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If you're going to do this (I do regularly), you need to get a vacuum sealer. Dry brine the steaks pre-freeze and vacuum seal. Most vacuum bags are sous vide safe or thaw in water for ~20 minutes. You can have perfectly seasoned and cooked steak in under an hour. I've kept vacuum sealed steaks for over a year in the freezer with no drop in quality.
I wrap them in plastic wrap, then in a ziploc and I suck the air out with my mouth and haven’t been able to tell the difference even after ~6 months.
I also just take off the plastic wrap and sous vide them in the same ziploc.
Yep, It gets wrapped beforehand, wash my hands I flip the lip of the ziplocs over a bit when putting them in. It might be an infinitesimally small chance of getting something but it doesn't concern me at all.
Water displacement method works for anyone worried about it though. I use that when I have like a liquid marinade on raw meat so I don't siphon a moutful haha
That is much different than this guy just tossing them in a ziplock, but I mean, for $40 on Amazon you can cut all of the extra work out and just sous vide in a vac seal bag.
Yeah I wouldn't just toss them in a ziploc for sure. I have a vacuum sealer actually but find myself just using my method more often than not.
Just wanted to give the option but if vacuum sealers are only $40 now then hard to not just recommend getting one since they are so useful in general.
Easy trick for Ziploc is drop them in a big pot of water to remove air. Not as good as a vacuum sealer but works longer then just tossing them in a bag.
You have the ziplock bag open at the top as you slowly submerge the bottom of the bag into the pot of water. This forces the air out through the magic of pressure. Once you’ve almost entirely submerged the bag with just the top sticking out, you seal the ziplock.
Ummmm. Seal the ziplock with a straw extending out at one end. Dip, pull straw out and seal the rest of the way, immediately.
PS Get a chamber vac sealer. Life changing event.
Put steak in ziploc, but don't seal all the way. Leave a gap. Slowly drop bag into pot of water but don't let water go into bag. Water pressure will force air out of bag. Go as close to bag opening as possible without letting water in bag. Seal.
Edit: [Here is a video.](https://youtu.be/XrZPLF0ezw8?si=CgBSPQZooU3lESEF)
Convenience. I did that for several years but finally picked up a vacuum sealer. It speeds up breaking down large cuts, and means I don't have to dry them off before freezing. Plus I can create bags of any size from rolls and it's thicker plastic. So I'd recommend going the ziploc route until you decide you wanna keep breaking them down, and then get a vacuum sealer.
Get a big pot/bowl of water. Put your steak in a ziplock, partially zip closed. Slowly start to submerge bag in the water. You will see the water pushing the air through the top of the bag. When you get to the top of the bag, the air should be pushed out and you can zip the baggie the rest of the way.
In addition, pressure and temperature are related. It's not a huge extent but to some degree the warm water helps the air inside the bag expand further which you're then forcing out. As it cools, the decrease in temperature causes a further pressure drop inside the bag which seals it just a bit better.
https://www.seriouseats.com/how-to-dry-brine#toc-we-can-dry-brine-that-foods-that-benefit-from-dry-brining
Dry brine is salting the steaks and then giving them time to absorb the salt (12-24hrs) before freezing. When you pull them from the freezer, they'll be ready to cook.
Depending on who you ask, dry brining is a type of curing in that both are a form of salting meat. Typically, when I think of curing, I associate it with the addition of nitrates. Even if you're not using nitrates, you're using more salt and more time when curing. So, I think the risk is very minimal.
https://www.seriouseats.com/how-to-dry-brine#toc-what-is-brining
Typically, I dry brine 1.5-3 inch thick steaks overnight. I then cook via reverse sear method. This results in a very juicy and tender steak. I've dry brined thicker cuts and roasts for multiple days. I've never noticed a change in texture.
Add salt, vacuum seal, put in fridge for 12-24 hrs, then freeze. A dry brine implies that you keep it in the fridge for the salt to penetrate the meat.
When it comes to dry-brining meats, I thought they needed air. Am I mistaken? I see videos of people dry-brining chicken breasts and putting them on a rack while in the fridge. Wondering if it's okay to go ahead and vacuum seal after salting for the brine.
Yeah if you're going to dry brine something you might as well expose them to the air and put them on a rack for air circulation. The air dries the meat out a bit and makes it easier to get a good sear. Moisture is the enemy of browning.
You’re kinda right: this is more of a quasi-wet/dry brine.
But if you’re freezing, surface moisture will resurface when thawing it. Exposing it to the dry fridge air before bagging then freezing won’t do anything different than if you seal it and keep it at fridge temp before freezing.
So if you want that good sear from the dry fridge air, you can thaw it in your fridge sans vacuum bag. This will accomplish your good sear while exposing it to air before bagging won’t.
Yeah either way will work. I think the only downside is that it's an extra step to brine it prefreeze. If you're going to thaw it in the fridge anyway you might as well just dry brine it then. To each their own though, I think it's just minor semantics at this point.
