question about ageing a standing rib roast

FanOfFanboys

so for Christmas each year my family does a standing rib roast. use a place here in SC called the Happy Butcher. great guy. runs $19.99/lb and this past christmas the one we got was 6.32# and was perfect size. had enough leftover to make some soup

this coming year I planned to order it about 45 days prior to christmas so it could be aged but I just watched a video on some 400 day dry aged steak and got me thinking about ordering even earlier. 

now I do not want 400 day dry aged but I am thinking maybe 6 months or so?

anyone done much longer periods and if so how were the results? if 6 months is too long what about 3 months?

Sea2Ski

Wow, that would be a long time. For that long, I would think you would need a bit more of a controlled environment than a normal household fridge.   But what do I know....   Perhaps @RRP or @Darby_Crenshaw could chime in.
... Gonna follow this thread 

FanOfFanboys

I would not age myself

The butcher will do it for me. That is a good question, how long he feels comfortable ageing with his setup

FanOfFanboys

https://youtu.be/3s4tvVS9VO0

that is video of the 400 day dry aged that got me thinking about going longer than 45 days

6 months sounds awesome to me but like to see if someone else knows it is a good or bad idea first ha. Hate to drop $150 and it end up being awful

FanOfFanboys

another question would be whether to use prime or high grade choice

normally I buy high grade choice 

RRP

Sea2Ski said:

Wow, that would be a long time. For that long, I would think you would need a bit more of a controlled environment than a normal household fridge.   But what do I know....   Perhaps @RRP or @Darby_Crenshaw could chime in.
... Gonna follow this thread 

I've never gone beyond 60 days plus I use the UMAi Dry Bags vs. commando. Whether to go 6 months or 400 days I would only have an opinion not any experience nor fact to back me up.

Sea2Ski

Ah...  Got ya.
The sweet spot for me on a 15lb roast is  45 days in my fridge. I went 60 days once, but it was too strong for me. But that is just me.... 

FanOfFanboys

I will add the I know the butcher goes commando as well

Darby_Crenshaw

Not in your home fridge

Safety is not the issue. quality is

your home fridge is a cold dehydrator. Now, since 'dry aging' is two UNRELATED processes that we just so happen to be doing at the same time (drying, and aging), it's true we do want some drying. 

But 

commercial dry aging facilities will add humidity. This slows the drying, and allows you to age much longer without over drying

remember, jerky is basically dehydrated meat. You do not want to make jerky out of your roast

additionally, if you haven't done aging at home, nor eaten a lot of it, you certainly don't want to be standing there christmas morning looking at a six month dried log and asking yourself if it will be good.

Safe? Yeah. No worries. But *good*?

Not in a home fridge

additionally, you need to remember that aging and drying are about transforming meat. You will NOT have a juicey red steak or roast when you are done

it is the bleu cheese concept. Cheese? Yep. But not what you are used to

i find at 60 days the spinalis can start to cleave away along the fat or fascia (between the muscles). At 100 days this can be pronounced, with open pockets of air IN the roast. Not good. Edible, but not good. Not 'christmas-y' photogenic. 

if you haven't done this, christmas dinner ain't the time to start, and certainly not with six months as your first foray

buy a four bone now and try 28 days. Lop a steak off and let the rest ride til 45

don't trim, except for the 'heel end' of the loaf (roast ends).

now, i'm talking about the commando method (no bags).  The traditonal method

with bags, you get a slightly slower drying rate up to about 45 days. From then onward commando and dry bags are about the same. The commando method yields a thicker rind initially (faster), which eventually slows drying to about the rate of the bags. 

I do not know though if the dry bag slower drying rate allows 60, 75, 100 days with less drying than the alternative. It may. But i have been informed by the maker that at about 45 days both methods are fairly close in their further drying rate

aging beyond 45 days begins to become a schwanz-measuring contest. Most people are afraid of aging. Especially (it seems) wives.  And telling a guest that your meat has been in the fridge for a couple months will raise eyebrows. Bags or not. 

Beyond 45 days, it becomes more musty, slightly metallic at the sides of the tongue, and in some cases flirts with a little rancidity. Rancidity is a DESIRED component in many foods, included aged cheesess and meats. But not a lot, and not out of control. 

My rec:  try a four bone now. Lop a steak at 28,  then 45 and maybe 60

you'll have more loss than usual from needing to trim the dried heel end each time, but it'll be worth the effort and expense. 

You may not notice a difference. Who knows

they cook fast, and sear better than any other steak or roast. 

It's my go-to method. But it isn't for everyone. 

Sea2Ski

I too use the bags, and for the reason Darby states. My wife would not approve "commando" meat on the fridge for that long. No way... But for some reason in the bag, she does not bat an eye. Also, the bags somehow prevent any funky smells from getting out as well. Since this is the only way she allows it, this is the way I do it.   I also *think* that the bags would allow the meat to dry a bit slower and evenly because no hard shell is formed fast on the outside of the meat in lue of a humidity-controlled environment.  No evidence or proof to back that up at all, but my unfounded, unscientific, unproven hypothesis makes rational sense to me, so I run with it.

To the OP, if you have the space, and there is no outside opposition, give the aging at home a try. It is interesting to see the meat progress and change. There is also the "cool" factor to be able to say you did it yourself. 

Darby_Crenshaw

I agree with @Sea2Ski

only thing is that there will not be any smell coming from the meat if you go commando. The issue might be that it could pick up smells from stuff in the fridge though. Not sure if the bags prevent that. 

The word i heard second hand (a forwarded email) is that the manufacturer tesys show that the bags slow drying as initially compared to the commando method. Simply due to the barrier. But that at 45 days or so the two methods are about the same

this is important if you go for shorter periods. If you age for a short time, your aging component won't be as complete or further along. But you DO get a better drying and condensing of the beef, sooner, when you fo commando

that means if you are going say two or three weeks, you will benefit from going bagless because it will dry quicker. More condensed (though not very), but also a better surface for roasting (drier).

it's good to faniliarize oneself with the differences in the methods and where each has its benefits/liabilities