Got a special occasion coming up, or a holiday celebration? Hunter in your family shoot too many deer and you're running out of space? If you like meat projects, dry-aging them is a good one to add to your repertoire.
By now, most people have heard of dry-aged meat, and, if they haven't tasted some for themselves, they've probably seen the price tag: 99.95$, 150$, 240$, even a staggering 390$ for a steak big enough to serve 2 people are all prices I picked out from a few restaurant menus.
I used to run a steakhouse, and spent months researching everything from genetics to steak anatomy and price models before I started purchasing beef in large shipments (I bought 8000$ of beef for the opening week of the restaurant), so I know a thing or two about the subject.
I knew dry aged meat was high quality, and available, but the price was so exorbitant I felt I couldn't justify putting it on the menu. I wanted to keep prices down, but still have a high quality product, so I tried to differentiate by using a farm raising heritage Italian cattle, and cutting hard to find, old-school cuts like bone-in NY strips on a bandsaw in-house.
The meat was great, but if I had the choice now, I would have at least one dry-aged option.
UMAi Dry-Aging Bags
Luckily, for you and me, if you have fridge space and like (easy) DIY meat projects, you can dry-age meat and game at home, and it's easy, safe, and a lot cheaper than the alternative. I can tell you after eating my first dry-aged venison legs and lamb saddle that it's the real-deal here. The biggest price you'll have to pay is the opportunity cost of sacrificing fridge space for 30 days.
The secret here was Minneapolis-based (Go MN!) UMAi Dry and their dry-aging meat bags that make it easy to age everything from steaks to whole cuts of venison, roasts, brisket, salami and proscuitto at home, without any fancy equipment or set-ups.
There's other, more "professional" options out there for dry-aging your own meat at home, but, if you're serious about aging and charcuterie like some of my friends are, you probably already know about them, and have a rig already.
Full disclosure here: I reached out to UMAI since I was looking for a way to age meat without lots of equipment—they didn't pay me a cent to write this, and I won't make anything if you want to try some for yourself. I'd never even heard of the bags until a few months ago.
Wet Aging vs Dry Aging
Two important things to contrast. At the Steak House I ran, I learned guests like to ask all kinds of questions about meat at nice restaurants, often just to impress their friends, or to have something to "speak at" the waiter about, even if the menu doesn't say it, or if the price doesn't reflect it.
I had to train staff on lots of different topics to avoid wasting time during service, and "is this fancy beef dry-aged?" was probably the question they had to field most often.
To be honest, instead of saying no, I used an obfuscating tactic a lot places still use, which was to say that the meat was "wet-aged". To be clear, wet-aging and dry aging are completely different things, and saying something is wet aged really doesn't mean anything, but in some situations it can be better than saying no to a guest, especially the overly picky, snobby types.
Wet aging is just leaving meat in a vacuum sealed bag. Dry aging, is leaving meat out where it will dry and lose moisture, forming a crust on the outside that keeps the meat from spoiling, as well as tenderizing the meat from enzymatic reaction/autophagy that happens as the proteins begin to break themselves down.
With wet aging, as the meat doesn't lose moisture and weight, it follows there isn't the same concentration of flavor.
Furthermore, meat left in a vacuum bag for too long will spoil, and, as anyone whose opened up some of those industrial vacuum sealed packs of chicken breast can tell you, develop foul odors, even if it isn't spoiled. While wet aging will tenderize meat a bit, for all intents and purposes compared to dry aging, it's a meaningless cop-out when you hear it mentioned, in my opinion.
What's it taste like?
When you crack open the bag after aging, you'll notice a few things. First is the aroma. Aged meat, and things made from aged meat (like garum) have a specific sort of smell.
It's an almost toasted aroma, even though no heat has been applied, that some people describe along the lines of buttered popcorn. Personally, the smells of dry-aged meat remind me of things like the aroma of salami mold and toasty mushrooms.
There's a certain umami quality to it that's hard to put into words, but delicious is a good place to start. The big thing you'll notice is tenderness, the meat is noticeably tender and supple after cooking, far more than I've ever experienced with wet aged meat. Since the meat has lost water weight, it also sears and develops a crust better than fresh meat.
How does it work?
The difference between regular vacuum bags and UMAi Bags is that the UMAi dry-aging meat bags allow liquid to evaporate, where vacuum bags keep liquid in.
