jlpresto wrote:

> I think its interesting that people here are aging their meat, like all the
> good butchers know about.  I look forward to learning more about this
> process, can someone explain?
>
> As for killing any bacteria, if you really feel so compelled, I know that
> soaking in grapefruit seed extract would also work.

I used to work in a restaurant with a friend of mine. He used to age his own
beef in the back of his fridge and cleave off T-bone steaks to order. He
explained that over time, the connective tissues in the meat break down and the
meat becomes incredibly tender. I always used to wait until about 3 weeks after
he bought the piece and had the last steak that came off (excuse me while I
wipe the dribble from my chin as I think about this). Remember also that most
butchers - at least here in Australia - age their meats for a couple of weeks
before selling it so total storage time can approach 5 weeks. This two week
period seems to be the happy balance between the economic turn-over of stock
and taste.
If you ask a butcher - which I did - they will tell you that a commercial
fridge is generally much colder than a domestic one. Also the large walk-in
fridges do not lose all of the cold air when the door is opened. Bottom line:
you need to keep the meat cold and, if you get a large piece, leave the outer
layer of fat over the meat to protect it. If you have a domestic fridge, put
the meat on the bottom shelf at the rear of the fridge and turn the temperature
setting a couple of notches lower.
The only other time that the meat is as fresh and tender is immediately after
slaughter before rigor-mortis has set in. However, many people struggle with
this type of meat. Not psychologically but the stronger taste (and extra
enzymes etc??) can affect people quite strongly.
Brett
PS: don't flame me about the enzymes comment. I don't know what it is about the
meat but something in the fresh meat really upsets some people and it
disappears over time. It is something that you can get used to.