Searing Steaks

Eggbertsdad

Great tips, guys. I've yet to have a really good steak on my egg. Will a Weber charcoal grate work in regards to placing it on the coals? Also, would it need to be removed as you're lowering the temp for the finishing cook or can you leave it in there and take it out the next day? Will it melt?

stike

don't want to sound like a broken record, by try dry-aging.  the rib-eye steak on the right (wet aged and then dry aged) was flipped in half the time of the other two fresh strips at left.  tell me which gives you a better sear....

people think black from searing is where it's at.  that's flavorless char. carbon.  try getting it BROWN.  and brown across the whole thing, not just at the grid lines.

there's not as much water in the steak, and so it browns really well.

Eggbertsdad

stike,

I know this isn't officially dry aging, but about a month or so ago I bought 2 14 oz. hereford strips. I wrapped them in cheesecloth and put them on a raised rack in the fridge for 24 hrs. I then re-wrapped them in a fresh piece and let them sit for a week. I quickly seared them on the egg and it was like eating shoe leather. 

I think you've said that dry aging an individual steak isn't worth the trouble. I chalked my experience up to that. Or is a strip steak too lean of a cut?

lousubcap

I use either the BGE grid extender (15" dia) or most times a 17" weber grill grate that I sit on the fire box.  Leave either one in for the duration and so far so good but the BGE extender has been pretty much retired, again.

stike

well...  it bears repeating (and lords knows people will say i have repeated it ) but you can't dry age a steak.  not saying you can't try.  but you literally CAN'T do it.  because it will do just what yours did.  dry out.


imagine a slice of balonga versus an entire balogna in a drying contest.  which will be shoe leather in a week and why?

when you cut a slice of something, you took something that had maximum volume and minimum surface and made it into something with maximum surface and minimum volume.  your steak's sides (the cut sides, exposed flesh) gave up water and became jerky.

jerky is nothing more than air-dried beef.  so is dry aged steak.  but one is still juicy.  it's because jerky is thin, and gets so dry, it becomes, well, jerky.  the entire primal is aged when you age beef.  but because the layer of fat protects it, and it's more round than flat, it loses water more slowly.

don't ever us towels or cheesecloth.  it does nothing positive. we are NOT trying to actively suck water or 'blood' from the meat. and it needs no protection.  in fact, keeping wet cloth on the surface of meat can encourage bacteria. wound heals faster without a band-aid.... 

age whole pieces of beef (you can also wet age them), but you can only truly wet age thin cuts.  or, dry age them for only a day or two.  but again, a day or two isn't really aging at all.

The Cen-Tex Smoker

"age whole pieces of beef (you can also wet age them), but you can only truly wet age thin cuts.  or, dry age them for only a day or two.  but again, a day or two isn't really aging at all."

When I had my restaurant/Deli, I had also had a premium steak and seafood counter (and Boar's Head Deli) counter. We generally sold CAB wet aged beef. We were told by our CAB rep that the primals continued to wet age in the cryo bags. They were 3 weeks aged when we got them and we normally put at least another week on them, sometimes more.

I took his word for it and never really gave it a second thought. sooooo....when Zarathustra spake above of "you can only wet age thin cuts" I'm curious as to why this is true. 

Any thoughts?

stike

i didn't write it clearly.  i mentioned that you can wet or dry age primals. so  when i said you can only wet age thin cuts, i meant that thin cuts can only be wet aged.  they can't be dry aged.  didn't mean that only thin cuts can be wet aged.

The Cen-Tex Smoker

i didn't write it clearly.  i mentioned that you can wet or dry age primals. so  when i said you can only wet age thin cuts, i meant that thin cuts can only be wet aged.  they can't be dry aged.  didn't mean that only thin cuts can be wet aged.

Ah- got it. makes sense to me.

stike

FWIW... you'll have some guys saying "oh i can certainly dry age a steak.  couple days in the fridge" etc. etc.

my point is that that really doesn't meet the real definition and purpose of dry aging.  it may be drying (and far too quickly, and too much, as our friend above discovered with his dessicated strips), but it really isn't aging

tazcrash

Will a Weber charcoal grate work in regards to placing it on the coals? Also, would it need to be removed as you're lowering the temp for the finishing cook or can you leave it in there and take it out the next day? Will it melt?

I'm using a Weber charcoal grate in the bottom of my large. 

Hasn't melted yet...... But it doesn/t stay flat either: 

http://eggheadforum.com/discussion/comment/1177601#Comment_1177601

Eggbertsdad

Thanks stike and taz.

gte1

The grill extender works great.  It is just large enough to set on top of the firebox.  I never use it for it's intended purpose so I removed the legs.  Now it works really well.  Before, the legs would hit the lump and it would be hard to get level.  Now the rim rests on top of the firebox and it is perfect.

I also have to agree with the dwell method.  DO NOT even try this method unless you want to ruin some good meat.  Horible smoke flavor.

George