evan_green52•7d agoProlific Poster

My first batch of dry-aged beef went bad after 21 days and I figured out why

I tried dry-aging a ribeye primal in my home fridge back in June using just cheesecloth and a tray, but after three weeks it had this funky ammonia smell instead of that nutty beef scent. Turns out I wasn't getting enough airflow around the meat because I had it shoved in the back corner next to the crisper drawer. Has anyone else messed up a dry-age attempt and had to toss the whole thing?

3 comments

3 Comments

victor_robinson6d ago

Clostridium botulinum actually thrives in low oxygen, so your cheesecloth method was a botulism risk not just a stink situation.

tessa_murray6d ago

Are you sure, @victor_robinson? Seems a little overblown to me.

dakotab936d agoMost Upvoted

They're not wrong though. Botulism spores are all over the place in soil and on vegetables, so if you mess with anaerobic conditions you're playing with fire. I've seen guys lose their home-canned goods because they didn't follow pressure canning times exactly, and that's a serious hospital visit waiting to happen. Cheesecloth might block big stuff but it does nothing for the oxygen levels. Better to just use proper canning methods or refrigeration if you're trying to keep things sealed up long-term. The risk isn't worth figuring out the hard way.