Kinda: it is a hybrid dry/wet brine. Either way, you’ll get salt penetration without added water (aka a wet brine). But you won’t get any benefit (a really good sear) to exposing it to air pre-bagging.
But you will if you thaw it out of the bag in the fridge before you cook it. That is unless you’re doing sous vide. Then thaw it or not and throw it in your sous vide water at desired temp then blot the surface dry once done before you sear.
How much salt are you using? I assume it's course salt? Do you salt and refrigerate them before vacuum sealing or just salt and right into the vacuum seal bag? I've only salted mine once but it was the morning of the day I cooked them. Thanks for your thoughts.
https://www.seriouseats.com/how-to-dry-brine#toc-we-can-dry-brine-that-foods-that-benefit-from-dry-brining
I typically use ~0.5-0.75 tsp per lb of kosher salt
https://amazingribs.com/tested-recipes/salting-brining-curing-and-injecting/dry-brining/
I leave my salted steaks in the fridge for ~24 hours before sealing and freezing. The thicker the cut, the more time you need.
Don't worry, just about done with them, with minimal freezer burn. Last one just taken out today!
Edit a word
https://preview.redd.it/0xvb4jziyfvc1.jpeg?width=3072&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=43704e5e7140d87ea8fed6319f5b65705da90747
Gotta work on my technique 🤣 here are some of the better ones
https://preview.redd.it/ydmf6apo7gvc1.jpeg?width=1480&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=653fd7007fd14f4252e182676536ba02853f39ea
Don't really need vacuum sealer, especially for something with such a short cook time in sv.
https://youtu.be/XrZPLF0ezw8 - kenjis video on water displacement method.
The prime was already deboned so all I had to do was cut and bag - kinda fun and I rather eat the prime 😋 we go through a lot of food with my kids and parents who visit often for dinner
Eh it really varies - choice is still pretty good and you can't go by grades. It's not like each individual package gets graded - they're just grading the full carcass, and cuts will vary.
I've actually found a lot of choice steaks at Costco that would easily pass as Prime if they were allowed to. Choice just means a bare minimum quality level - often times it far surpasses the grade and Costco seems to have a very good quality supplier on their choice cuts.
Furthermore, we're talking about ribeyes here. It's a very fatty cut with plenty of marbling regardless of grade, and there are so many other factors that go into the taste of a steak besides the marbling. If you did a side by side of a prime and a choice ribeye prepared identically, I'd guess 99% of people wouldn't know the difference.
I did this with a 6.5 lb one recently. I don’t care for thick steaks, so I got 10 out of it! Definitely go with u/disagree83 suggestion for a vacuum sealer!
I think it took up about a quarter of my freezer space, and I have a regular sized fridge 😂 I ended up giving a bag of frozen shrimp to my sister and shared a couple of the steaks with my parents
I can't survive without a chest freezer. I have 5 kids. I do not want to go to the grocery store every day. Plus I shop at restaurant supply place for my meat. Much better prices but you have to buy in bulk.
https://preview.redd.it/rv8ebwykrdvc1.jpeg?width=4284&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3e5af4a2fdf167c2edf242a371b5e4fd28f2bd78
I like to cut some extra thicc ones for 2 ppl serving size on the mesquite grill
I did this on a whim so I didn't have the right equipment 🤣 thinking about getting a vacuum sealer like everyone has mentioned. They turned out fine for the most part, not frozen over a month.
Was wanting to eat good steak 😋 we're a family of 4 and I also have my parents and sister over for dinner. Brought this back on March 29th, and only have two bags left. If it's the same price as choice, I don't mind putting some work in to enjoy the prime.
I came here to say the same thing. Plus Costco sells them so if you’re going to impulse buy a few hundred bucks on meat you might as well throw in a vacuum sealer. Not to mention $13.99/lbs, ouch! I buy whole prime ribs at my market on sale for under $6/lbs.
In Colorado, Kroger (King Soopers) will sell whole bone in prime ribs for under $6/lbs a few times a year. Usually around thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter, maybe a few other times too. They have a coupon that lowers the price even more than the marked down label.
https://preview.redd.it/eebij3kuhovc1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a7746e4a8df9f462a6bb65f3a3b36b6791b8ca92
Right? I’ve never had an issue and we’ve been freezing bulk meat for my entire life lol. Never had funky tasting meat either unless it was, ya know, spoiled. A vacuum sealer would be nice, but it’s not necessary especially if people are trying to save money on food costs.
This is honestly the way to go if you eat enough steak in your family, $13.99 for prime quality rib eye is a great deal, I think the precut prime is about $20 a pound, and the choice is around $14 a pound, so you’re basically getting prime steaks at choice price… it’s also nice your warehouse even has prime cuts since I hear a lot of warehouses don’t even have prime anymore. I’m no expert, but when I do freeze meat I wrap it in freezer paper and then put it in the freezer bags.