To start, you take a big piece of meat, as in a full sub-primal cut like a venison leg, whole ribeye, strip-loin, or another cut like brisket, seal it in the UMAi bag, put it on a breathable surface (cookie sheet with a baking rack or similar) and refrigerate. As time goes by, liquid evaporates from the meat.
Tips for success
A perfect seal isn't necessary
If you've used vacuum sealers, you've probably come to appreciate the tight, firm, air-tight seal that happens when everything works out as planned. The dry aging bags are a little counter-intuitive It isn't necessary for the bag to get a 100% air-tight seal.
As long as the bag is, say, 80% sealed, a few air pockets are totally fine, and didn't negatively affect the process at all with any of the venison, lamb orbeef I've aged so far.
Only use big chunks of meat
In a perfect world, you want a whole sub-primal cut. With the deer I aged this year, aging the whole leg (shank removed) was my favorite, and after aging, every roast from the leg was like eating backstrap.
If I wanted to dry-age a different cut like a venison shoulder, I'd make sure it was a large one from a big buck. If you don't live in a CWD area, you could also age backstraps by leaving the back fat on, and keeping them on the bone, trimming off the bone and fat afterword.
Give it air-flow
Making sure to put the meat on a rack to allow airflow, above a baking sheet. Since the membrane allows water out, liquid can slowly migrate out of the bottom of the bag onto the baking sheet.
General Questions
How long do you age the meat?
Generally 30 days of dry-aging is a standard for flavor and tenderness, but if you're aging the meat of a smaller animal, like a lamb, fawn, or a young doe, you might want to only age it for around 2o days since there will be a lot of loss after trimming.
Can you do anything with the dry-aged trim/pellicle that gets removed after aging?
Yes. I used to love making stock out of prosciutto trim, so I suspected I'd be able to figure out something to do with the dried outer crust. I made stock with roasted dry-aged venison trim, and with fresh, aged trim, and both were good.
You may see some mold on your meat after dry aging--it's harmless (akin to cheese mold like brie or salami) but you can trim it off before making stock, or just roast the trim until it's golden brown, afterword you'll never notice it was there.
You could probably do other things with it too, like dehydrating completely, then cooking in soup like Native American Bapa/Papa, but I haven't tried it. Dehydrating completely, then grinding or pounding to powder and using as a seasoning for something like ground meat or burgers could be fun too. You're on your own there.
Can you eat the dry aged fat?
I don't eat tons of venison or beef fat, but I do like lamb fat, especially when it's crispy and delicious. I left the fat cap on the saddle of lamb after aging, then I scored it like a duck breast with cross-hatches and rendered it slowly in a cast iron skillet, slicing it thinly after cooking. It was good, and not nearly as rich tasting as I expected from the aging process, for what it's worth.
Buy The Dry Age Bags
Brisket Bags
for venison and larger cuts of meat
Steak Bags
for beef ribeye, strip loin, etc
Dry Aged Leg of Venison
Ingredients
- 1 Whole leg of Venison, shank removed (roughly 6 lbs) (or another piece of meat in a large form)
- 1 Large UMAi Dry Aging Bag (Brisket Size--the large ones)
Instructions
Dry the meat and seal.
- Pat the meat dry completely, then place in the bag.
- Place the vacuum "mouse" strip at the top of the bag's opening (refer to video) and vacuum seal the bag. Seal the bag multiple times, at least twice, since the plastic the bags are made of plastic that melt at a higher temperature than regular vacuum bags.
- Put your chunk of meat on a baking rack or other surface on a baking sheet, then place in a refrigerator*. Flip the meat once a week, and leave in the fridge for 20-30 days, depending on the size of the muscle you're aging.
- When the meat is done aging, trim off the bark and discard, or save for another purpose, like making stock. Vacuum seal and freeze the rest of the meat however you prefer.
StevieB
I've been dry-ageing for a few years now (beef not venison, but I believe the same principles apply,) multiple experiments (with some sad and expensive failures,) so I'm offering my 2c on the subject and I'm happy to debate any points of difference.
My experience:
1: You should have a dedicated dry-aging cabinet. The average family fridge gets opened multiple times per day, takes several minutes to restore temperature, and doesn't maintain a particularly accurate temperature, nor does it control humidity. Precise control of both temp and humidity are essential - and professional dry-age cabinets maintain around 80% humidity.
