After 2 months in the curing chamber, starting at 54 deg. F and 75% RH and dropping to 54 F and 65% RH after the 1st month, the guanciale is finally ready. It has a nice firmness and nice aroma.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Guanciale - Finally ready
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
I've been a slacker!
As is blatantly obvious by the lack of posting here on Curedmeats, i've been slacking in my duties. That doesn't mean i don't have anything in my fridge that i'm eating, I do, but nothing has been notable enough to blog about. It's just been re-making the standards like coppa and pancetta.
I'm taking a trip back home to Italy shortly where i'll have a chance to indulge in all the delicious cured meats, which will hopefully be of inspiration when i get back.
I do know that the 1st project when I return is going to be Nduja. The Calabrian ultra-hot, soft, spreadable salame that's been all the rage lately. I have a piece from Spilinga, Calabria where Nduja originates, which my parents brought me from Italy, which is amazing, I can see what all the hub-bub is about. I've also tried a few locally (US) made ones, and have been left less than impressed, in fact, I thought some were downright bad, including some BIG name ones which I won't mention.
If you're interested in giving Nduja a try, check out Scott's store @ Sausage Debauchery. That's where my Calabrian chilis came from, and what i'll be using for mine.
So, hang tight with me until I return, reinvigorated and rejuvenated from the Homeland!
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Lardo D'Arnad - Tasting
After almost 90 long days the lardo is done. There really wasn't much to it; no need to control temperature, humidity or anything else really. Just waiting. So the waiting is over, and it's time to eat!
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Guanciale - Off to the chamber.
The guanciale has been curing in salt for about 3.5 weeks, so it was time for it to go into the drying chamber. I gave it a quick rinse, strung it, and hung it in the chamber, which is currently at 55 deg. F and about 70-75% RH.
I'll give it at least a month in there.
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Guanciale
I've made guanciale before, so i'm not going to go into too many details about its awesomeness. It's basically like pancetta, except different. The fat on a jowl is very different to regular fat. It has a rather odd texture to it, it almost has a "crunch" to it. It's much richer than pancetta too.
Thanks to Jimmy at Eatitatlanta blog, I found myself in possession of a jowl from my favorite pork place of all, Caw Caw Creek.
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Lardo D'Arnad
This is a pretty requested recipe, and I'm finally getting around to making a batch, so I hope this answers the numerous questions I've gotten about it.
Lardo in Italian means lard or fatback. It's cured in numerous areas of Italy, with the most famous being in Tuscany, where it's known as Lardo di Colonnata. This recipe is a recreation of a lardo style made in Arnad in the Valle D'Aosta region, or at least my rendition of this lardo. The fatback is cured and then sliced thinly and eating as a salume.
The hardest part of this recipe is procuring a piece of fatback that's thick enough to use. You won't be able to find it at a supermarket, you'll have to source it from your friendly local farmer. The rest is easy. It's just brine cured, not dry cured at all.
Friday, April 9, 2010
An idea for the lamb prosciutto
The latest cured meat I've made is lamb prosciutto. It's some outstanding stuff. Very gamey and extremely tasty. It's so gamey that it would really be too much in a sandwich. So I thought I'd give it a try dressed the same way a bresaola could be dressed.
You can see it here on the left. Dressed with some good olive oil, some lemon, black pepper and some Parmigiano Reggiano shavings. Really amazing. The tangy cheese and the gamey lamb go really well together. The lemon cuts through the richness, and the oil makes everything unctuous.
If you've made cured lamb, give this a try!
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