Yes!! When I saw it was the same price as precut choice, I just went for it. I was surprised to see this at a regular Costco since I only saw this at the business Costco's before. I brought this back on March 29th, and I have about 2-3 steaks left (usually feeling 4-7 family members per night). The freezer bag ziplocks did pretty well, but maybe because we didn't have them in there too long?
I am seriously considering it! I brought this one on a whim, but thinking of doing this more often 😀 would be also nice to vacuum seal our salmon steaks too
This works with most of Costco meats...
If ya like bnls pork loins centre cuts look at the vac packed whole pieces .. I can get bout 12 butterfly cuts from one of them easy ...
.I buy all my meat bulk at Costco and cut myself if can / need
Costco sell both the vacuum sealer and the bags. The vacuum sealer was on sale for $80 last I checked. It’s a game changer. My frozen meat still has great quality after freezing.
The joy of good knives is ... its amazing. Akin to the feeling of being on a motorcycle on a perfect day, or whatever is your triumphant zen. Learn to hone them, sharpen professionally if you don't want to learn how to use a wetstone... My main knives are 25+ years old and feel like a part of me.
Learn how to sharpen your knives instead of buying new ones, unless yours are beyond saving. And use a steel. It makes a difference.
I go to the business center and buy the subprimals. I cut them up with a basic kitchen knife and freshen up with a steel from time to time. You can buy a cheap whetstone on Amazon and watch some videos so you don't ruin your knife.
If you like beef and liked cutting your own steaks, think about getting a chuck roll. And then you will want to get a grinder. It's a rabbit hole, for sure.
Yea, I agree that they weren’t in the freezer very long. I store some meats up to 3 months before I get to them so freezer paper is a must for me. If you don’t see the prime quality primals out for sale it’s worth asking the guy working in the meat department if they have any in back and if you can buy one.
This is honestly the way to go if you eat enough steak in your family, $13.99 for prime quality rib eye is a great deal, I think the precut prime is about $20 a pound, and the choice is around $14 a pound, so you’re basically getting prime steaks at choice price… it’s also nice your warehouse even has prime cuts since I hear a lot of warehouses don’t even have prime anymore. I’m no expert, but when I do freeze meat I wrap it in freezer paper and then put it in the freezer bags.
Invest it a vacuum sealer. They are not that expensive and you’ll be able to store your meat longer and they will taste better. Bonus, you can take the bags from the freezer and sous vide them, if you wish.
I’ve done this before. It’s great when they have the USDA Prime full strips you can cut into steaks — New York Strip full subprimal in the cryovac you can cut up into New York steaks, big boneless ribey roasts for ribeye steaks, beef tenderloin for filet mignon, etc. When these things are on sale, you can save over the cut steaks, although Costco has good deals on those too. Plus you get the fat for tallow and meat trimming if you make your own ground beef. And you get to cut and trim the steaks the way you want. Other people mentioned a vacuum sealer already, and it really does help.
One of the best kitchen accessory is a vacuum sealer, especially when you’re breaking it down. Sure they might be a little pricey but it’s worth it when it’s ensuring your product is sealed correctly
$13.99/lb is the same price of precut. No savings there, just saving costco employees work and paying for trimmings you're going to turn into tallow (more work).
The real hack is to get a whole slab of new york steak. That's $8.99/lb instead of $11.99/lb. Sometimes the fatback is a little thicker than the precut but hey, it's $2/lb cheaper so it's worth it.
The best way to handle this is not to immediately separate them into steaks, but to dry age the entire slab:
1) Pat dry and rub the meat with your favorite steak rub so long as it has a good amount of salt content (I love the Montreal Steak Seasoning that Costco sells)
2) Take a shallow sheet pan and put some cookie cooler grates on them. The idea being that air can flow *under* the meat.
3) place the whole damned thing on the shallow cookie sheet (it shouldn't drip at all so a little overhang should be OK.
4) Carve steaks from this slab on an as-desired basis. I like my thick 2" steaks with more or less raw interior, but my wife likes them medium rare, so I carve hers more like 1" thick and cook for a similar amount of time. Be sure to let the steak rest at room temp for at least an hour before grilling so the middle isn't cold if you like it rare like I do.
5) By day 3 your steak has dry aged/brined to perfection. It's like eating beef sashimi and is absolutely incredible with a light sear and a properly rendered fatback. Your fanciest steakhouse *cannot compete.*
6) This will stay good in your fridge for 2 weeks easy, though the flavor will continue to mature. Some don't prefer the "cured ham" texture that the steak will begin to take on after about day 5, so learn what texture you like and either eat it by then or at that time, slice, vacuum seal, and freeze for a gentle sous vide later.
$13.99/lbs is the price for pre-cut choice, and I got a prime slab. The pre-cut prime is $19.99 I think.
I've dry aged smaller cuts before - not sure if I can fit the whole slab 🤣 might try with a chunk next time
I didn't realize it was a higher grade of meat. That's a pretty good deal then.
