Christmas Dinners. Let’s see them!

[barelfly]

This was the second year I’ve done a smoked rib roast. These are so dang good!  I had a 10.8lb choice rib roast from Costco. Cut the bones, Salted and let sit in the refrigerator for 3.5 days. Trimmed the hard fat and a little more. Then rubbed with olive oil and a new rub to me from Meatheads book I received from my wife and kids. I used Mrs. O’Leary’s Cow Crust for the rub and this gave the bark a wonderful flavor. Smoke time was about 6.5 hours, started at 200 for two hours, then 190 for two hours, and finished at 200 with a bump to 225 at the end. I was unsure on timing and should have just went with 200 the entire cook and would’ve been fine. Went with 3oz of oak and 2.7oz Of cherry, chunks split in half with hopes of better burn, which did help. Rested for about 20 minutes then seared on the  grill on high. Then sliced like butter with my new victorinox slicer. Served with scallop potatoes and roasted brussel sprouts and bacon. It was a hit!

Edit - I changed the subject line to include everyone. Thought it would be fun to see all that was done.

 

[old sarge]

That looks great. I am out of town visiting family. No smoking for me for a while.

 

[SconnieQ]

Nice color edge to edge. Looks perfectly cooked.

 

[BedouinBob]

I did a prime rib. Got the prime grade from Costco. Aged 3 weeks and added a rub of Garlic, Rosemary, Thyme, Salt, Pepper, and olive oil. Applied, wrapped, and let sit for 2 days. 5 oz of red oak and smoked at 200 to IT of 130. 15 minutes in a 500 deg oven to finish it off. It turned out great! Nice and tender and very tasty. Happy New Year!

 

[barelfly]

Bob, that looks great! Did you use the umai bags for the dry age? I’m going to purchase a vacuum sealer soon and those umami bags will definitely be purchased to go with it!

Did you get a different flavor with the three week age?

Today I sliced up the left over meat thin, thin for a wonderful Reuben esq sandwich. Was wonderful with my homemade mustard and homemade saur kraut!

 

[SconnieQ]

Started a 60 day dry-aged bone-in Choice Black Angus whole prime rib roast yesterday in an Umai bag. Bones covered with parchment paper to prevent punctures. $6.77 per pound at Pick N Save. I'll let you know how it is end of February. Not sure if I will smoke or roast. Maybe both since it is about 19 pounds, I could make 2 good size roasts.

 

[JustChillin]

Looking forward to hearing the final results. Will Libby share with you!

 

[barelfly]

I’ll be following your updates Kari. This dry age process is so interesting to me. I’ll probably head to Cabelas today and pick up my food vac/sealer and order umai bags as well. Just something about the aging process - or really thinking that I’m working in ways the top steak houses work in the beef they serve

 

[BedouinBob]

Hey Barlfly, I use Umai Dry Bags for aging and have had great success with them. Since I couldn't find a prime cut until later, I wasn't able to age as long. From what I understand, the first 20 days or so go to tenderizing the meat. Mine was very tender. Any additional time goes to concentrating the beef flavor. The most I have done is 45 days.... I am not up to SconnieQ levels yet!  ;D Maybe she can comment but I found that when I age really long I feel the need to cut the "hard crust" of dried meat off of the roast, which is a loss unless you have a dog.  I hate losing the meat but maybe I don't really need to trim the hard parts off. I also use Umai to do Italian dried meats and love doing that too.

 

[SconnieQ]

Libby the dog will definitely benefit from this one! Last Christmas I dry-aged a boneless whole Choice ribeye roast. I could only go 21 days, because my refrigerator was too full until after Thanksgiving to start it (they take a lot of space). The tenderness was great. I couldn't tell much enhancement to flavor, other than maybe a tiny bit beefier. I have always cut the crust off, even on the 21-day. Never considered leaving it on. Maybe on a short dry-age like 21 days, leaving it on would give it a little more of the flavor I want? I would have thought it would be like leather. How was the texture of the crust when cooked Bob? I have dry-aged 30-40 days, but never 60, so I'm going for it! The flavor should go from beefy, to mushroomy, to bleu cheesy at the high end. I'm expecting an intense beefy/mushroomy flavor, with maybe a hint of cheese. I'll let you know how funky this turns out. I like foods with a little funk, like limburger cheese, etc. But I don't expect it to be anything like that. This is a really large piece of meat with the bone-in, so I think it should handle the longer time just fine. There are a couple people on this forum who go as high as 75 days, and I think one person went as far as 90. I will start a thread in the dry-aging section for people to follow.

 

[SconnieQ]

I’ll be following your updates Kari. This dry age process is so interesting to me. I’ll probably head to Cabelas today and pick up my food vac/sealer and order umai bags as well. Just something about the aging process - or really thinking that I’m working in ways the top steak houses work in the beef they serve

FYI, for the bone-in rib roast, I used the largest Umai bag (Short Loin/Brisket 16x28in). For boneless whole rib roasts, I have used the Ribeye/Striploin 12x24in bag (although it can be a tight fit depending on the size of your roast). At $35, the Sampler packet is the best deal by far, and gives you 3 really useful sizes. A little extra bag is not a problem. There are several good videos to watch on the Umai website. You want to follow their instructions pretty closely on the way to transfer the meat, and also how to seal the bag. The bags need a little extra attention when sealing, like pre-suctioning out the air, and double-sealing. But as long as you get good contact (80%+), they work great!

 

[Walt]

The first 28 days or so is primarily for tenderization. After that the beefy intensification really begins. I have gone as far as 75 days (excellent) on a few occasions and as low as 21. I don't do less than 45 anymore. I don't go crazy on the trim either. The rhind gets a very thin trim (with a very sharp knife) but the nooks and crannies remain. If steaking it out, it is easier to trim after the steaks are cut. The rhind get put in baggies for dogs treats but maybe interesting to make a beef broth with. I have a number of posts in the dry age section with weekly pictures documenting the ageing process as well as the trimming.

 

[Walt]

If concerned that the contact isn't good enough, drop the whole vacsealed roast in panty hose. I get good seals but do this also as added insurance to ensure the best adhesion possible. It can stay on the whole time without any issues.

 

[SconnieQ]

The first 28 days or so is primarily for tenderization. After that the beefy intensification really begins. I have gone as far as 75 days (excellent) on a few occasions and as low as 21. I don't do less than 45 anymore. I don't go crazy on the trim either. The rhind gets a very thin trim (with a very sharp knife) but the nooks and crannies remain. If steaking it out, it is easier to trim after the steaks are cut. The rhind get put in baggies for dogs treats but maybe interesting to make a beef broth with. I have a number of posts in the dry age section with weekly pictures documenting the ageing process as well as the trimming.

It was Walt that I was thinking of who does the long dry-ages. The pantyhose tip is a great one. I've got excellent contact, but if it looks like it is separating in the early days, I'll be doing the pantyhose trick. Also, I did make beef stock with the trimmings from my 21 day rib roast last year, and the stock was really good and mushroomy, and maybe just slightly funky, but good. I'm not sure how beef stock would be from a longer dry age. I've been worried that the trimmings might be just too funky for stock, but maybe I'll give it a try on this one. Libby still gets the scraps, even after I made stock from them.

 

[BedouinBob]

"Libby still gets the scraps, even after I made stock from them." Which is why Libby is a happy dog.