questions about curing

[Bobdelasmoke]

Hey guys, kinda dumb questions but I can't seem to find the answer.

For curing, is cure#1or2 mandatory? From what I understand nitrite/nitrate help preserving color,taste,moisture but can a mix of only salt/sugar do the job?

Is there some general rules about curing, like X pounds of meat need Y time of curing.

For the cure itself, what's the ratio of salt,sugar used?

[FLBentRider]

I'm sure Habs will be along shortly and give you a more detailed explanation, but here is my $.02

You can cure without nitrites/nitrates, but it takes more salt and more time. And it may not taste the way you expect.

Curing times depend on several factors - dry vs wet, injected or not, and meat thickness.

I don't have the ratios handy, and again it depends on the factors mentioned above.

[Habanero Smoker]

The only dumb question is the one that is not asked. It would be more helpful to ask more specific questions.

What are you trying to cure? For example country hams are dry cured salt cured and sugar; not nitrites or nitrates; while most commercial hams are wet cured with salt, sugar and nitrites. Cure #1 and cure #2 are used for different applications of curing. Cure #2 is use to products that require a long curing time. The most important thing that nitrites do is to protect the food from most harmful organisms, especially from botulism. The retaining moisture come from the salt during the curing/brining.

As FLB mentioned curing with only salt, you will end up with a product that is overly salty, and can take much longer to cure. If you are not looking to cure the meat, you can brine for flavor with only salt, and using much less of it. For example to make a brine for curing with only salt you will need about 1 pound of salt for every gallon of water. This is the minimum to provide protection from botulism. If you use cure #1 in the brine, generally use 4 - 5 ounces of salt plus 3 - 4 ounces of cure #1.

There are some general rules for curing, but again as FLB stated it depends on what you are curing and whether you are using a wet or dry cure.

Here is a link that provides good information to all the questions you ask. Some of his methods I do differently, but I use the overwhelming majority of the information he has on this site. Make sure you check out the links on the right hand side.
Meat Curing Methods

He does get technical at points, but as I mentioned above, if you have specific questions about curing a particular cut, and what method of curing you want to use; that would be easier to answer.

[Bobdelasmoke]

Thanks guys. Habs, I'm checking the site you linked, great info.

I don't have specific questions yet about type of food/cut of meat because I don't what im gonna smoke next. I definately want to try smoked meat (montreal style), wife want some smoked salmon and I'll have to give a try to sausages and bacon.

[Habanero Smoker]

There is a lot of information there, so don't let that site overwhelmed you.  You don't have to understand most of it to get started, but it does answer most, if not all of your questions. Once you get into curing you will find out how easy it is.

There are many recipes on this forum and on the Recipe Site, that can get you up and running. And if you have any questions, this is a great site to find answers. For fish, most just cure with salt, sugar and other seasoning, and do not use any nitrites. If you are not going to smoke your sausage, you do not need nitrites. There are many styles of sausage I  prefer fresh (unsmoked) over smoked.