I just picked up a 2” thick dry-aged ribeye from my local grocery store’s butcher shop.My current plan is to dry brine, SV to 125, flash chill, then smoke and sear on the SNS.
Is there a preferred way to cook/smoke/grill them?
Is there any downside to SV?
Can it be frozen then thawed and cooked? Anything lost by doing so?
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I dry aged at home for 45-50 days then steak out, vac seal individually and freeze. From there, I cook however I feel like for that specific meal. SV straight from freezer with a CI skillet sear to finish. or thaw over a few days, then dry brine for a day and go indirect on the Weber with the reverse sear.
I think you are gonna have a great steak with your plan above, but any cooking method in my experience is great for a dry aged steak. hope you enjoy!
Yep. Umai - and I usually go with the sampler pack so you get multiple sizes. And then you can start up with the charcuterie bags after you get hooked Richard Chrz and STEbbq
Im definitely in the SV crowd. I recommend a live oak fire to do the sear, it makes the steak taste like it was cooked over a camp fire. If your feeling really good, put them right on the wood splits.
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Is there a preferred way to cook/smoke/grill them? No. Everybody is a bit different. I like to dry brine (at least 4 hrs), season with a non-salt rub, grill over a hot fire till I get the bark/crust I like, mop with butter and then move it over and finish to my desired internal temp.
Is there any downside to SV? To me, yes. Fat does not render when you SV. So after you sear the steaks, the fat is still pretty prevalent.
Can it be frozen, thawed then cooked? Don’t know. Never tried that
Yes you can freeze. Dry aged freezes so much better that fresh that it's not funny. Since a lot of the water has been removed, you have little to no purge or water loss when you thaw. I have a dedicated dry aging rig I built, my sweet spot is around the 65 day mark. You get some of the funky cheese notes, but don't loose the intense beefy flavor. Imagine a black and Blu steak with a blue cheese compound butter...Devine. I use a RIPPING HOT cast iron skillet, usually on a turkey burner outside. Again I like black and Blu. For the rest of the family, a griddle or cast iron skillet at the 450°-500° mark does the trick for reverse sear. Yes I dry brine, always. Remember dry aged cooks faster that fresh, so watch those internal temps!
When you say smoke, you mean bringing it up to 125 or so before searing, I assume? Like others have said, drying it off before searing makes a difference. I usually SV at 129 and then sear to deliver a low to mid 130s. Needless to say, I like your plan!
A 2" steak is pretty thick, I'd do a reverse sear and then sear on the grill or a cast iron skillet. SV is a good option too but SV is not my favorite method though for the same reason TripleB mentioned. Plus, I just like the hands-on of grilling (and beer drinking). A thinner steak I'd do in a cast iron skillet all the way.
Because it’s so thick is the reason I chose to SV first then chill down to 40-50F in order to get some smoke on it before coming back to final IT and searing.
In this case, I don’t see the benefit to SV if you are just going to chill immediately and then bring up to temp in and then sear, seems an unnecessary step to me without much benefit
I would either SV and then sear right away or smoke/sear with my personal preference being smoke and then sear.
I'll likely never cook a steak any other way than SV, pat dry and let it cool on the counter for a short while, then sear the snot out of it on a raging hot fire. Absolutely idiot proof, and I should know, being no ordinary idiot. Perfect every single time. Don't think the dry aging makes any difference (but that's just anecdotal).
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