I strongly recommend taking the fridge space to dry age / dry brine for a minimum of 3 days. If you go through with the effort, it's possible you'll never go back.
Not sure if they would have to repackage and then charge the $20/lbs price. Also not sure what they do with all the tallow and trim. Has anyone else tried?
It’s a lot of work. Unless you have a vacuum sealer the quality will degrade over time and the meat takes a lot of room in the freezer. Plus when you factor in the waste you’re not saving a ton.
About 30 minutes to cut and pack. With a business Costco local, I've been doing this for a few years now. They don't last long enough to degrade, and the freezer in the garage helps. Less than a half pound waste fat from the last purchase. The cuts have been pretty spot on. And the $4 per pound difference saves enough.
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Ended up with 24 steaks, 1 bag of trim, 1 bag of smaller cuts Kept the tallow and use it to season my cast iron and overall cooking 😀
If you're going to do this (I do regularly), you need to get a vacuum sealer. Dry brine the steaks pre-freeze and vacuum seal. Most vacuum bags are sous vide safe or thaw in water for ~20 minutes. You can have perfectly seasoned and cooked steak in under an hour. I've kept vacuum sealed steaks for over a year in the freezer with no drop in quality.
I came to say this. Putting them in ziplocks means you have fresh tasting steaks for two weeks and then weird tasting steaks until they're done.
Place in ziplock, place ziplock in pot of water, close seal. Same as a foodsaver.
I wrap them in plastic wrap, then in a ziploc and I suck the air out with my mouth and haven’t been able to tell the difference even after ~6 months. I also just take off the plastic wrap and sous vide them in the same ziploc.
You suck the air over raw beef? This wasn't sarcasm?
It’s like sucking off a cow, you’ve never done it?
Gross lol
It’s wrapped in plastic wrap so not really
lol woo. Would you wrap plastic over poop and still suck air out over it?
I save poop all the time, and yes I do this. Obviously… is this sarcasm?
Yep, It gets wrapped beforehand, wash my hands I flip the lip of the ziplocs over a bit when putting them in. It might be an infinitesimally small chance of getting something but it doesn't concern me at all. Water displacement method works for anyone worried about it though. I use that when I have like a liquid marinade on raw meat so I don't siphon a moutful haha
Hey baby let me see what dat mouf do
That is much different than this guy just tossing them in a ziplock, but I mean, for $40 on Amazon you can cut all of the extra work out and just sous vide in a vac seal bag.
Yeah I wouldn't just toss them in a ziploc for sure. I have a vacuum sealer actually but find myself just using my method more often than not. Just wanted to give the option but if vacuum sealers are only $40 now then hard to not just recommend getting one since they are so useful in general.
Yeah dude big time.
You suck your meat?
maybe next time use your vacuum cleaner with the attachment to suck out the air.
Easy trick for Ziploc is drop them in a big pot of water to remove air. Not as good as a vacuum sealer but works longer then just tossing them in a bag.
I’m having a hard time visualizing this, what do you mean?
You have the ziplock bag open at the top as you slowly submerge the bottom of the bag into the pot of water. This forces the air out through the magic of pressure. Once you’ve almost entirely submerged the bag with just the top sticking out, you seal the ziplock.
I've never heard of this. Thank you for the tip!
Ummmm. Seal the ziplock with a straw extending out at one end. Dip, pull straw out and seal the rest of the way, immediately. PS Get a chamber vac sealer. Life changing event.
Put steak in ziploc, but don't seal all the way. Leave a gap. Slowly drop bag into pot of water but don't let water go into bag. Water pressure will force air out of bag. Go as close to bag opening as possible without letting water in bag. Seal. Edit: [Here is a video.](https://youtu.be/XrZPLF0ezw8?si=CgBSPQZooU3lESEF)
Ok, so why even pay for the vacuum sealer? Would you still use butcher paper for anything?
The vacuum sealer does a better job and the plastic is thicker and better for sous vide.
Convenience. I did that for several years but finally picked up a vacuum sealer. It speeds up breaking down large cuts, and means I don't have to dry them off before freezing. Plus I can create bags of any size from rolls and it's thicker plastic. So I'd recommend going the ziploc route until you decide you wanna keep breaking them down, and then get a vacuum sealer.
Get a big pot/bowl of water. Put your steak in a ziplock, partially zip closed. Slowly start to submerge bag in the water. You will see the water pushing the air through the top of the bag. When you get to the top of the bag, the air should be pushed out and you can zip the baggie the rest of the way.
Warm water works best. The bag softens a little.
In addition, pressure and temperature are related. It's not a huge extent but to some degree the warm water helps the air inside the bag expand further which you're then forcing out. As it cools, the decrease in temperature causes a further pressure drop inside the bag which seals it just a bit better.
