Comments on: Home Cured Pancetta!

By: jdw

jdw — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

I picked up a whole Berkshire belly (along with a cooler full of other cuts) at Newman Farm this past weekend that I plan to cure with this recipe. I went as part of a tour/pig roast party and I could not have been more impressed by the food, the Newman family or the farm! Michael Newman is running a VERY impressive operation. If you’re reading, Michael, a chapter what they’re doing way down there in the Ozarks would make an excellent read in a future book.

By: jdw

jdw — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

I think I need an editor… It’s Mark Newman, not Michael.

By: Lorri

Lorri — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

I have made pancetta twice according to MIchael’s recipe in Charcuterie. But, it has been very, very salty (and I like salt, so if it’s nearly too much for me, that’s too much). I now have a 3rd batch curing. Has anyone else had this problem and, if so, what have you done to correct it?

By: ruhlman

ruhlman — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

Lorri, are you weighing your salt? if your belly is very thin that can be an issue too. just rein in the salt. just need a coating of it. if too salt, soak in water for four hours, and retaste!

By: Ben McLachlan

Ben McLachlan — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

Hello Michael,
I followed this, to make pancetta at work,

It turned the meat a blue color?

any ideas, does this fade out, or is it normal.

thanks
ben

By: Fuji Mama

Fuji Mama — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

I don’t know why I hadn’t ever thought to try this! I do have a couple of questions though. Any suggestions on how/where to hang it to dry? Also, once it has completed its requisite week of hanging, how long will it keep?

I am ordering the pink salt today. Homemade BLTs here I come!

By: ruhlman

ruhlman — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

i hang mine in my kitchen. anywhere where the temp doesn’t get higher than the low 70s. cooler the better.

By: Chris

Chris — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

Michael,

We have a wine cellar that is set at about 48* I believe. Would this be too cool to hang the meat?

By: Fuji Mama

Fuji Mama — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

I am having an impossible time finding pork belly. Can you recommend another cut? Thanks!

By: David Nguyen

David Nguyen — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

Michael, thanks for all the great info! At home, I have Carl’s Ready Mix Curing Salt…however, the ingredients are Sea Salt, Sugar, and 0.8% Sodium Nitrite. The 0.8% worries me as it seems low. Should I just get the curing salt from butcher and packer?

Also, can I wash out an old garbage can and use that to hang my pancetta. Maybe put a bowl of water and salt in with it?

Thanks
David

By: Wendy

Wendy — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

Michael–I didn’t see an answer to Henry’s question about the mold. I made pancetta for the first time two weeks ago, using your recipe (my nephew turned me on to the book) but my lovely roll ‘o pork belly developed green and white mold on the surface after abt 10 days of drying. I put it in the freezer to wait until I figured out if it was poisonous or not. Is it? Why did it mold? Thanks!

By: michael ruhlman

michael ruhlman — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

just wash it off with vinegar or brine. it’s probably dead now anyway, also you’ll be cooking it so that’s not a problem

On Sep 30, 2009, at 12:41 PM, typepad@sixapart.com wrote:

By: Wendy

Wendy — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

Thanks! Off to wash it right now.

By: David

David — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

Michael – Got your book as a gift years ago and have made countless pancettas, bacon slabs, and many of the other recipes, just wanted to say thanks for the great book.. We especially like the garlic sage pork chops.
BTW to everyone worried about hanging their pancatta you can skip this step and still have a product superior to most you can buy.

I’m considering a proscuitto next, any advice?

Thanks again and keep up the good work

By: sbp

sbp — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

I’ve got 4 sides of Berkshire pork belly cut into 16 slabs (about 2.5lbs each) curing in my refrigerator. Per “Charcuterie”, the drying/pellicle formation step takes place in the fridge. I just don’t have enough room for this! But the pancetta drying takes place at room temp, with similar cure ingredients. Is refrigerator drying bacon prior to smoking a MUST, or can I lay them out in pans on my ping-pong table with a fan blowing for a day?

By: ruhlman

ruhlman — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

chad, you want the pink salt or TCM. don’t know what the yellow is, ask terra spice. pure sodium nitrite would be very dangerous!

By: Henry

Henry — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

so I just pulled my first go at pancetta up from the basement, where it was hanging wrapped in cheesecloth for 10 days and I had mold (green and whitish and slightly fuzzy) on the lower 2/3.

trimmed it up and fried a slice, delicious but thoughts on why I got the mold would be great. hanging in basement 60-65 degrees with fairly high humidity (all the rain here in DC keeps the basement pretty damp) also just not as firm as I had expected (felt very hard in fridge but softened up while hanging) just how firm should it be when its done hanging.

I’ve got a piece of the fatty end of the same belly up as a lardo w/ some meat hanging in the same spot so I’m a bit concerned for its turn out as well.

sorry for the length.

cheers,
H

By: Chris

Chris — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

Again, echoing the concerns of others, I’m absolutely terrified to hang a hunk of meat in my house for a week (the smell, the bugs, the cat). But I guess I’ll give it a go since I’m determined to complete this BLT project. Oh, my husband is going to flip out!

By: Promethius

Promethius — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

Wow!
I got show this to my mum! thanks for the cool recipe!
it looks so good! any suggestions for side dishes for kids?!

By: Maria

Maria — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

Would love to see some follow-up posts on how everybody uses the rest of the pancetta they make at home.