfall]

Just posted lol

How long did you cook them?

[Diamondog]

How long did you cook them?

The Costco steaks are extremely thick. Grill heated for about 20 min prior to 700 degrees then 10 min per side with grill turned down to medium bringing heat down to about 500 degrees during the cooking process cooked to a nice medium.

[tagheuer]

Thanks for the info.

I will try this method and recipe on the weekend.

[bugg4672]

Howdy,

I know it is cliche, but being from Texas, I consider myself an expert in the areas of all things grilling and BBQ'ing (smoking).

I've been grilling and cooking since I've been a teenager, learning from my father, uncle and grandfather. In my college days I grilled or BBQ'd just about everyday, now I have a family, but I still will grill out 4+ times a week. I've got charcoal grills, I've got propane grills, I've got natural LP gas grills, I've got infrared grills and I've got smokers and pits galore. My favorite smoker is an 18ft custom number that can be pulled behind my truck and has a grill section, a smoker box and two propane cooktop burners. It also comes equipped with with a storage box, counter top and cutting top.

Basically, all of that "chest pounding" was meant to convey that I know my stuff and I know how to cook award winning meat and BBQ.

I am now sharing with you one of the greatest tricks I have ever learned. I had always tinkered around with the idea of cheating on a "quick dry age", but I never really took the time to perfect it, until a chef friend of mine, who is more like a scientist when it comes to cooking, shed some light on the science behind what I was trying to achieve.

Step 1 - GOOD QUALITY MEAT!!!!

It doesn't matter what you do to a steak, if you choose bargain, poor quality meat you will never achieve that high end steakhouse flavor and texture. The cut and quality you choose is the most important step. I've eaten every cut of steak that's out there, and I've had store bought, organic, free range, grass fed, grain fed, and homegrown out of my own livestock.

To me the #1 best steak is a USDA Prime grade Bone in Ribeye. The fat is perfect and the bone adds such a great flavor and tenderness. Here in Texas they run anywhere from 12.00/lb - 14.00/lb for prime. Yes prime does make a difference.

Step 2 - Plan ahead. Go buy your steak from a reputable source 2 days (48 hours) before you plan on cooking it. When purchasing a good quality steak, make sure the butcher will let you look at it and smell it if you want. If there is not the size or appearance you like in the display have the butcher go cut you what you want fresh.

Step 3 - Beginning the cheating process Why do this???...Dry Aging serves 3 purposes. Flavor, Texture and Crust

Flavor - Nothing else is better than the flavor achieved from some dry aging and pre-seasoning. This process also concentrates the Beef flavor by extracting out water.

Texture - When you dry age things you pull out water and also the fibers of the meat itself changes structure to make a more tender steak.

Crust - This process pulls proteins and other moisture based compounds to the surface of the meat, which will react to high heat, and give your steak that awesome Steakhouse quality crust!!!

******BIG MYTH**********

It is a well debunked myth that pulling out water or pre salting a steak or any meat causes the meat to be dry once cooked.

This is a myth. Pulling out water merely concentrates the flavor. Water is not what makes the steak moist, the proteins and other compounds found inside the meat and locked inside the fibers is where you get your moisture from. Water will cook out and evaporate anyway, regardless of what you do in pre cooking.

2 full days before you plan to cook the steak, take it out of it's packaging, place a thick layer of paper towels on a plate, place the steak on the paper towels, and place another thick layer of paper towels on top of the meat. Place the steak on the plate in the open air of your fridge, somewhere close to the bottom and where air can circulate around it.

This starts the process of changing the texture and utilizing the paper towels absorbing qualities mixed with the cooling dry air in the fridge and the evaporator of the fridge to draw out water and start concentrating the flavor and developing the crust.

After 24 hours you will notice a visible difference in the texture of the meat.

Step 4 - 24 hours after letting it sit, and 24 hours before cooking, remove the plate, discard all paper towels and put together your seasoning. DO NOT RUB WITH OIL AT THIS STEP.

The greatest secret to Steakhouse flavor is NOT to over season. The reason why we all love a good high end steak floavor, other than the fact we don't have to cook it ourselves and the quality of the meat, is when you eat one of those $50 dollar steaks , you actually taste the steak, it's not masked with aggressive seasoning.

To each his own but this is what I use and I will even tell you my very well hidden secret.

Kosher salt

Cracked Black Pepper

Powdered Beef Bouillon or Powdered Beef Stock (The Key Secret)

Sometimes I will use a Chicago Steakhouse Flavored Fresh Grinder - Can't go wrong with that!!

Lay new paper towels out on your plate

Season very aggressively and liberally with the black pepper and evenely and consernatively with kosher salt - one side at a time

Sprinkle the powdered Beef Bouillon on. Heavy but not as aggressive as the salt and pepper

very lightly grind the steakhouse grinder or sprinkle a little garlic powder and onion powder.

