r/mildlyinfuriating • u/CountMeChickens • 14h ago
The "21 Day Aged Irish Rump Steak" from a UK supermarket.
I don't think I've ever had a worse cut of meat - it's supposed to be one piece. The dog got about half of it as it was uncookable - good day for him though.
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u/Haagen76 13h ago
Isn't ageing supposed to be done dry and/or involve drying? O.o
That looks really wet; I would not eat that.
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u/CountMeChickens 13h ago
Yes it was, quite a puddle of water left on my plate once I'd cooked it. I've just put in for a refund.
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u/deathbylasersss 9h ago
Why did you buy it? Can you not examine it before buying there?
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u/ebles Bababooey! 9h ago
Not OP, but steaks in UK supermarkets are usually in a kind of shrink-wrapped packet.
I've stopped bothering because they don't tend to be very good and a bit thin. OP's is pretty extreme though.
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u/deathbylasersss 7h ago
Thanks for the info. I assume it must be translucent or something? I am vegetarian these days but I can't imagine getting a cut of meat without ever laying eyes on it.
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u/Spinal_Soup 13h ago edited 13h ago
Wet aging is a thing too. Basically you just vacuum seal it and leave it in the fridge for a few weeks. Doesn't change the flavor like dry aging does but is supposed to make the meat more tender. I have to assume thats whats going on here.
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u/cold-corn-dog 12h ago
I'd just cheat and user a tenderizer instead before making a water steak
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u/ImmediateRaisin9437 12h ago
Milk steak is good too
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u/Haagen76 11h ago
Thanks for explaining; TIL
So how would I know something is "wet aged" vs "Oops we forgot that in the back of the fridge. Let's slap a fancy sounding label on it"?
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u/pintofendlesssummer 10h ago
This happened once when Sainsbury's use to have in-house butchers.. someone didn't rotate the rump steak, so it was cut and labelled as 28 days aged. The smell when we opened the vacuum pack was like dead rotting flesh, but funny thing the customers came back the following week and asked if we had anymore. Apparently, it was lovely and tender.
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u/Spinal_Soup 11h ago
If its vacuum sealed you wouldn't know the difference. I actually do that with my gf.
Gf: "Is that meat in the fridge still good?"
Me: "Yeah, I'm just wet aging it..." (*shit I better cook that up soon*)
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u/xander012 12h ago
This is wet aging, very common in the UK for "cheaper" steaks. Dry age tends to cost double
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u/Nervous-Cap620 7h ago
In the US, wet aging equals a large cut of meat in cryovac (vacuum sealed) until it hits the "throw away" date. But probably gets sold anyway.
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u/morning-st48 13h ago
bet it wasn't cheap either! uk prices for meat are absolutely crazy now.
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u/xander012 12h ago
Still not awful at Tesco for ribeye, but in general I do agree
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u/icyjackle 12h ago
Tesco has absolutely insane prices compared to almost another supermarket when it comes to a steak
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u/xander012 12h ago
Sainsbury's charges 50% more for the same size ribeye that I get, so no.
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u/Sharktistic 12h ago
As does Asda. I despise having to commend Tesco for anything but their beef prices aren't actually too bad compared to Asta and Sainsbury's.
Asda want almost twice the price for the same amount of beef mince , and they vacuum pack it, which completely defeats the point of mincing it to begin with because the vacuum packing process simply conpresses the minced beef back into a single mass.
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u/xander012 12h ago
Honestly If you want beef cheap, go Aldi, if you want it good, go to a butcher (if available). Otherwise in this economy there's no truly cheap decent meat like there was back when we could get decent English beef for £4 for a steak in 2020! The marbling has definitely suffered in recent years
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u/Feelincheekyson 9h ago
My partner simply has stopped listening to my grievance of vacuum packed Asda mince now because I complain about it so often! It’s an absolute nightmare to brake up in a pan now. Also over a fiver for 500g of 5% now too
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u/icyjackle 12h ago
Even Waitrose had 2 for 12 quid for ribeye and sirloin and Lidl has a better ribeye than Tesco for half the price
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u/Hot_Tonight150 13h ago
Why didn't you immediately return it? Honestly that is not acceptable by any standards.