My solution: a chest freezer, with a humidifier placed inside. Use a combined temp/humidity controller. A chest freezer (or deep freeze as we call it here,) is far cheaper for the same size, better insulated, doesn't lose all it's chill when you open the lid (unlike a normal fridge,) and doesn't have a defrost cycle, so it can maintain a constant temperature far better. Ideally you don't want to open it until the aging is done - just set and forget. Also cheaper to run. Probably a good idea to install a couple of small refrigerator fans (as I have done,) to circulate the air and keep the temperature/humidity at uniform levels throughout the cabinet.
2: The term "dry-ageing" is a little misleading. Some people seem to think that the flavour enhancement comes from the meat drying out and contracting, making it more "concentrated." But every dry-ageing video I have watched shows people cutting off the dry outer crust - indicating that the "dry" meat is near-inedible, and it's the "aged" (enzyme-enhanced,) meat in the centre that actually gains flavour. The outer crust can be used as flavour enhancer in mince or other dishes, but it's very hard and not fun to chew.
My solution: Before dry-ageing a cut (I always start with the largest I can get,) I wash and dry it, before blowing it with a hot-air gun to remove surface moisture. Then I wrap it with fine cloth and paint a thin layer of melted fat over the cloth. This serves as a moisture barrier, while still being slightly porous - the moisture is largely contained but oxygen can still get in (which seems to be essential to the process, Guga on YT has conducted numerous experiments, aging in an impervious layer such as butter doesn't seem to work.)
3: Result: After a 55-day ageing the unwrapped meat will usually have a trace of undesirable growth on the surface (due to trapped surface moisture,) but this is easily washed off. The meat itself will have gained flavour due to the aging process, and the outer layers are trimmed (minimal loss, still tender,) to be minced and added to burgers as enhanced flavour.
Conclusion: A dedicated dry-aging cabinet is superior for several reasons, and minimising moisture loss means a larger yield of tender meat at the end. I'm keen to try aging venison, and will try both the cloth/fat method and the Umami bags to see which offers a better result. Based on my experiments my opinion is that you want the meat to be surface-dry (no trapped moisture that will harbour bacteria/mould,) but you don't want it to actually "dry out", which is where the wrapping and humidity control come into play.
Still much to be learned, but if our host will permit I will post the results of future experiments. Aging a piece of meat means risking an expensive and delicious cut, so I'm willing to take a few hits for the team if it leads to a better result for all. If you've read to the end of this, thanks and I hope I can help you acheive greater culinary delights.
Yours carniverously, StevieB
Alan Bergo
Hi Steve. Dry aging bags work perfectly fine, my friend started Dry Bag Steak/UMAi dry and there’s now many competitors on the market. I use them all the time, and home fridges absolutely do dissociate things-it’s not even a question here. You can age meat in a dedicated space, sure, but the bags are a fantastic way to get people into the practice that would not be willing to commit to the learning curve of doing it the old fashioned way, at least at first.
StevieB
Agreed, the bags are a good option for someone just experimenting and who doesn't want to make a large investment before they know whether the whole process is worth it. I'm just sharing my personal experience.
When I put a digital thermometer in a brand-new fridge I was surprised to find that the temperature varied by 3-4 degrees. That would take the meat out of the safe zone, and when you age for a couple of months like I do, there's a risk of spoilage. Plus if you add a humidifier to a normal fridge you risk icing up the evaporator and causing it to simply not work. (Which puts ALL your food at risk.)
If you get good results in your everyday fridge, fantastic! But I like tinkering with things, so I couldn't resist making my own dedicated dry-aging cabinet, and I wanted to share what I have learned over the last few years.
Now I need to do an experiment where I compare the UMAi bags to my cloth/fat method! And a controlled environment is the best place to do that. I'll share when I have something to report. Bon appetite!
Joseph
Sir, newbie here. Thank you for the article as I am researching the way of the process. As it is said that the meat can absorb floors from the surrounding fridge/vehicle of aging would simply placing some mesquite/hickory chips near the bag be of benefit?
Thank you!
Alan Bergo
No.
Chas
This is awesome, I’ve dry aged numerous cuts of beef. They have all turned out to be the best of restaurant quality in my own kitchen. To me, that’s a big deal. I am a avid deer archer and have always thought about dry aging venison. Deer are so special though that I never want to waste anything. However, after reading this article I am no longer afraid and will be giving it a shot. I think I might do one leg whole and one leg broken down to the different muscle groups. I’m thinking that I will probably have less trimmings with the whole leg. I would just like to thank UMAI Dry for the information on how to do it properly.