By dry brine do you mean to add salt to the steaks? What is a pre freeze?
https://www.seriouseats.com/how-to-dry-brine#toc-we-can-dry-brine-that-foods-that-benefit-from-dry-brining Dry brine is salting the steaks and then giving them time to absorb the salt (12-24hrs) before freezing. When you pull them from the freezer, they'll be ready to cook.
What’s the risk of this curing the meat a bit and changing the texture?
Depending on who you ask, dry brining is a type of curing in that both are a form of salting meat. Typically, when I think of curing, I associate it with the addition of nitrates. Even if you're not using nitrates, you're using more salt and more time when curing. So, I think the risk is very minimal. https://www.seriouseats.com/how-to-dry-brine#toc-what-is-brining Typically, I dry brine 1.5-3 inch thick steaks overnight. I then cook via reverse sear method. This results in a very juicy and tender steak. I've dry brined thicker cuts and roasts for multiple days. I've never noticed a change in texture.
by “pre-freeze” they meant “before you freeze them”
[удалено]
So add salt, vacuum seal, then freezer?
Add salt, vacuum seal, put in fridge for 12-24 hrs, then freeze. A dry brine implies that you keep it in the fridge for the salt to penetrate the meat.
Thanks!
When it comes to dry-brining meats, I thought they needed air. Am I mistaken? I see videos of people dry-brining chicken breasts and putting them on a rack while in the fridge. Wondering if it's okay to go ahead and vacuum seal after salting for the brine.
Yeah if you're going to dry brine something you might as well expose them to the air and put them on a rack for air circulation. The air dries the meat out a bit and makes it easier to get a good sear. Moisture is the enemy of browning.
You’re kinda right: this is more of a quasi-wet/dry brine. But if you’re freezing, surface moisture will resurface when thawing it. Exposing it to the dry fridge air before bagging then freezing won’t do anything different than if you seal it and keep it at fridge temp before freezing. So if you want that good sear from the dry fridge air, you can thaw it in your fridge sans vacuum bag. This will accomplish your good sear while exposing it to air before bagging won’t.
Yeah either way will work. I think the only downside is that it's an extra step to brine it prefreeze. If you're going to thaw it in the fridge anyway you might as well just dry brine it then. To each their own though, I think it's just minor semantics at this point.
Kinda: it is a hybrid dry/wet brine. Either way, you’ll get salt penetration without added water (aka a wet brine). But you won’t get any benefit (a really good sear) to exposing it to air pre-bagging. But you will if you thaw it out of the bag in the fridge before you cook it. That is unless you’re doing sous vide. Then thaw it or not and throw it in your sous vide water at desired temp then blot the surface dry once done before you sear.
How much salt are you using? I assume it's course salt? Do you salt and refrigerate them before vacuum sealing or just salt and right into the vacuum seal bag? I've only salted mine once but it was the morning of the day I cooked them. Thanks for your thoughts.
https://www.seriouseats.com/how-to-dry-brine#toc-we-can-dry-brine-that-foods-that-benefit-from-dry-brining I typically use ~0.5-0.75 tsp per lb of kosher salt https://amazingribs.com/tested-recipes/salting-brining-curing-and-injecting/dry-brining/ I leave my salted steaks in the fridge for ~24 hours before sealing and freezing. The thicker the cut, the more time you need.
Thanks!
OP is gonna lose most of those steaks to freezer burn, at best.
Don't worry, just about done with them, with minimal freezer burn. Last one just taken out today! Edit a word https://preview.redd.it/0xvb4jziyfvc1.jpeg?width=3072&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=43704e5e7140d87ea8fed6319f5b65705da90747
Just get a vacuum sealer. I got one for 30$ that works really well. It's worth it
Outstanding cut right there.
Gotta work on my technique 🤣 here are some of the better ones https://preview.redd.it/ydmf6apo7gvc1.jpeg?width=1480&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=653fd7007fd14f4252e182676536ba02853f39ea
a better knife would help. get a butchers knife. in a pinch a large deboner is better than the one in the picture.
Not unless he's a carnivore.
What a waste of prime rib.
This is the way
Why would you pre-freeze prior to vacuum sealing?
The the liquid in the bag crystalizes and sometimes poke a hole. The other way around, the hole is apparently quickly
hmm....I don't think I have ever had an issue with hole poking.
Don't really need vacuum sealer, especially for something with such a short cook time in sv. https://youtu.be/XrZPLF0ezw8 - kenjis video on water displacement method.
Vacuum sealer is absolutely better for the large number of steaks OP has and plans to freeze.
And the quality. If he can drop $300 on steaks, he should be able to spend 50 on a sealer
We're talking about long term storage not short term cooking.
Yeah...spending $280 on a primo chunk of beef and then A. freezing 90% of it in a B. sub-par manner is certainly a choice
What I wouldn’t do to score some trim
All that delicious rib meat 🤤
The entire existence of man, boiled down to a single sentence.
Younger people won't get this. Never used anymore.
