Will Meat Dry Age in a cooler of dry ice?

[matechakeric]

The hope is to bag a bull and/or cow in WY and drive back to Indiana -- expecting 4-5 days from kill to meat processing and freezing.

During that time, will the meat dry age if hung over night to completely chill out and then kept with constant supply of of dry ice in a cooler for the ride back? Or will the meat freeze and aging completely halt?

all things being equal, I'd prefer the meat do some dry aging during that time.

 

[jt13]

The hope is to bag a bull and/or cow in WY and drive back to Indiana -- expecting 4-5 days from kill to meat processing and freezing.

During that time, will the meat dry age if hung over night to completely chill out and then kept with constant supply of of dry ice in a cooler for the ride back? Or will the meat freeze and aging completely halt?

all things being equal, I'd prefer the meat do some dry aging during that time.

Im not a scientist but I'm pretty sure that dry ice + cooler = frozen meat

 

[2rocky]

Dry aging not as effective with game meat because lack of Fat cover. You lose a lot of surface area because of dried out rind trimmed off.

Suggested storage temperature, relative humidity and air velocity range for dry aging
	Suggested Range	Problems encountered when values are too high	Problems encountered when values are too low
Storage Temperature	0 – 4°C (32 – 39°F)	Excessive microbial growth resulting in product spoilage	Aging process ceases as meat is frozen
Relative Humidity	80 – 85%	Excessive microbial growth resulting in product spoilage	Excessive weight and trim loss
Air Flow	0.5 – 2 m/s (1.6 – 6.6 ft/s	Excessive weight and trim loss	Excessive microbial growth re

I've had plenty of good elk steaks doing just what you describe. Hang over night and dry ice in cooler for 2 days home.

You can still dry age the primals at home. Give the Dry ice frozen pieces time to thaw out, then place on racks and age them for your desired amount of time.

 

[kwyeewyk]

Make sure you drain any standing water from your cooler first, and maybe something like cardboard to separate the bags, I didn't realize I had water in the bottom of the cooler and ended up with all my meat frozen into a big glacier, made it hard to defrost properly. If you were really committed to monitoring it you might be able to feed a little dry ice at a time to keep it from freezing but pita and too risky imo. My bull's backstraps were a bit chewy early on but had some steaks off a round that have been frozen awhile and they were pretty tender, no idea if that was from aging though.

 

[matechakeric]

Dry aging not as effective with game meat because lack of Fat cover. You lose a lot of surface area because of dried out rind trimmed off.

Suggested storage temperature, relative humidity and air velocity range for dry aging
	Suggested Range	Problems encountered when values are too high	Problems encountered when values are too low
Storage Temperature	0 – 4°C (32 – 39°F)	Excessive microbial growth resulting in product spoilage	Aging process ceases as meat is frozen
Relative Humidity	80 – 85%	Excessive microbial growth resulting in product spoilage	Excessive weight and trim loss
Air Flow	0.5 – 2 m/s (1.6 – 6.6 ft/s	Excessive weight and trim loss	Excessive microbial growth re

I've had plenty of good elk steaks doing just what you describe. Hang over night and dry ice in cooler for 2 days home.

You can still dry age the primals at home. Give the Dry ice frozen pieces time to thaw out, then place on racks and age them for your desired amount of time.

I don't have a place to hang/rest them that is temperature-controlled when I get home. I wish I had a walk-in refrigerator unit.

 

[matechakeric]

would the meat have a better chance at dry aging for the 2-3 days traveling if I use wet ice instead of dry ice and ensure I manage any melted water on the bottom of the cooler?

I want to keep the meat cool but not frozen.

 

[dan.kirkpatrick]

i have found that by removing the air using space saver bags,,{amazon,several large sizes} once the meat has cooled out then puting them in a cooler works awesome,,just gotta watch sharp corners that can cut the bag,,i have had excellent results that way for the ride home.keep them qtred up and in game bag inside the space savers.

 

[jt13]

would the meat have a better chance at dry aging for the 2-3 days traveling if I use wet ice instead of dry ice and ensure I manage any melted water on the bottom of the cooler?

I want to keep the meat cool but not frozen.

I think you're over thinking the aging thing. Its not that important and will make a minor increase in quality at best. Keeping it cool and dry in a cooler is much more important.

I've put naked meat right into wet ice. I've bagged the meat up in garbage bags and put it in wet ice. I've froze the meat solid in a chest freezer then loaded it into coolers and/or luggage. I've taken cooled meat and laid it on top of frozen 2 liter bottles acting as ice packs. Whatever you do is fine as long as it results in cool and dry meat.

Of all those, the worst option was raw meat in with wet ice. All the meat that was on the bottom of the cooler got a weird soggy texture, still edible, but most was best suited for the grinder.