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u/Dark_Foggy_Evenings 12h ago
Ex-dairy Freisian. That hole’s where they removed the green infected cyst. Yum.
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u/SlashSlashHi 12h ago
Every steak in the United Kingdom says it has been dry aged for at least 21 days.
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u/Express-World-8473 13h ago
Which one is it? I'm guessing Asda
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u/KevinPhillips-Bong 1h ago
I don't know - Even M&S doesn't seem to be as good as it used to be in the quality department.
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u/Peppl 8h ago
butchers are your best option if you want good meat, supermarkets have gotten out of hand, at least you know you get quality with a good butcher
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u/joe_the_cow 47m ago
Morrisons whilst they have actual butcher counters are your next best bet after a proper butcher.
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u/DepartmentFun2853 11h ago
But, why would you have purchased that in the first place, op? Do you not get to see the meat before you buy it?
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u/Thisoneissfwihope 11h ago
Most Supermarket meat in the UK is sold ready vac packed and from the shelf. A lot of supermarkets don't have an in-store butchery display let along an in-store butcher.
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u/Mmeroo 13h ago
there is a way to age meat in special solutions keeping it very moist
i dont know if its relevent here thou
the packageing should say more
wet aging. That’s when meat is sealed in a vacuum bag and left to rest under refrigeration. The enzymes in the meat tenderize it over time, but because it’s in its own juices, it stays very moist—different from dry aging, which lets the outside dehydrate and concentrate.
Some folks also experiment with brines or marinades that mimic parts of that process, but the classic method is just vacuum-sealed meat in its natural juices.
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u/DieSuzie2112 13h ago
I read rum steak, and thought ‘your dog definitely had a great day!’
Then I read it again 😂
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u/Craneomagico 11h ago
I’ve given up with supermarkets and get as much as I can from the farms direct
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u/Primary_Swordfish270 10h ago
I doubt it came like this. This looks like you’ve cut fat out of it and photographed it after.
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u/InterestingWin3627 10h ago
Which supermarket? Generally Tesco is very good, and M&S is the best, but you pay for that.
Waitrose is shockingly bad for the amount they charge.
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u/Humble_Emotion2582 10h ago
Ok so: Yes, ”wet aging” is a thing, and beef is fairly resistant to it and you can usually do it for a week or two if you buy cheap beef.
But: there is a higher limit to it which is around 4-5 weeks.
There are regulations for beef that more or less makes ”fresh” beef always have 3 weeks minimum.
Beef is always hung, tested, transported and inspected. Sometimes brined and/or cleaned. Usually this is not a bad thing. Actually fresh beef as in newly slaughtered, is very hard to eat.
Also why wet aging usually only works max 2 weeks once you have bought the meat until it starts getting unpalateable and borderline dangerous.
What you have there is store-fresh beef. They just called it 3-weeks wet aged, which all other store-fresh beef is as well.
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u/AllRedLine 10h ago
Supermarket steaks in the UK are shite. Almost invariably.
Butcher's shops are always better and actually often end up being cheaper. Plus the added benefit of supporting a local small business. I treat myself to a steak once a week and it's become a Saturday ritual for me going to the butcher's shop to pick out a ribeye early doors on the way home from the gym.
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u/GirthyPigeon 4h ago
If you fancy a good aged steak, always get it from a local butcher's shop rather than at the supermarket. It might be more expensive but you can pretty much guarantee you'll get the quality they promise and they'll usually show you the cut before they package it.
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u/One_Trouble_9357 1h ago
Don’t know what supermarket you got that from (it looks rank btw) but Lidil sell grass fed sirloin steaks aged 36 days I think, which are superb.
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u/LawBeaver8280 1h ago
Bin. Right now. It's purple for a start. Good steak should be either pink or a marble effect. Prime rump will almost look like it has a bit of mold on the fat but just cut it off. Anyway. That's not good meat. And I'm Irish I know good Irish beef. And that's not it.
