After the Soppressata, we tried our luck with a few more things. We decided to cure whole muscles this time. It was a bit of a challenge to get the right size of beef so that it would cure under the right conditions in range of time it suggested. We started by rubbing the muscles with half the salt, seasonings and herbs. We then placed them in a bag in the fridge for a week. The following week, we drained the excess liquid and added the remaining salt, seasoning and herbs and put it back in the fridge for another week. After a total of 2 weeks, we rinsed everything off, air dried them for a few hours and then hung them in the fridge to cure until they reached the target weight loss.

I have always wanted to cure my own meats. I mean – I’ve always wanted to do everything from scratch. I think it’s good to understand where food comes from and how to make stuff, down to every little detail. I like taking on these projects at school so that I can teach the students as well. Last year, we dabbled with koji to try to make our own cured beets, soy sauces and garums. A few years before that, we tried a cheese-making which was deemed unsuccessful. This year, I decided it was time to learn how to make our own cured meats. This is something that has been on my todo list for some time. In fact, I bought a grinder, sausage stuffer and a fridge (Curan, we named it) years ago for school and they have been collecting dust all these years! I even sought out the help of a friend of mine who now owns a butcher shop, just before the pandemic. After a one day session and years of forgetting about it, I am now ready.