What a delight to be eating our own delicious pancetta! The mystery has left the process - it is actually very straight forward:
-a nice piece of pork belly rubbed over with salt, sugar and spices
-check that it's still covered with the mix every day or so, and turn once or twice
-wash off after a week, by which time the meat should be firm, almost leathery
-pat dry, and hang somewhere cool and airy. A shed seems to do fine at this time of year.
-after a month cut a thin slice to enjoy immediately in the raw, then cut little cubes to fry up at the start of almost any dish - a pasta sauce, casserole, soup, stew etc.
-keep in the fridge for as long as it lasts...
This is such a simple and satisfying thing to do, and could once again be common knowledge. Your meat is not only cured such that it will keep without freezing, but has also become intensely delicious, such that a very little goes a long way. Give it a go!
Wednesday, 17 November 2010
Thursday, 4 November 2010
The Cure
Since the last post another pig has been 'processed'. A fresh and keen new team appeared over the weekend to help with the job, and on the whole all proceeded smoothly.
The actual slaughter was done with a .410 shotgun this time, and a much better tool it is for the job - more powerful and certain in its effect than the .22 rifle. I am confident that the pig moved from this world to the next with the minimum possible fear or pain - a most satisfactory result, given that the deed was to be done.
I wrote about the next stages in my last post, so suffice to say that things generally went more smoothly, but that having got the scalding water too cool last time, this time it was too hot and we set the hairs rather than loosening them. While I could conclude that too cool is better than too hot, the real learning here is to be sure to take the temperature of the water before you put the pig in it.
After a couple of long days of butchery we now have lots of belly being dry cured, some of which will then be smoked and dried, and some frozen. A whole leg is also packed in salt and being pressed by rocks to make a parma-style ham. Three brine crocks are full of exciting bits and bobs being given a Wiltshire style cure, which involves alot of beer, salt, sugar and spices. The shed will again be billowing smoke next week following the success of hanging the last lot of hams and bacon in there. I can't wait to sample these delicacies...
The actual slaughter was done with a .410 shotgun this time, and a much better tool it is for the job - more powerful and certain in its effect than the .22 rifle. I am confident that the pig moved from this world to the next with the minimum possible fear or pain - a most satisfactory result, given that the deed was to be done.
I wrote about the next stages in my last post, so suffice to say that things generally went more smoothly, but that having got the scalding water too cool last time, this time it was too hot and we set the hairs rather than loosening them. While I could conclude that too cool is better than too hot, the real learning here is to be sure to take the temperature of the water before you put the pig in it.
After a couple of long days of butchery we now have lots of belly being dry cured, some of which will then be smoked and dried, and some frozen. A whole leg is also packed in salt and being pressed by rocks to make a parma-style ham. Three brine crocks are full of exciting bits and bobs being given a Wiltshire style cure, which involves alot of beer, salt, sugar and spices. The shed will again be billowing smoke next week following the success of hanging the last lot of hams and bacon in there. I can't wait to sample these delicacies...
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