Am I the only one who thinks dry aging at home is overrated?

I was at a local meat shop last week and heard a guy bragging about his DIY dry aging fridge setup that cost him $800. He said it changed everything about his steaks. I tried dry aging a ribeye in a similar setup for 30 days and honestly thought it was a waste. Lost like 20% to trimming and the flavor wasn't that much better than a good wet aged cut from a trusted supplier. Has anyone else had the same experience or am I just doing it wrong?

3 comments

3 Comments

karen_perry381mo ago

Oh I totally get what you're saying but here is the thing nobody talks about - most of the "flavor" people credit to dry aging is actually from the mold and bacteria growth on the outside. You trim that all off and you're left with basically a regular steak that's lost a ton of water weight. I tried a 45 day dry aged strip loin once and it had this weird funky almost blue cheese taste that I Really did not enjoy. A properly wet aged prime cut from Costco has always tasted better to me and I don't have to hack off a fifth of the meat.

lisak261mo ago

Ugh YES. I literally had the SAME experience with dry aged beef.

lopez.karen1mo ago

Funny you say that, but that funky blue cheese taste is exactly what a lot of us are actually paying for. Dry aging brings a whole new layer of flavor that wet aging just can't touch, and trimming the crust is part of the deal.