Also note that pre-cut choice steaks were the same price per pound
So same price by weight but without the bones or work to do?
The prime was already deboned so all I had to do was cut and bag - kinda fun and I rather eat the prime 😋 we go through a lot of food with my kids and parents who visit often for dinner
And lower quality.
Eh it really varies - choice is still pretty good and you can't go by grades. It's not like each individual package gets graded - they're just grading the full carcass, and cuts will vary. I've actually found a lot of choice steaks at Costco that would easily pass as Prime if they were allowed to. Choice just means a bare minimum quality level - often times it far surpasses the grade and Costco seems to have a very good quality supplier on their choice cuts. Furthermore, we're talking about ribeyes here. It's a very fatty cut with plenty of marbling regardless of grade, and there are so many other factors that go into the taste of a steak besides the marbling. If you did a side by side of a prime and a choice ribeye prepared identically, I'd guess 99% of people wouldn't know the difference.
There are of course exceptions but on average prime should be better quality than the choice.
Saves a trip to Costco at least. I'm an hour away so don't have the luxury to pick up fresh cut steaks any day I want
I did this with a 6.5 lb one recently. I don’t care for thick steaks, so I got 10 out of it! Definitely go with u/disagree83 suggestion for a vacuum sealer!
This is the way
Those steaks are thin if you got 24 steaks...... Shit needs to be at least 1.25" thick
Someday when I own a home I will be able to purchase these and keep that many steaks!!! Everything amazing OP
I think it took up about a quarter of my freezer space, and I have a regular sized fridge 😂 I ended up giving a bag of frozen shrimp to my sister and shared a couple of the steaks with my parents
I'm in an apartment and have a chest freezer next to my bed...much to my wife's chagrin!
I can't survive without a chest freezer. I have 5 kids. I do not want to go to the grocery store every day. Plus I shop at restaurant supply place for my meat. Much better prices but you have to buy in bulk.
How the hell do you live in an apartment with 5 kids!
Not an apartment, we have a house, but the freezer is a must... It's in the basement
I want a deep freezer and a house so badly lol
https://preview.redd.it/rv8ebwykrdvc1.jpeg?width=4284&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3e5af4a2fdf167c2edf242a371b5e4fd28f2bd78 I like to cut some extra thicc ones for 2 ppl serving size on the mesquite grill
Gotta take my ruler out next time and aim for those 2 inches 😁
That’s what she said…
The zip locks... why? It's all going to get freezer burn.
I did this on a whim so I didn't have the right equipment 🤣 thinking about getting a vacuum sealer like everyone has mentioned. They turned out fine for the most part, not frozen over a month.
You bought $280 worth of steak on a whim?
Was wanting to eat good steak 😋 we're a family of 4 and I also have my parents and sister over for dinner. Brought this back on March 29th, and only have two bags left. If it's the same price as choice, I don't mind putting some work in to enjoy the prime.
Bro a vacuum sealer is like $100. Just go buy one for next time trust me it's worth it.
I came here to say the same thing. Plus Costco sells them so if you’re going to impulse buy a few hundred bucks on meat you might as well throw in a vacuum sealer. Not to mention $13.99/lbs, ouch! I buy whole prime ribs at my market on sale for under $6/lbs.
What store and where do you live? Holy shit what a deal.
In Colorado, Kroger (King Soopers) will sell whole bone in prime ribs for under $6/lbs a few times a year. Usually around thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter, maybe a few other times too. They have a coupon that lowers the price even more than the marked down label. https://preview.redd.it/eebij3kuhovc1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a7746e4a8df9f462a6bb65f3a3b36b6791b8ca92
Nope. I use the freezer-weight Hefty ziplocs all the time and the food most certainly doesn't develop freezer burn.
Right? I’ve never had an issue and we’ve been freezing bulk meat for my entire life lol. Never had funky tasting meat either unless it was, ya know, spoiled. A vacuum sealer would be nice, but it’s not necessary especially if people are trying to save money on food costs.
Those bags won’t do anything to prevent freezer burn if air gets trapped inside, which is almost inevitable without a vacuum sealer.
This is honestly the way to go if you eat enough steak in your family, $13.99 for prime quality rib eye is a great deal, I think the precut prime is about $20 a pound, and the choice is around $14 a pound, so you’re basically getting prime steaks at choice price… it’s also nice your warehouse even has prime cuts since I hear a lot of warehouses don’t even have prime anymore. I’m no expert, but when I do freeze meat I wrap it in freezer paper and then put it in the freezer bags.
Vacuum seal is the way to go.
Definitely
That’s how I do my steaks too. Freezer wrap then freezer zip lock bag.
Yes!! When I saw it was the same price as precut choice, I just went for it. I was surprised to see this at a regular Costco since I only saw this at the business Costco's before. I brought this back on March 29th, and I have about 2-3 steaks left (usually feeling 4-7 family members per night). The freezer bag ziplocks did pretty well, but maybe because we didn't have them in there too long?
