Weigh the food before you hang it to cure. It's done when it has lost approx 30% of it's weight
Curing your own meat
- Thread starter FrenchTart
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Weigh the food before you hang it to cure. It's done when it has lost approx 30% of it's weight
Soldato
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For air drying initial to final weight can be a good indicator. For wetter cures time and recipe are the only way to go, practice and repeat.
I can't think of any situation where it makes more sense to wet cure rather than equilibrium dry cure. I don't mean to sound arsey - genuine question
Soldato
- Joined
- 13 May 2003
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Gravalax for instance isn't air dried neither is salt beef/pastrami/gammon/wiltshire ham etc.
I didn't say air dried - I said brining vs dry cure (and equilibrium curing).
In such situations as salt beef and the like you can't use the weight method, yeah. With equilibrium curing you can afford to leave the cure for what would be far too long compared to the excess cure method though.
There are lots of recipes out there that use excess cure and a degree of pot luck due to supposed methods of "leave it for X days" when the amount of time needs to be different based on the thickness/weight of the meat.
Associate
I find with fish curing- a wet cure is more consistent and results in a better texture (dry cure can dry out the outside layer of flesh) it is also a lot quicker. i always use 80% brine for between 3-5 hrs with trout and salmon then air dry for 24hrs before cold smoking.
With bacon or other products which require long cure times and nitrates, then i agree dry cure is best as you retain more of the products flavour.
With bacon or other products which require long cure times and nitrates, then i agree dry cure is best as you retain more of the products flavour.
Associate
So, you've cured other people's meat?
Anyone see Sunday Brunch (Channel 4) last Sunday? They had Tim Hayward, author of Food DIY, on for a few minutes. He briefly talked through the bacon curing process. His book looks quite good, I think I'll be getting it to help me alongside FrenchTart's very useful advice .
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Soldato
So... I moved house and a lot of the meat didn't come with me sadly :/ I tried the capicola and it was good though. And I still have some semi-cured super garlicky chorizo in the freezer. The Nduja is still hanging around too. Must get round to trying that.
At the moment I'm making some lamb bacon. should be interesting
edit: I've just discovered this recipe for spreadable chorizo. How amazing would that be?
At the moment I'm making some lamb bacon. should be interesting
edit: I've just discovered this recipe for spreadable chorizo. How amazing would that be?
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Tried some lamb bacon over the weekend and it is utterly divine. It tastes somewhat similar to the sort of lamb you get with a shawarma. Really good
Tried some of the home made Nduja I smoked some time ago. Absolutely delicious
It's quite different to the stuff you buy in Waitrose or wherever as the recipe is much heavier in chilli and allspice. Really damn tasty though.
I used this recipe/technique: http://frombellytobacon.com/2012/05/09/nduja/
It's quite different to the stuff you buy in Waitrose or wherever as the recipe is much heavier in chilli and allspice. Really damn tasty though.
I used this recipe/technique: http://frombellytobacon.com/2012/05/09/nduja/
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Soldato
Taken from "Charcuterie by Michael Ruhlman" (I've folleowd a fair few of his recipes and had great results)
Pastrami differs from corned beef in two main ways: it’s smoked and it’s coated with a combination of crushed coriander seeds and black peppercorns. Other than that, it’s corned beef underneath a smoky crust. The coriander-peppercorn crust is a spicy flavorful seasoning that works well on most meats, as well as fish and poultry. The best way to serve pastrami is to reheat it gently for hours until it’s falling-apart tender (steamed or gently roasted, see step 7 below). We favor the beef plate, a cut from the breast or below the shoulder: because it is especially fatty, it stays juicy after all the cooking, and thus makes an especially fine sandwich. Any good butcher shop will be able to provide you with this cut.
THE BRINE
1 gallon/4 liters water
11⁄2 cups/350 grams kosher salt
1 cup/225 grams sugar
11⁄2 ounces/42 grams pink salt (8 teaspoons)
1 tablespoon/8 grams Pickling Spice (page 70)
1⁄2 packed cup/90 grams dark brown sugar
1⁄4 cup/60 milliliters honey
5 garlic cloves, minced
One 5-pound/2.25-kilogram beef plate or beef brisket, heavy surface fat removed
1 tablespoon/8 grams coriander seeds, lightly toasted (see Note page 52)
1 tablespoon/10 grams black peppercorns, lightly toasted (see Note page 52)
1. Combine all the brine ingredients in a pot large enough to hold the beef and bring to a simmer, stirring until the salt and sugar are dissolved. Remove from the heat and allow to cool to room temperature, then refrigerate until the brine is chilled.
2. Place the beef in the brine and put a plate on top of it to keep it completely submerged. Refrigerate for 3 days.
3. Remove the beef from the brine, rinse it, and dry it. Discard the brine.
4. Combine the coriander and pepper in a spice mill or coffee grinder and pulse until coarsely ground. Coat the beef evenly with the mixture.
5. Hot-smoke the beef (see page 77) to an internal temperature of 150 degrees F./65 degrees C. (Traditionally, pastrami is first cold-smoked, then hot-smoked to achieve a heavy smoke. So try to get as much smoke on it as possible by keeping it below its final temperature for as long as possible.)
