But, what is "salt-ageing"?

When it comes to meat jargon, it’s good to be in the know of everything you’re buying. So, this blog is dedicated to the term ‘Salt-Aged’.

So what is salt-ageing?

Salt-ageing is a more delicate and gentle process than dry-hanging, with only a few, but very important differences. The cuts are hung on the bone between 28-35 days, depending on when we pick them out. This is all done in a temperature and humidity-controlled room, filled with Himalayan rock salt. The point of the salt is not to add a salty flavour to the cuts, but to draw out as much water as possible – this will then allow for flavour to develop over the ageing process.

After 19 days of tenderising, the meat is soft and perfect to eat. It’s at 19 days when we start building extra depth of flavour into the beef. Leaving the cuts in the salt-ageing room for around 28 days gives the meat a nutty flavour and as the days go on, the nutty, rich flavour intensifies. Ageing the cuts for 40+ days gives the meat a funky flavour which is why we think that 28 to 35 days gives the perfect balance of soft, velvety, rich, nutty and beefy.

How is it different to dry-hanging?

Conventional dry ageing uses a dehumidifier instead of the salt – this method of dry aging creates a deeper crust on the beef, meaning that more trimming is needed to remove the bark and get into the soft red meat within. Conversely, the salt-ageing process forms a crust relatively quickly, which is then thinner and easier to remove, which then saves more of the meat, allows more meat to take on the flavour of the age, and means that less is wasted in the process of maturing the beef. Does salt-ageing make the meat taste salty?

No. No salt touches the cuts, it is only there to draw water out of the meat, drying it out quicker. Don’t worry, this doesn’t give you a dry steak, it’s actually the opposite. There is no curing of the meat at all with this process.

Learn something new? Be sure to keep an eye out for more of our Field & Flower jargon blogs to keep in the know.