Snake River Farms

The dry-aging of beef is a practice with an interesting history. Despite its current incarnation as a usually high-end steakhouse delicacy, its origins are far humbler. It’s unclear how far back dry-aging of beef goes, although the fundamentals of dry-aging, along with its cousins like salting, curing, and smoking, are older than recorded history. Dry-aging specifically is at least centuries old, as Rembrandt painted an ox being dry-aged in 1655. So why is an ancient process for the aging of meat all the rage from armchair-foodies to Michelin-starred chefs, pros on the barbeque circuit to suburbanites grilling their backyard? Its popularity is the result of what the aging process does to (and for) the beef. How Does Dry-Aging Work? Dry-aging beef is pretty much what it sounds like—the right cuts of beef are left to age in the right conditions. The right cuts are pretty much universally agreed to be the ribeye, New York strip, the top butt (sirloin), and the porte...

Capers have been (appropriately) described as “flavor bombs.” They’re salty and briny, savory and umami, packed with a distinctive flavor, and entirely delicious. At least, their fans would insist they are delicious. Capers tend to inspire very little indifference; people love them or hate them. However, even if you’rea firmly entrenched occupant of the “hate them” camp, don’t dismiss capers just yet. While the inclusion of full capers in bagels and lox or pasta may prove to be a bit much for some people, the subtler addition of capers to a recipe can add a unique zing to a recipe it would be a shame to miss out on. An example of just such a scenario in which a touch of caperlivens up a steak recipe—specifically bone-in New York strip and filet mignon (also referred to as tenderloin steak )—is included here. But first, we’ll dive into the origin story of capers. As a group, human beings have always been pretty fond of eating things and having those things taste...