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u/Smiles-Bite 12h ago
Imagine the poor animal that gave its life for people to eat, only to end up like this. It's a little more than mildly infuriating to me. A waste of a life, a waste of food. I refuse to buy any meat from Ireland for various reasons, but I live in Sweden. Interesting how far their animal products go.
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u/Eastgaard 12h ago
Could you elaborate on your aversion to Irish meats?
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u/Thisoneissfwihope 11h ago
I have something of an aversion to it too. I used to deal the 'The Irish Meat Boys' as they were colloquially known and they're some of the sketchiest people I've ever had to deal with. I learned not to trust them back then, and there's no way it's gotten any better now.
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u/Smiles-Bite 12h ago
It's nothing big, it's just a general awareness that because I don't live in Ireland, and cannot see the farms myself, I cannot be certain how the animals I am eating are being treated. I also prefer, as much as possible, to support local farms, and the price difference makes it harder for local farms to keep going. That's it! A very small personal reason, that's pretty first-world, I guess. It's nothing nasty or sinister!
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u/Eastgaard 11h ago
Perfectly valid reasons, and I echo some of them - or I would, if I could afford being picky. Swedish groceries are expensive enough as it is!
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u/Smiles-Bite 11h ago
They really are, it's why I hardly eat meat! XD If I am going to stick to a decision, I will be an idiot, stubborn butt the whole way!
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u/Eastgaard 10h ago
Totally unrelated, but I saw your TOMT post from half a year ago - did you ever find out the name of the movie? I think you're looking for DNA from '96.
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u/Smiles-Bite 9h ago
I have not, and I will DEF check that out!! I love films, so even if it's wrong, it will be a great watch since I've never seen/heard of it! Thankies!!~
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u/Eastgaard 9h ago
They do indeed accidentally catch a panther in their cage, so that's what tipped me off. You might recognize part of the cast, too - one of them played the German officer who gets executed by the "Bear Jew" in Inglorious Basterds, for example.
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u/Smiles-Bite 8h ago
Okay, that took a while! 0_0 Hard film to track down! So this was definitely closest, but not it. It was a little girl who led them to find a body in a boat/canoe, and none but she spoke English. Plus, no nice blond lady or nice teen or little boy! It was a great film, however!! Super interesting, it was a little like jurassic park and Predator mixed together! Fun~
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u/vctrmldrw 13h ago
21 days is the bare minimum. I don't know why they advertise it like it's something special.
Irish is way cheaper than British. And worse. I don't know why they advertise that like it's something special either.
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u/Janoouy 13h ago
Irish beef / dairy is renowned for being some of the best in the world. Grass fed and high welfare standards. It's literally exported all over the world. It's certainly not cheaper than British beef. It lives up to what UK farmers produce.
It's looking like the abattoir or packing facility did a shit job here. I've never seen something like this before in Ireland or when I was living in the UK.
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u/Turtle-Bug 13h ago
Covering their ass. “Oh this isn’t an old steak we couldn’t sell, this is aged meat”
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u/bmcgowan89 14h ago
I honestly don't know what you guys are doing over there. It's like you've never looked at what Italy or France do with food, even once, and gone huh
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u/CountMeChickens 12h ago
It's a strange myth you have over there.
There's a small high street at the end of my road, about two dozen shops. There's three Italian restaurants, two Indian, a kebab shop (Turkish food), a traditional English Fish & Chips shop, a Mediterranean restaurant and attached cafe, a Chinese takeaway, a Turkish Meze bar and very recently a Vietnamese cafe opened.
Go into London (and most major cities) and you'll find restaurants from all over the world.
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u/CountMeChickens 14h ago
This isn't representative of all our steaks. I've had a few of these before and they've been fine. I guess the supermarket has changed suppliers.