6. To prepare the pastrami for serving, preheat the oven to 275 degrees F./140 degrees C.
7. Place the beef in an inch of water in a stockpot or on a rack above the same amount of water in a roasting pan. Bring the water to a simmer, then cover the pot, place it in the oven, and slow-roast or steam for 2 to 3 hours, until it’s fork-tender.
Pastrami differs from corned beef in two main ways: it’s smoked and it’s coated with a combination of crushed coriander seeds and black peppercorns. Other than that, it’s corned beef underneath a smoky crust. The coriander-peppercorn crust is a spicy flavorful seasoning that works well on most meats, as well as fish and poultry. The best way to serve pastrami is to reheat it gently for hours until it’s falling-apart tender (steamed or gently roasted, see step 7 below). We favor the beef plate, a cut from the breast or below the shoulder: because it is especially fatty, it stays juicy after all the cooking, and thus makes an especially fine sandwich. Any good butcher shop will be able to provide you with this cut.
THE BRINE
1 gallon/4 liters water
11⁄2 cups/350 grams kosher salt
1 cup/225 grams sugar
11⁄2 ounces/42 grams pink salt (8 teaspoons)
1 tablespoon/8 grams Pickling Spice (page 70)
1⁄2 packed cup/90 grams dark brown sugar
1⁄4 cup/60 milliliters honey
5 garlic cloves, minced
One 5-pound/2.25-kilogram beef plate or beef brisket, heavy surface fat removed
1 tablespoon/8 grams coriander seeds, lightly toasted (see Note page 52)
1 tablespoon/10 grams black peppercorns, lightly toasted (see Note page 52)
1. Combine all the brine ingredients in a pot large enough to hold the beef and bring to a simmer, stirring until the salt and sugar are dissolved. Remove from the heat and allow to cool to room temperature, then refrigerate until the brine is chilled.
2. Place the beef in the brine and put a plate on top of it to keep it completely submerged. Refrigerate for 3 days.
3. Remove the beef from the brine, rinse it, and dry it. Discard the brine.
4. Combine the coriander and pepper in a spice mill or coffee grinder and pulse until coarsely ground. Coat the beef evenly with the mixture.
5. Hot-smoke the beef (see page 77) to an internal temperature of 150 degrees F./65 degrees C. (Traditionally, pastrami is first cold-smoked, then hot-smoked to achieve a heavy smoke. So try to get as much smoke on it as possible by keeping it below its final temperature for as long as possible.)
6. To prepare the pastrami for serving, preheat the oven to 275 degrees F./140 degrees C.
7. Place the beef in an inch of water in a stockpot or on a rack above the same amount of water in a roasting pan. Bring the water to a simmer, then cover the pot, place it in the oven, and slow-roast or steam for 2 to 3 hours, until it’s fork-tender.
Tried some of the home made Nduja I smoked some time ago. Absolutely delicious
It's quite different to the stuff you buy in Waitrose or wherever as the recipe is much heavier in chilli and allspice. Really damn tasty though.
I used this recipe/technique: http://frombellytobacon.com/2012/05/09/nduja/
How did you manage the long cold smoking process? Would love to replicate this but not sure how I'd manage cold smoking over such a long duration.
Associate
For stuff that requires hanging/drying, do you have any tips at to DIY places to hang, FT? I'm a bit limited on space.
Got any cupboards or other places that remain cool? Though I found I had to be a lot more vigilant of bad mould in such places (not an impossible task though). If you've got an old fridge that can work too though ideally you want to keep the meat at ~11C if I remember correctly. If it weren't summer time I'd suggest hanging in a shed or some such though you would need to use cheese cloth to keep the insects away from the meat.
In the past I have used this:
http://www.hotsmoked.co.uk/hot-cold-smokers/proq-cold-smoke-generator/prod_59.html
I ended up having to refill it a couple of times for the nduja. It works very well though.
Regarding that recipe - personally I wouldn't make it unless you *really* like allspice. I found it a bit overpowering. This recipe for spreadable chorizo looks better to me
http://frombellytobacon.com/2014/02/27/spreadable-chorizo/
Associate
Got any cupboards or other places that remain cool? Though I found I had to be a lot more vigilant of bad mould in such places (not an impossible task though). If you've got an old fridge that can work too though ideally you want to keep the meat at ~11C if I remember correctly. If it weren't summer time I'd suggest hanging in a shed or some such though you would need to use cheese cloth to keep the insects away from the meat.
In the past I have used this:
http://www.hotsmoked.co.uk/hot-cold-smokers/proq-cold-smoke-generator/prod_59.html
I ended up having to refill it a couple of times for the nduja. It works very well though.
Regarding that recipe - personally I wouldn't make it unless you *really* like allspice. I found it a bit overpowering. This recipe for spreadable chorizo looks better to me
Just after I posted I took a look at this PDF;
http://www.jamieoliver.com/jimmycharcuterie/dmc.pdf
It seems a lot of people make DIY curing chambers out of wine fridges.
Soldato
Yep I bought one for maturing cheeses Ive made, its great as you can set a reasonable temperature and has a water tray for controlling humidity
Associate
Are most of the problems experienced not being able to ADD humidity to these rather than get rid of it? It's my understanding they need to be at a constant 70%. What if it's too high?