Switched from plastic wrap to wax paper for my counter aging setup - huge difference after 60 days

I run a small shop in Omaha and have been dry-aging beef in a spare fridge for about two years now. Always used plastic wrap to cover the meat during the process, but last batch I tried wax paper instead after talking to an old timer at the regional association meeting. The difference was night and day - the rind formed more evenly and I lost maybe 8% less weight to trimming. I did a 60 day ribeye that tasted noticeably deeper than anything I got with plastic wrap. Has anyone else tried changing their wrap material for home aging? What did you notice?

2 comments

2 Comments

singh.blair23d ago

8% less trimming in a home setup just from switching wrap? That feels like a pretty wild claim for something so simple.

the_andrew23d ago

nah disagree with @singh.blair here but hear me out. 8% less trimming sounds about right if you factor in how wax paper lets the meat breathe vs plastic suffocating it. i ran the same test side by side with two new york strips last month and the wax paper one definitely had a thinner, more even rind after 45 days. plastic wrap traps moisture too close to the surface, so you get that thick hard crust that wastes more meat when you trim it. matt's numbers seem high but not impossible if his fridge humidity is dialed in.