Prosciutto

LOUSANTELLO
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Post by LOUSANTELLO » Sun Dec 11, 2016 03:41

now I'm lost again. after the 14 days of salt and time based on thickness, You rinse it and let it sit for 14 days in the __________________.
After that 14 days, it's not "cured" is it? If not, you continue to cure in the A: refrigerator at refrigerator temperature or B: In a chamber at 54 degrees? Then is cured when? Weight loss? Firmness? I can't imagine this whole thing is cured in 14 days plus thickness plus 14 days?
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Post by Bob K » Sun Dec 11, 2016 13:59

LOUSANTELLO wrote:now I'm lost again. after the 14 days of salt and time based on thickness, You rinse it and let it sit for 14 days in the __________________.
You equalise it the 14 days in the refrigerator.
LOUSANTELLO wrote:After that 14 days, it's not "cured" is it?
Yes its cured. It is not aged and dried yet.
Curing is the initial intake of salt and cure, Drying and aging is the next step.

As far as how long to dry that's up to you its edible after around a 30% weight loss...around 6 months.

here is a good reference for the drying times and temps for various style hams.

http://www.meatsandsausages.com/hams-other-meats/dry
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Post by LOUSANTELLO » Sun Dec 11, 2016 14:51

OK, I think I have enough info for now, but I'm sure I will have questions as I go. Thanks
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Post by Butterbean » Sun Dec 11, 2016 15:49

These aren't hard to make but what is hard is getting the salt right for your taste because the more you dry them the saltier they will become. I've also found they tend to come out better if you practice benign neglect with them. What I mean by this is once you put the salt on it don't mess with it till you are supposed to. Don't worry about the salt that falls off the cut or what drips off.

Also, keep detailed notes so if you find its not to your liking you can either increase of decrease the curing time. I think the tendency is to make them too salty but in the case of my aunt she strives for this.

Good luck with it.
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Post by LOUSANTELLO » Sun Dec 11, 2016 16:05

My brother made a much smaller one last January. About 17-18 pounds. He salted for 40 days in the garage and put some weight on them, then hung them downstairs in the basement. I do think he rinsed them and coated with black and red pepper. The 40 day thing was the "rule of thumb" the old timers used to use. He said his came out saltier than expected, but it's still good. The one thing I never understood...when you go to a deli and they slice you Prosciutto Di Parma, there is no bone. When is this bone removed. I don't ever remember seeing any apparent slice within the oval slices that they cut. My brother cut the pieces around the bone and vaccum packed them, but obviously you don't get the oval slices when you do this,,,,so what's the trick?
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Post by Butterbean » Sun Dec 11, 2016 18:43

Some people choose to remove the boned from the fresh ham and then cure it. This prevents the chance of bone sour and reduces your curing time. I've done it this way before but I like the looks of the whole leg hanging. But for practical purposes its probably a lot easier to take the bone out but there is also a lot to be said for aesthetics.

The tendency is to over salt but its really a matter of preference and how it will be eaten. My aunt is a foodie in Kentucky and she thinks the saltier the better. She gave us a high dollar ham once and it was good but you needed a glass of water with each bite and it surely wasn't ever going to spoil.

There is really no right or wrong way of doing it. Your just curing a whole muscle and as long as you are pleased that's all that matters and it will take a lot of time figuring out the timing to make it the way you want it. Sure, there are semantics about you can't use cure on some branded hams but these hams are made using salt from specific mines which have been found to contain the "right" kind of salt. So IMO, this is the same as someone claiming they don't use cure when they add celery powder when they are its just they aren't adding it directly but its still there and still gives the rosy color and the ham flavor. To me, its either in there or its not no matter the source.

What's also difficult the ham is a continuous process. At some points it may not be salty enough but aging reduces the volume and concentrates the salt. The six year old ham in the barn is a good example of this. Its like a salt lick now and hard as a rock. Flies don't even bother it. But if there is ever a zombie apocalypse there will be food hanging from that beam. lol
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Post by LOUSANTELLO » Thu Dec 15, 2016 01:04

I got 2 fresh green hams today. The flat blade bone was cut off so I knifed down to the ball joint and removed the blade. I cleaned up any pieces that were floppy. I weighed the piece and added 1oz of salt per pound along with .25% cure2. I divied that by 3 and bagged 2/3 of it for another time. The foot was not on but I decided not to brine it. I sturates all raw cuts of meat with the 1/3 batch of salt. I wrapped them in non waxed butchers paper and put a coupke of piece of tape on it. I laid it on a rack in the refrigerator with a sheetpan under it. The height of the pieces are about 6-7 inches high. Is the 7 days per inch after rinsing start at day zero or at rinse time?
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Post by Butterbean » Thu Dec 15, 2016 02:24

Don't think it will matter that much because its not going to shrink much in that time so either way should be good. I measure before salting when I'm figuring what the process will be.
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Post by LOUSANTELLO » Thu Dec 15, 2016 04:03

ok, so let's assume the prosciutto is 6 inches tall. 7 days per inch is 42 days. Is it 42 days from day zero when you salted it or is it 42 days after the rinsing ,which equates to 63 days in the refrigerator. That's a big difference.
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Post by Butterbean » Thu Dec 15, 2016 06:31

LOUSANTELLO wrote:ok, so let's assume the prosciutto is 6 inches tall. 7 days per inch is 42 days. Is it 42 days from day zero when you salted it or is it 42 days after the rinsing ,which equates to 63 days in the refrigerator. That's a big difference.
Yes
Apply last 1/3 and leave the ham refrigerated till the total time salted equals seven days for each inch of thickness measured at its thickest point.
Basically the whole thing works like a slinky because it takes time for the salt to penetrate the meat and you will have varying layers of saltiness the deeper you go. The seven days is the estimated time it takes for all the meat to take in the salt but at the end of this time all layers will be salted but at different levels of saltiness but at this time you have plenty of salt. The next step is to let this salt equalize inside the ham. This is where the equalization time comes in of course if you are aging the ham the equalization will/can occur during the aging process so this is of little concern. However, if you plan on consuming the meat shortly after the curing process you need to let it equalize else you'll find the ham will be too salty on the outside and not salty enough on the inside.

What I have found personally, is the temptation to add more salt to be safe and this will lead to a very salty ham. That is why I say practice some benign neglect with it and just let this little salt do the job. Once you've done one you can use this rule and adjust the amount of salt to your liking but the timing seems to work pretty well.
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Post by LOUSANTELLO » Thu Dec 15, 2016 11:44

OK, I get it. I am looking forward to these..

Thanks
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Post by LOUSANTELLO » Wed Dec 21, 2016 15:02

Just to confirm. Day 7= Next 1/3 salt/cure? Rewrap and refrigerate!
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Post by Butterbean » Thu Dec 22, 2016 02:07

Yes, that's the last of the salt.
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Post by LOUSANTELLO » Thu Dec 22, 2016 02:25

Its day 7. That was 1/3 at day zero and 1/3 at day 7. I should have another 1/3 at day fourteen for 7 days,,,,correct?
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Post by Butterbean » Thu Dec 22, 2016 07:22

Yes, three applications of 1/3 a week apart then thats it.

What does the salt look like after a week? All you are doing is freshening it up while limiting the amount of salt you are putting on it
Last edited by Butterbean on Thu Dec 22, 2016 13:13, edited 1 time in total.
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