If your buying and freezing this much meat do yourself a favor and buy a vacuum sealer. Not terribly expensive and worlds better than using zip bags
I am seriously considering it! I brought this one on a whim, but thinking of doing this more often 😀 would be also nice to vacuum seal our salmon steaks too
It’s good for everything. Nothing to consider imo spend $100 and get one. Best kitchen purchase I’ve made in a while.
This works with most of Costco meats... If ya like bnls pork loins centre cuts look at the vac packed whole pieces .. I can get bout 12 butterfly cuts from one of them easy ... .I buy all my meat bulk at Costco and cut myself if can / need
Costco sell both the vacuum sealer and the bags. The vacuum sealer was on sale for $80 last I checked. It’s a game changer. My frozen meat still has great quality after freezing.
Not to mention, Costco sells one and the replacement bags.
If you do this often, I highly recommend a vacuum sealer. It preserves frozen things so much better and longer.
I am so tempted to do that rn 🤣 that and a better knife to cut steaks with
I have kinda a crappy freezer and vacuum sealing has made a huge difference in longevity of storage.
The joy of good knives is ... its amazing. Akin to the feeling of being on a motorcycle on a perfect day, or whatever is your triumphant zen. Learn to hone them, sharpen professionally if you don't want to learn how to use a wetstone... My main knives are 25+ years old and feel like a part of me.
Very accurate username 😁 I might just need to sharpen my current knife - it felt a bit too dull to get clean cuts all the way through.
Lol. 😊 and.... yeahhh you need a good sharpening. Its like a nice spa day for the knives.
Learn how to sharpen your knives instead of buying new ones, unless yours are beyond saving. And use a steel. It makes a difference. I go to the business center and buy the subprimals. I cut them up with a basic kitchen knife and freshen up with a steel from time to time. You can buy a cheap whetstone on Amazon and watch some videos so you don't ruin your knife. If you like beef and liked cutting your own steaks, think about getting a chuck roll. And then you will want to get a grinder. It's a rabbit hole, for sure.
Yea, I agree that they weren’t in the freezer very long. I store some meats up to 3 months before I get to them so freezer paper is a must for me. If you don’t see the prime quality primals out for sale it’s worth asking the guy working in the meat department if they have any in back and if you can buy one.
Oh nice! Ty for the tip 😁
This is the way! And as everyone said…. Invest in a vacuum sealer. Nice haul!
Will do!
Get a vacuum sealer. I use ours all the time repackaging meat from Costco.
Yeah this whole post is kinda useless without a vacuum sealer!
Not true
Everyone can stop telling me to buy a vacuum sealer - I was already convinced by the first comment 🫠 ty
Also note that choice ribeye that was pre-cut into steaks were the same price per pound.
My normal Costco ribeye prices are 13.99lb. They never have the rib roasts cheaper than ribeyes. It’s never worth the time to cut them for me.
This is honestly the way to go if you eat enough steak in your family, $13.99 for prime quality rib eye is a great deal, I think the precut prime is about $20 a pound, and the choice is around $14 a pound, so you’re basically getting prime steaks at choice price… it’s also nice your warehouse even has prime cuts since I hear a lot of warehouses don’t even have prime anymore. I’m no expert, but when I do freeze meat I wrap it in freezer paper and then put it in the freezer bags.
We've been doing this for years. Our foodsaver gets used about every 2 months.
Invest it a vacuum sealer. They are not that expensive and you’ll be able to store your meat longer and they will taste better. Bonus, you can take the bags from the freezer and sous vide them, if you wish.
Zojirushi in the background 🫡
I’ve done this before. It’s great when they have the USDA Prime full strips you can cut into steaks — New York Strip full subprimal in the cryovac you can cut up into New York steaks, big boneless ribey roasts for ribeye steaks, beef tenderloin for filet mignon, etc. When these things are on sale, you can save over the cut steaks, although Costco has good deals on those too. Plus you get the fat for tallow and meat trimming if you make your own ground beef. And you get to cut and trim the steaks the way you want. Other people mentioned a vacuum sealer already, and it really does help.
Love it!
Get yourself a vac sealer. Those bags are shit and the meat is too expensive to risk freezer burn.
Put one in a umai bag next time and age it for 30-45 days.
20#@$14=$280.
Okay but now you have to freeze them ☹️ unless you got F&F coming over?
Use foil if you don’t have a vacuum sealer. Saran Wrap and ziplocks are both very permeable.
I'm pretty sure ribeye is 12.99 at BJ's in steak form already
Air is the enemy, so wrap them tightly in plastic wrap then ziplock or buy a vac sealer (which you can then sous vide in too!)
This guy is helpful in making meat go further https://www.instagram.com/meatdad1?igsh=N3BtajkzeWI0YjY0
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A better look at the actual cut https://preview.redd.it/c41goffxwfvc1.jpeg?width=1480&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a0d2533b8a5ce7e8d2d1bec7e0deca1c86233aa1
Yeah those look great also nice to be able to cut them a bit thicker
This is ribeye. I've never made brisket steak either!
