Another Pancetta

[ExpatCanadian]

Well...  just started my own pancetta cure...  didn't want to further hijack Carnie1's thread so starting a new one.  Nothing major to report, basically doing exactly the same thing as Carnie1, following the recipe from Ruhlman's Charcuterie book.  Some initial photos:

One whole belly...


Trimmed & De-boned: Got a bonus baby back rack for future enjoyment and what I think is part of the tenderloin...


Inside and Outside, pre-cure mix:
 

All rubbed and ready for the 1-2 week cure time....


Into the 2-gallon Ziploc...


More updates to follow in a week or so....!

[OU812]

Looookin Gooood

Been wanting to try makin some pancetta some time, just aint got around to it.

Cant wait to see the finished product.

[KevinG]

Boy I sure hate those TV episodes that make you wait till next week. Good thing I like pancetta, I guess I can wait.  :-\

[ExpatCanadian]

Hey, trust me, you think YOU'RE having trouble waiting?  You don't have to look at it every time you open the fridge!!! :D

[ExpatCanadian]

Well...  happy days....  1 week closer to home produced Pancetta!  (Now only 2-3 weeks to go  :()

So, pulled my belly from the cure this afternoon....  looks and smells really good:



All rinsed and dried:



Sprinkled with some freshly cracked black peppercorns:



Rolled up nice and tight, ready for tying:
(Note to self, DON'T forget to square the edges off next time!! Will make for a nicer roll)



Trussed up nice and neat, ready to hang:



Hanging in the wine fridge @ 10^oC (50^oF)....  hopefully around 65% humidity:




I considered wrapping it in a muslin stocking.... thought maybe it might prevent the ends from molding as has been reported in some other blog posts I've read on the subject, but in general most just roll and hang as is, so that's what I've done.  More updates to follow!

[FLBentRider]

That is a very meaty belly you have there!

[ExpatCanadian]

Yes indeed it is....  the last couple bellys I've bought from my butcher have been very lean....  and once skinned, there hasn't even been much of a fat layer on the meat.  I hope it turns out ok in spite of this...

[carnie1]

I considered wrapping it in a muslin stocking.... thought maybe it might prevent the ends from molding as has been reported in some other blog posts I've read on the subject, but in general most just roll and hang as is, so that's what I've done.  More updates to follow!

I just moved my pancetta and bresola to a bigger drying cabinet, I had the bresola wrapped in muslin cause I didn't have any large casing and just last night I took it off cause it had some mold, I wiped it all off with vinegar and re wrapped with a modified casing and stockinette, so we'll see what happens. I need to figure out how to tie that hitch for sausage, can't seem to find a good tutoral on it.




               

[ExpatCanadian]

I need to figure out how to tie that hitch for sausage, can't seem to find a good tutoral on it.               

Do you mean what I did to tie up the pancetta?  If so...  I used this little video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nFQoXmpC9o

[oakville smoker]

This looks AWESOME
It has become my latest obsession
I will be picking up some bellie next weekend and starting one of these

I need to learn to tie that pancetta knot too
Too many thumbs and not enough fingers !

[ExpatCanadian]

I need to learn to tie that pancetta knot too
Too many thumbs and not enough fingers !

Yes, I'm with you....  there was a LOT of blue air in the kitchen while the tying was going on  ;).  Problem is your fingers get greasy and that makes it twice as hard to be holding the string and tying and pushing the string under it's neighbors and keeping it neat....  but hey, got there in the end!

[ExpatCanadian]

Crap.

The hygrometer I bought off eBay just arrived today, I bought it to monitor the humidity in my wine fridge....  and it's registering 85%.

It would seem to me that this is far too high to allow drying....  anyone care to weigh in?

[KevinG]

Although I've never made it before, I have a recipe that states you want about 60% humidity.

[ExpatCanadian]

Yeah...  I've been madly reading all the blog posts I can find on the subject, and 60-65% seems to be the consensus.  Much less and the outside dries too quickly forming a barrier and the inside can spoil.  Much higher and it doesn't dry fast enough and the whole thing can go rotten.....

So...  Plan B....  hanging from the rafters of my unheated conservatory.  So far so good...  around 64% humidity and 12^oC:

[Quarlow]

Good thing you picked up the meter. Does your conseratory get hot in the day from the sun? That could be bad.