*****Don't Rub but pat the seasoning in.. SPANK IT!!!

Repeat on the other side

If your steak is thick, make sure to season the sides too.

Place back on paper towels, this time do not put a paper towel on top.

Place back in the fridge.

Step 5 - After 12 hours, flip the steak

Step 6 - Final Prep and cooking

2 hours before cooking pull the steak out and let it come to room temp.

The first thing you will notice is the gorgeous crust of meat juice and seasoning that has developed everywhere on the steak. It will just look like the taste has been concentrated!!

Get your fire going - I prefer infrared or propane/LP gas. Charcoal and wood have their place for sure, but I prefer to taste the meat and the smokey taste it gets from it's own juices and fat dripping down into the fire causing smoke and a slight flame to provide a great flavor. I don't like charcoal overpowering a delicate Prime steak.

I either use my infrared searing burners on high or I set my whole grill to high and let it heat up for 10 minutes.

*****The thickness, coating, cleanliness and quality of your grates will greatly effect your crust and overall sear of your steak.

After 10 mins my Infrared will be around 1100 F and my gas grill will get up to about 700F

When you can't hold your hand over the flame for longer than 1 second it is ready. Higher the heat, the better it will sear the outside which locks in flavor and moisture by closing off the pores and that's how you insure a great crust and char.

COOKING:

Put your steak on over the hottest part of your grill, you should already know where this is

If cooking more than one steak make sure there is enough room between them.

Cooking times depend on many things, thickness of meat, cut of meat, temperature, flames or no flames, covered or uncovered, bone or no bone, and level of desired doneness.

I like medium rare, if you like your steak well done, than you just wasted a lot of time reading this and a lot of money on a good piece of meat that you are about to ruin.

For medium rare on my grill with my usual cut of steak, it takes about 3-5 minutes per side.

********Don't be a hero and try to move the steak during the cooking to try to achieve picture quality grill marks:

Rule of thumb, the more you move the meat the more it decreases the overall quality.

************Most important thing to remember - Only flip the meat once, NEVER, I repeat NEVER, flip the steak more than once.

I usually tell my steak is ready by touch and mainly by appearance of color/char.

Not too dark of a char, just hints of black starting to form, but the meat should be a nice crusty dark brown on the outside.

****Don't jab it with a thermometer - STUPID MOVE, allows moisture to burst out under an instant pressure release

Don't cut it to check the doneness - again allows for moisture release, as a steak cools the fibers suck back in all the juices to make for a great steak experience.

Step 7 Cooling

I always recommend transferring your steak directly to the plate you will serve it on and not on a seperate tray or plate. This will warm the plate and keep the run off juices intact.

Tent the steak with foil for 5 minutes. Don't look at it, don't cut it, don't poke it, don't dive right in. When a steak is subjected to such high heat, all off the juices and goods expand and are under pressure and move to the exterior of the steak, cutting it before cooling is like popping a balloon or shocking it and all the moisture runs out and never had a chance to soak in.

When you cool your steak, the fibers and tissue start to calm down and suck back in their juices and moisture. If done properly, after 10 minutes of cooling all the juices are now back happy and intact, and the temp is still perfect.

Step 8 - Eat one of the best steaks you have ever cooked yourself

I prefer a nice sourdough bread

Baked potato

Grilled Asparagas finished with butter and lemon zest

Sauteed Mushrooms.

NO SAUCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My favorite side for a steak is a tie between a Parmesan Truffled Grits/polenta. And a Snail, Wild Mushroom, Truffled Risotto!!!!

Pair with a nice Shriraz/Syrah , Cabernet, Merlot or Red Bordeaux

Finish with a great Cuban Cigar

You will be in heaven

Carry on the Meatscape Jouney and post your own Steaksperiences in this thread for all to enjoy!!!!!

Got this recipe saved for sure, will try this next weekend. Sounds deeeeeeeeeeeeeeelicious.

[JackFNQ]

Going to try this shortly. Just wondering if olive oil is used prior to grill?

[Dimmers]

Good to see this thread alive !

Going to try this shortly. Just wondering if olive oil is used prior to grill?

i dont use olive oil when I cheat dry age my steaks. Everything stays dry prior to the flame.

[jackattack]

Wow! Thanks for the tips. My in-laws are from Italy(Sardegna) where food is a religion. Can't wait to drop this technique on them. A "molto buono" is hard to get in that league.....my wife makes a stellar polenta and risotto too....droolfest! Thanks again!

[JackFNQ]

Good to see this thread alive !

i dont use olive oil when I cheat dry age my steaks. Everything stays dry prior to the flame.

I couldn't see where oil was added except referenced here...

Step 4 - 24 hours after letting it sit, and 24 hours before cooking, remove the plate, discard all paper towels and put together your seasoning. DO NOT RUB WITH OIL AT THIS STEP.

So no oil at all, you are saying. Thanks.