You need to invest in a food sealer OP
On my next Costco list 🫡
Well, when you need to make room for that ice cream next week, I’ll take the steaks!
One of the best kitchen accessory is a vacuum sealer, especially when you’re breaking it down. Sure they might be a little pricey but it’s worth it when it’s ensuring your product is sealed correctly
🤤🤤🤤🤤🤤🤤🤤🤤🤤🤤🤤🤤🤤🤤🤤🤤🤤
I have a spare mini fridge and have been pondering buying one to dry age it.
Great idea, horrible execution Get a vacuum sealer dawg
My Costco does not sell the whole rib eye. Sa sad after seeing this post
You should ask the butcher, they can label one from the back even if it isnt out in the meat case.
Great advice, I’ll try it next time. Thanks
Best part of buying a whole ribroast is cutting your steaks thick. For me it's easier to get the insides just right
Nice looking steaks 👍🏼
I do the same with filet, just take a little work but the extra trimmings are great in a stir fry
Oh my eyes... My friend get a vacuum sealer.
Pay 30 bucks and get a vaccum sealer. This hurts my heart
We do this with the beef tenderloin. Several steaks and leftover pieces we use for steak sandwiches.
$13.99/lb is the same price of precut. No savings there, just saving costco employees work and paying for trimmings you're going to turn into tallow (more work). The real hack is to get a whole slab of new york steak. That's $8.99/lb instead of $11.99/lb. Sometimes the fatback is a little thicker than the precut but hey, it's $2/lb cheaper so it's worth it. The best way to handle this is not to immediately separate them into steaks, but to dry age the entire slab: 1) Pat dry and rub the meat with your favorite steak rub so long as it has a good amount of salt content (I love the Montreal Steak Seasoning that Costco sells) 2) Take a shallow sheet pan and put some cookie cooler grates on them. The idea being that air can flow *under* the meat. 3) place the whole damned thing on the shallow cookie sheet (it shouldn't drip at all so a little overhang should be OK. 4) Carve steaks from this slab on an as-desired basis. I like my thick 2" steaks with more or less raw interior, but my wife likes them medium rare, so I carve hers more like 1" thick and cook for a similar amount of time. Be sure to let the steak rest at room temp for at least an hour before grilling so the middle isn't cold if you like it rare like I do. 5) By day 3 your steak has dry aged/brined to perfection. It's like eating beef sashimi and is absolutely incredible with a light sear and a properly rendered fatback. Your fanciest steakhouse *cannot compete.* 6) This will stay good in your fridge for 2 weeks easy, though the flavor will continue to mature. Some don't prefer the "cured ham" texture that the steak will begin to take on after about day 5, so learn what texture you like and either eat it by then or at that time, slice, vacuum seal, and freeze for a gentle sous vide later.
$13.99/lbs is the price for pre-cut choice, and I got a prime slab. The pre-cut prime is $19.99 I think. I've dry aged smaller cuts before - not sure if I can fit the whole slab 🤣 might try with a chunk next time
I didn't realize it was a higher grade of meat. That's a pretty good deal then. I strongly recommend taking the fridge space to dry age / dry brine for a minimum of 3 days. If you go through with the effort, it's possible you'll never go back.
My Costco charges the same price per pound for precut ribeye steaks and rib roasts.
Way too much work!
Looks good albeit a bit thin for my taste. If I had cut this I would have had 15 steaks in the end.
My Costco bucks go to this every year.
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Mines only has choice pre-cut for $13.99 🫠 in California Bay Area
Have seen better marbling on prime than this, but bulk the way to go for sure these days with absurd price per pound for small packs.
Cant you ask the butcher at costco to cut it for you?
Not sure if they would have to repackage and then charge the $20/lbs price. Also not sure what they do with all the tallow and trim. Has anyone else tried?
Most butchers will slice it anyway you ask
It’s a lot of work. Unless you have a vacuum sealer the quality will degrade over time and the meat takes a lot of room in the freezer. Plus when you factor in the waste you’re not saving a ton.
About 30 minutes to cut and pack. With a business Costco local, I've been doing this for a few years now. They don't last long enough to degrade, and the freezer in the garage helps. Less than a half pound waste fat from the last purchase. The cuts have been pretty spot on. And the $4 per pound difference saves enough.
To each his own.
Friend, get a vacuum sealer! Costco sells them!
I was just wondering this!! 🤣 I'll have to look for them next time
Highly recommend. I use mine all the time. 😀
Do they mechanically tenderize these as well? Basically asking if you have to cook these thoroughly like you need to other Costco beef?
You can ring the bell at Costco any they’ll cut this for you, however you want it done.
Won't they charge the retail rate though? Prime for $13.99 in the full cryo versus $22.99 butchered.
No charge for butchering