Home Curing Pork
Posted: Sun Dec 02, 2012 7:49 pm
The hog killin to take place on Dec 29th will give provide my first opportunity to do many things. One of those things on the itinerary is to cure the hams and bacon. There are recipes aplenty on the Internet. As this is to be a learning experience, I hope to cure each ham using different recipes.
Unless someone more knowledgable than myself tells me, "Whoa, hold one there boy! You 'bout t'ruin an otherwise fine piece o'meat with that thar idiocy of yourn," I intend to treat the two hams thusly:
1. Straight sea salt and nothing but sea salt
2. 2:1 ratio of sea salt to brown sugar
(3. Youngblood has a ham and two bellies in cure right now for which he is using Morton's Tender Quik.)
No saltpeter.
The steps to be followed with each ham are termed "the single application method."
1. Rub cure into all surfaces of each ham with the lean areas receiving most of the curing agent(s).
2. Wrap the hams individually in non-waxed paper, place in a cloth bag and hang hoof side up in a well-ventilated, dry place.
3. Allow 2.5 days curing time for each pound of ham.
4. At the end of the curing time, unwrap the hams, remove the excess cure, few rap the ham in non-waxed paper and place in a cloth bag and set it to age in a 40 degree refrigerator.
5. Let ham age for one year.
As for the bellies and jowls:
1. 2 pounds sea salt to 4 pounds of brown sugar thoroughly mixed
2. Apply the cure by rubbing into the surface of the bacon at a rate of 1/2 ounce for every pound of green pork belly
3. Cure the bellies in a well ventilated outbuilding (screened in porch) on a slanted table so that the moisture produced will drain away from the bacon.
4. Cure the bacon for 7 days.
5. Smoke
Now for the question at hand to any that have already done this: what practical, specific tips might you suggest?
Is a screened porch on the north side of a house the best place to cure bacon? She the cure is removed from the hams, do you dunk it it a pure lye solution, hose it off with a garden hose, let your cows lick the salt off? In addition to a slanted table, might the bacon be placed on racks made of a fine wire mesh like hardware cloth? After your bacon is finished curing, does it require freezing? What is a good resource to avail one's self to to find more specific recommendations?
Unless someone more knowledgable than myself tells me, "Whoa, hold one there boy! You 'bout t'ruin an otherwise fine piece o'meat with that thar idiocy of yourn," I intend to treat the two hams thusly:
1. Straight sea salt and nothing but sea salt
2. 2:1 ratio of sea salt to brown sugar
(3. Youngblood has a ham and two bellies in cure right now for which he is using Morton's Tender Quik.)
No saltpeter.
The steps to be followed with each ham are termed "the single application method."
1. Rub cure into all surfaces of each ham with the lean areas receiving most of the curing agent(s).
2. Wrap the hams individually in non-waxed paper, place in a cloth bag and hang hoof side up in a well-ventilated, dry place.
3. Allow 2.5 days curing time for each pound of ham.
4. At the end of the curing time, unwrap the hams, remove the excess cure, few rap the ham in non-waxed paper and place in a cloth bag and set it to age in a 40 degree refrigerator.
5. Let ham age for one year.
As for the bellies and jowls:
1. 2 pounds sea salt to 4 pounds of brown sugar thoroughly mixed
2. Apply the cure by rubbing into the surface of the bacon at a rate of 1/2 ounce for every pound of green pork belly
3. Cure the bellies in a well ventilated outbuilding (screened in porch) on a slanted table so that the moisture produced will drain away from the bacon.
4. Cure the bacon for 7 days.
5. Smoke
Now for the question at hand to any that have already done this: what practical, specific tips might you suggest?
Is a screened porch on the north side of a house the best place to cure bacon? She the cure is removed from the hams, do you dunk it it a pure lye solution, hose it off with a garden hose, let your cows lick the salt off? In addition to a slanted table, might the bacon be placed on racks made of a fine wire mesh like hardware cloth? After your bacon is finished curing, does it require freezing? What is a good resource to avail one's self to to find more specific recommendations?