Beef - Dry Aged

Aging Meat

Why age meat at all? Vic’s Meat has always made a point of buying the best grain fed beef from Queensland, Western Australia and New South Wales, and you are right to ask why we would age meat that should be perfect already. The answer lies in the commitment that Vic’s Meat has made to supplying the best meat available - great grain fed beef from these regions is made even more desirable when handled professionally, and allowed to mature into a finer eating product. We are convinced that we offer the best examples of Australia’s best Grain fed beef.

Dry Aging

A time honoured tradition and still a firm favourite amongst many in the food industry, Dry Aging beef gives a different result to wet aging (Cryo-vac). Dry Aging and grass fed steers are synonymous with the traditional meat industry – in the years before grain feeding became the norm, grass feed steers were prized for the depth of flavour and texture they offered, although the meat when fresh was often tough. Beef hung naturally on the bone in a cold environment begins to interact with the natural enzymes that aid breakdown, in the bones of all animals. These enzymes break down collagen and other proteins, again done without exposure to oxygen.

To dry age beef successfully, we must leave considerable external fat or skin on the cuts we age, and then trim this all away when we are ready to send to our customers – a time consuming task. Perhaps the strongest difference in wet v dry age is texture – dry aged beef still retains firmness and a level of moisture that is balanced by a softening of the fibres that contribute toughness, while still imparting a characteristic rich grass and beefy flavour.

Vic’s Meat is, in Sydney, the only supplier with a dedicated dry aging room, with the temperature and humidity controlled for perfect results. We buy rib eye and rump bone on, and age these meats for 3 to 4 weeks. We do this because we want to be able to genuinely offer the best when it comes to meat, and the best means properly aged.