Tried two aging methods on the same primal cut this month, and the dry bag won by a mile

I had a whole ribeye primal from a local farm and split it in half. One half I did the old school dry age in my walk-in, the other half I used a dry aging bag for 21 days. The bagged side came out way more tender with a deeper beefy taste, and I only lost 8% trim waste compared to 15% on the naked one. My walk-in humidity is a pain to control, and I think that hurt the naked side. Has anyone else had better luck with bags over traditional aging, or am I just bad at dialing in my cooler settings?

3 comments

3 Comments

thea6021d ago

21 days is a solid test, I feel you on the humidity struggle. My home setup is a pain too, I've lost a whole brisket to mold before because my fridge is so finicky. The bag sounds like it gave you way better control, that 8% trim loss is pretty impressive honestly.

phoenix_singh251d ago

Man, losing a whole brisket to mold is rough. That's like watching your money walk right out the door and slam it on the way out. I've had a few close calls myself with my old fridge, and it always makes you feel like you're gambling on a thirty dollar piece of meat. The bag really does take all that guesswork out of it, which is worth its weight in gold for a home setup. At least with the bag you can sleep easy knowing you won't wake up to a science experiment in your fridge.

abby_morgan181d ago

Honestly, I read a study from a meat science program that tested moisture loss between bagged and naked aging, and they found the bag actually helps retain more of the natural enzymes that break down the meat. That explains the tenderness difference you noticed, since those enzymes get lost with all that trim waste on the naked side. Tbh, your 8% waste is way better than what most home setups can manage, even with a bag. Ngl, I think a lot of people overlook how much humidity swings can wreck a traditional age, so the bag just takes out that guesswork.