Alan Bergo
Thanks Chas, yeah I just love UMAi and their products. Really cool, family-owned company.
Dan F
I recently;y started using Umai. My salami came out great. Waiting on Capicola and pepperoni now.
I',m interested in drying venison. I'd like to get a little smoke flavor on it, as I think it will add some great flavor. My thought is to put a rub on it, let it cure for a week. Smoke it, let it cool then put into the Umai bag. Your thoughts on that.
Alan Bergo
Dan, Umai is a really great company. I've been working with them a bit here and there on a few things. Small company, family owned in the Twin Cities. Thanks for supporting them. As far as your curing and smoking idea, yes, I've done that, and it's quite good. It's similar to Fenelar, a Scandinavian cured leg of lamb, similar to venison in that there is no fat to insulate it, which means a shorter aging time. What I would do is this: Rub the leg down with your cure, which should be mostly salt. Cold smoke it, or figure out a way to keep it at a low temp while it smokes. After it smokes, rub it with some black pepper mixed with bactoferm, the pepper here is an insect repellent, not really necessary if using an Umai bag, but will help you spread the bactoferm-a tiny pinch, like 1/8th teaspoon is all you need for an entire leg of deer. Seal the leg or whatever you're using, put in the fridge, and watch the magic happen. LMK if you have any other questions, you can refer to my post here for more specifics. Lamb or venison country ham
James
Do you have any guidelines or recommendations for how long to dry age pork or poultry? Good information, here!
Thank you!
Alan Bergo
James, I'd start by dry aging pork for half the time of beef. That being said, all you really get there is a little bit of water loss, and you're not going to have time to develop the enzymatic reaction that gives the delicious nutty quality of fine dry-aged meat. Poultry should not be dry-aged. Dry-brining, however, while a little off-topic, is a very different story, and something I do to all meats. Try that out.
John
I love Umai Dry, best brisket I've ever had!
Audrius
Great info. Thanks Alan
David
I have used their product since first became available. Whoever informed you that you cannot dry age pork or poultry was misinformed themselves! It’s been done for centuries
Alan Bergo
I age pork and poultry too, just not as long. I should probably mention that.
B. Pentecost
How do you feel about Koji Aged Primals? Always enjoy you content and knowledge!!!
Alan Bergo
Thanks Brian. So with the Koji "quick cure" that's popular with a lot of people, they're only aging those meats for 24 hours. I suspect you wouldn't get much penetration from that. If you're talking about growing the koji on a whole subprimal, again, I don't know if it would penetrate quick enough. I'm not an expert on Koji and I don't grow my own, yet. If you have info, shoot it over.
Kathleen
we hang our deer after skinning for 4-5 days. Then we butcher. I trim the dry outer meat before vacuum sealing. This sounds similar to dry aging. If the temperature is right can we accomplish the same thing by hanging it longer?
Alan Bergo
So, you can *probably* get a similar result, but I would suspect you'll have to trim more off, and if there's any fluctuation in temperature it could affect the final result. Refrigerators also modulate humidity in addition to temperature. If you're hanging outdoors you're at the whims of mother nature, although I know it's much easier to just hang the whole shebang.
Greg
Why use a bag? Is it better than just hanging in fridge with food circulation?
Greg
*good*
Alan Bergo
In a regular home fridge there is a better chance for contamination, transfer of aromas, etc. The bags are specially designed to aid the aging process here. But, yes, of course, you can age things just by hanging, but typically I've done that in large restaurant coolers where there is very good circulation and enough space to walk around in the cooler. The bags make everything self contained, and are easier to maneuver for people unfamiliar with the process.
Katie
Thank you for this article ... dry aged meat sounds yummy. Can’t wait to try ! I just ordered goodies from UMAi ...... now to Catch that great big buck 😉
Alan Bergo
Good luck with the buck. I butchered 5 already this year and I'm fine not seeing another one until next fall!
Yvette
Thank you for the article! My husband has harvested both a moose and deer this year, and both were butchered and are now in our freezer. Is it possible for me to take out the larger cuts and thaw for Drying at this point?
Thanks-
Alan Bergo
You can do that! Make sure it is completely thawed, then pat dry very well, seal in the bag, and let it ride.
Becca
Thank you! That was gonna be my first question.