I want to get some opinion's on some wholesale processing. Im about to take on a project of where one company slaughter's and quarter's the beef and we further process. I have worked at some big places and have done HACCP for a long time. My thought is to hang the quarter's/or sides for 14-21 days then process them. The thought is to break them down and then cryovac them, after breaking them down (because of my haacp background) im thinking about jaccarding the primal's but using an antimicrobial or vinegar spray. We will be using a high choice or prime Angus that we are raising, want to know if you would even needle it, and spray it. Plus want to keep USDA happy
Why 14 to 21 days? Carcass normally shrink at 1/2 to 1 % per day. Large packers have the capabilities to spray chill carcasses for two reasons. To get the internal temps down and obviously stabilize the shrink. All carcasses processed today after moving through the final spray wash get hit with either a vinegar based spray or citric acid to counteract bacteria growth. After the sani-bath carcass enter the hot box where the initial heat is extracted and the carcasses are spray chilled. Weights are monitored by USDA. After that phase carcasses enter the holding coolers designed in holding the carcass temps.
The object is to keep the meat cold and moving. The next step after either grading or trim stations the cattle enter the fab rooms and are broken into primal cuts ( generally on the 3rd to 5th day depending on processing schedules. Generally their are 4 main lines to handle the 4 primal cuts but other lines to handle thin meat cuts.
Their thought is they want to do more of a high end almost dry aged beef. Me i would rather get it and process it. Basically we are running the processing at our usda plant and taking to our retail stores
forgive me if im wrong but i thought the whole idea of hanging meat was to stretch the muscles under its own weight to tenderise it.
i dont work processing meat so i thought wet aged was meat not hung for 14 days but cut quickly put in bags to wet age for 21 plus days so its not hung in the traditional way we think meat is hung it may be hung just pre processing before it was put in bags ies vac wrapped or am i wrong is it hung for the reaons meat was hung
Not here IrshD. The object in the US is to get as many cattle dead per hour to max out the entire operation. I worked for the largest beef processor in the world and this is how it is. Kill rate 375 per hour bone rate 300 per hour. Mind you that after the carcass is boned and cryovac wet aging takes place. For the most part depending on how close customers are to the processing plants retailers can be cutting beef about on the 7th day after kill. Ten days would be normal and even up to 15 days. Restaurants prefer the bagged meat somewhere between 21 and 28 days.
I can say this with a matter of fact. I ate Holstein boneless strip loins that were 70 days in the cryovac, and they were like butter. You just have to stand back a little when you open the bag. LOL> Personally I don't like the taste to either a dry aged or wet then dry aged beef. My QA manager use to take the boneless strips out of the bag on the 28th day then dry age it for home use. They were tender for sure but they take on an all together flavor.
coalcracker i had a customer a chef used to come in and ask how long meat was hung i knew it wasnt and when i said well erm a store manger jumped in said 28 days
ha coalcracker i remember a rather smelly short lion when i was a newbie i had to say to the dude he had to change his coat and dont kiss his wife befor he showered. must have put one customer off because a reg complained and he got 8 free steaks as wow.
i know a few people who only buy tbones when they are pure black on outside though
Mosthe places I have worked we did 21-28 days dry aging, wet aging isn't my thing unless it's a select or NR. Most of their stuff the last 2 days having graded prime, so I would like to hang the sides for 21 days or so. My thing is haccp side, after I do that and break it down to subprimals, is needling to much? This was going to be may way to introduce my antimicrobial
Mosthe places I have worked we did 21-28 days dry aging, wet aging isn't my thing unless it's a select or NR. Most of their stuff the last 2 days having graded prime, so I would like to hang the sides for 21 days or so. My thing is haccp side, after I do that and break it down to subprimals, is needling to much? This was going to be may way to introduce my antimicrobial
At the place where I started in 1978, we had mostly carcass beef. We got in a few cases of boneless loin strips and peeled knuckles, but other than that, it was all carcass. We sold sides and quarters. We aged them 6 weeks if I remember right, but that seems pretty long. The buyers paid by the pound going with the original weight, so shrinkage didn't matter. We did have a nice little counter too, where I guess shrinkage may have been a factor.
