Guanciale is magic. Imagine bacon, only better; porkier, tastier, richer. Guanciale is the cured jowl of the pig. It is cured in similar fashion to pancetta, which is unsmoked cured pork belly, but the location on the animal gives it a very different taste and texture. Since the cheeks/jowls of the pig see a lot of exercise the hunk of pork derived from them is tougher than the belly, and has much more intramuscular fat instead of layering as is seen on the belly.
| Ingredient | Quantity(g) | % of Meat+Fat |
| Pork jowls | 1257 | 100% |
| Salt - Kosher | 44 | 3.5% |
| Black pepper crushed | 9 | 0.7% |
| Sugar | 22 | 1.75% |
| Cure #2 | 3.2 | 0.25% |
| Thyme (Dry) | 1 | 0.08% |
I mixed the cure well, trying to make certain the cure #2 was well dispersed in the sal
The cure mixture is rubbed onto the jowels, making sure to get into the "nooks and crannies".The jowls are then put into a ziplock bag, and they'll be turned every few days.
Once cured, they'll be hung to dry for anywhere between 1 and 6 months.