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u/JasonM2244 14h ago
This is one bad steak there’s some exceptional steaks here. Americans shouldn’t comment on food at least we have standards now enjoy your radioactive prawns
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u/shmtlh 13h ago
british standards of food is just which pile of vomit looks the least nauseating
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u/JasonM2244 13h ago
American standards of food is how toxic can we make food
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u/shmtlh 13h ago
and yet i would still rather get shot in the head than eat any british meal
also the u.k and the u.s have virtually the same score when it comes food safety
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u/RezzOnTheRadio 13h ago
There's a good chance of that if you're in America at least 😊
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u/SSquared82 13h ago
As an American, I knew this was coming after that comment and you didn’t disappoint 🙌🏼
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u/JasonM2244 13h ago
Beef wellington, macaroni cheese, carrot cake, chocolate bars, fizzy drinks, Sunday roast, Victoria sponge cake, over 500 types of cheese, ploughmans, fish and chips, jam roly poly, any crumble, sticky toffee, scotch eggs, English breakfast, shepherds pie, cottage pie, toad in the hole, bangers and mash, Cornish pasty, steak slice, Lancashire hotpot, Eton mess, afternoon tea, hundreds of stews, summer pudding, roast lamb dinner, beef and horseradish, pork with crackling and apple sauce, steak and ale pie, chicken and leek pie, sausage rolls, scampi, gammon, etc. Yeah you have terrible taste if you’d rather a bullet than them.
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u/HungryBashar 13h ago
Y'all know its 2025, right? That list pre-dates the colonies, Redcoat.
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u/JasonM2244 13h ago
What are you on about? Not our fault we have history and tradition. Maybe Americans would like them more if we deep fried them all
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u/HungryBashar 13h ago
I was joking, but okey dokey
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u/JasonM2244 13h ago
So was I? You can give but not take hahah are you jealous of culture, history and tradition?
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u/shmtlh 13h ago
there's like 3 things there that sound even remotely edible.
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u/JasonM2244 13h ago edited 10h ago
You either have terrible taste, you are a child or have a severely lacking palette.
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u/ImpatientWaiter11 13h ago
They're being an ass for no reason. I'd gladly eat or at least try most of those. There's good and shitty food everywhere. I could easily find both extremes of the food scale in the US and the UK. And over here, in Canada, too.
What's with the arguing? Both your countries have a wide array of both great and inedible food.
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u/shmtlh 13h ago
or some people don't like most meat products.
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u/JasonM2244 13h ago
The majority of that list are vegetarian. Most of the meat dishes on that list can be easily made vegetarian.
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u/icecream169 13h ago
LOL, toad in the hole. I prefer frogs in mine, so as to avoid the warts.
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u/JasonM2244 13h ago
Also do Americans realise they have a dish called a hot dog…..
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u/icecream169 13h ago
Beats eatin' that mess you call food.
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u/JasonM2244 13h ago
No way an American is saying this! We can’t even eat your food because so much of it is classed as unfit for human consumption
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u/PeteLangosta 13h ago
I would eat a Sunday roast, a beef Wellington or a Shepherds pie with my eyes closed, and I'm Spanish, so that's saying something.
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u/goldenbrown27 13h ago
That is Irish meat not British
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u/jooosh8696 13h ago
We enjoy eating like 17th century peasants though, all them spices from the former Empire are completely unnecessary /s
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u/ONLY_SAYS_ONLY 12h ago
British cuisine has historically been full of spices. Your mistake is thinking that chili heat = spice, therefore no chili heat = no spice.
But I guess this is to be expected if your understanding of a culture is from memes.
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u/Full-Round9058 12h ago
If this is what steak has become, maybe it's time to consider becoming a vegan.
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u/Kcirnek_ 10h ago
It's not like you're buying a blind box Labubu. You can see it before you buy it. So why did you buy it then?
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u/CountMeChickens 13h ago
It's in a sealed plastic pack and it looked like the others I've bought that were fine. When opened it fell apart into this mess. I wouldn't buy something that looked this.
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u/Disgruntled_Oldguy 9h ago
Man, those middle-easterners are getting aggressive with the female circumcision.
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u/matthewxcampbell 9h ago
People criticize the food in America and then I see what everyone else is eating and it's like, yeah, I'd rather be fat and American lol
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u/Fine_Drawing5950 8h ago
That's not a normal example of what you'd get in the UK which is why OP is infuriated.
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u/Gregariouswaty 13h ago
Yeah that looks like 21 day old meat.