 

[AZBridger]

I have a great big cooler and I like to "age" my game in there for 7-10 days if possible. I bag the ice in contractor bags and put the meat above it very carefully to keep everything dry. I'll drain the water and add ice as necessary. This process usually takes place in my garage where i can really keep an eye on it. Maybe it is placebo but I sure feel like I come out with a better product. A deer i took in 2020 was the first one in a long time i haven't used this method on and it is noticeably tougher than the animals i have "aged" in a cooler. I grew up in a butcher shop that my mom ran for a long time and I have always been extremely meticulous in meat care so I'm VERY confident that the kill and meat handling were not the culprits of it being tougher than usual. All this being said, each package of that deer i pull from the freezer seems to get a little more tender.

 

[Khunter]

I think you're over thinking the aging thing. Its not that important and will make a minor increase in quality at best. Keeping it cool and dry in a cooler is much more important.

I've put naked meat right into wet ice. I've bagged the meat up in garbage bags and put it in wet ice. I've froze the meat solid in a chest freezer then loaded it into coolers and/or luggage. I've taken cooled meat and laid it on top of frozen 2 liter bottles acting as ice packs. Whatever you do is fine as long as it results in cool and dry meat.

Of all those, the worst option was raw meat in with wet ice. All the meat that was on the bottom of the cooler got a weird soggy texture, still edible, but most was best suited for the grinder.

yep, beat me to it. Way overthinking this OP. And you can get it home on ice rather than dry ice in the time scenario presented.

bring big coolers filled with ice and just focus on things and prep leading to killing these critters, not some drawn out unnecessary post kill process.

 

[shannerdrake]

The hope is to bag a bull and/or cow in WY and drive back to Indiana -- expecting 4-5 days from kill to meat processing and freezing.

During that time, will the meat dry age if hung over night to completely chill out and then kept with constant supply of of dry ice in a cooler for the ride back? Or will the meat freeze and aging completely halt?

all things being equal, I'd prefer the meat do some dry aging during that time.

I've been fortunate enough to drag meat from the west back to Indiana a few times and there's not really a right way to do it. As long as your meat isn't wrapped in plastic or submerged in water, you will get some "dry aging" effect.

Cold air falls. Dry ice on the top of a cooler freezes meat. However, dry ice on the bottom of the cooler with meat on top should not freeze the meat provided you have a nice layer of insulation between the dry ice and the meat - such as some paper bags and a towel.

I've also had a lot of luck layering the bottom of a cooler with block ice and laying the meat on top. The blocks hold the meat up out of the water.

You can also get by with a nice layer of cube ice on the bottom and the meat placed on top, but just be prepared to drain the melt a time or two every day it is in there.

I also agree that the whole "dry aging" thing is a bit overrated. However, I do notice that meat that has time to rest and relax will "bleed off" and I think that makes for better table fair and I get better sear when cooking meat and far less steaming.

Good luck!

 

[88man]

I have been doing the long range game meat transport from Wyoming/Colorado/New Mexico to Pa every year for 22 years some years multiple trips some pushing 3 weeks. Never had any meat spoil. You can use dry ice and balance the temp and not have frozen meat. We have kept meat with just ice and with a combo of dry ice and ice and just dry Ice. Once had 7 cow elk freeze solid on a January cow hunt and didn't use any ice to get them home. It all just depends on the time and temperature of the trip.

 

[rick19Kilo]

I don't have a place to hang/rest them that is temperature-controlled when I get home. I wish I had a walk-in refrigerator unit.

I am in the same boat as far as storage for dry aging. I was thinking about buying an old fridge, making a hole in the wall that divides the fridge from the freezer, and adding racks to the back wall. Also thought of making an insulated closet in the garage with meat hooks and a dry ice set up with a fan for circulation.

I think the old fridge would be cheapest, since lumber prices are just as bad as Elk non res prices!

 

[NoKidsAfter40]

If you are going to get any real benefit from dry aging, I find you need more than 10 days to see the fat and proteins properly break down and to get the tenderizing and taste benefits. I've hung quarters in cheese cloth after salting and peppering the outside with decent results. Generally, i tend to agree that the juice is not worth the squeeze here however. Not worth the effort or energy given the minimal benefits and risk of spoilage etc.

 

[Back Tines]

One recommendation I have is when you are ready to make a tasty meal with you antelope or any venison, is to lay it out your steaks, burger etc. on a paper towel on a tray. Place this in the fridge for 1-2 days allowing the blood to drain off. Change paper towels frequently. You will be amazing at how much drains and how good tasting your meat becomes. This is a short term variation of dry aging.

 

[mevertsen]

Ice - block or cube in the bottom of a big cooler. Cardboard on top of that. Meat on top. Drain water/blood frequently and rotate meat a couple times a day and replace ice as necessary. I don't see a need for dry ice for 2 days.

 

[Washington Hunter]

We were just hunting in Sheridan, Wyoming last week, and went looking for dry ice. None available anywhere. Just a heads up to anyone else counting on buying dry ice to keep your meat cool. With a Google search I found that most likely the shortage is due to the need for dry ice use with one of the Covid vaccines.

 

[Sagebrush1]

I built a 2x4 inner grate for my coolers. I put in the grate, put in quarters, cover with a big garbage bag (be sure to tuck it in around the edges to direct water away from meat and prevent pooling), then put a couple bags of ice on top.

You can drain out the accumulated water and add ice as needed. We’ve aged a lot of meat that way.