Dry-Curing & Aging Prosciutto-Style Tenderloins

[tnsven]

Francios,

This is EXACTLY the sort of info I want more of. I've been reading & researching the last few months on curing meats (hams, sausages, bacons, etc.) and am raring to try some! And I wondered how it was done in Europe alongside cheese making. Jane Grigson's Charcuterie is the closest I've come to traditional methods.

We are raising our pigs this year with no GMOs (rolled barley & oats), whey and some skim milk, and as many acorns as we can muster. We're not set up to butcher here yet and will be taking them to the local butcher shop. Sadly, they are required by the local health dept to skin them! I hope to butcher on farm traditionally in the future and preserve the meats traditionally as well.

Kristin

[iratherfly]

Sorry for taking so long to respond...

I suppose I can hang them in our storage, some 11 stories below. It's quite cool over there but not much circulation. Maybe on the window or something. The problems is that NY apartment heat turns it way too dry. I can turn myself into beacon within 12 hours, let-alone the sausage...  I wish there was a way to grow some cheese bacteria on them but I think the acidity level and nutrients are too different and I don't want to contaminate the cheese or the pork.

One thing I don't quite get still is how do the casings allow the meat to dry out without letting bacteria in. Which casing do you prefer? Remember, this is a solid piece of rather lean meat. Not ground like sausage or rolled like a Pancetta.
By the way, I still make those wonderful duck pancetta with a rather good success rate but I am looking for an alternative to cheesecloth here too. It sticks to the fat and leaves lint when you take it off.

Francois, I didn't know that schinken is black forest ham. One of those funny things that happen when you grow up in two countries. Black Forest ham in the US is nothing like the Schinken I get in Europe or Israel. It's lovely.

Speaking of charcuterie, my home made sauerkraut should be ready this weekend. I want to make a classic choucroute out of it and can the rest. Does anyone have a good traditional recipe?

[reg]

Francios, you did not mention a curing agent when you tried the beef, did you not use any ?

Have been studying every tidbit of info I can find with regards to the Black Forest/Schinken but have yet to write anything down yet. I'm hoping to gather enough info so I can get a couple of loins going this year.

Reg

[Alex]

IMHO, Schinken is made from the upper rear leg (ham) of pork, not from loin. It can be made from the same part of the front leg as well.

[FRANCOIS]

I did not use a curing agent.  Just salt, sugar and spices.  It's impossible, well very difficult, to get where I am.  I think I can get equivalents at the feed store for agricultural use but haven't put any effort into it.

I have seen schinken form loin as well as legs.  I'm not familiar enough with the technical details to know if one is "correct" or not, or if what you can get in the US is the same schinken as I had in Germany.  I think the acorn feeding thing is an Austrian technique, they do very good pork there as well.  The Black Forest is 99.9% confierous trees, so not much oak around.

[iratherfly]

Francois, most of the cheese culture dealers also sell meat curing culture. I know Danisco makes them under one of their brands as well.  I personally order the Morton TenderQuick via their web site and get it in the mail. Easy.

http://www.mortonsalt.com/products/meatcuring/tenderquick.html

[FRANCOIS]

Good idea.  I have a sales rep for Danisco who always sends me lots of goodies.  I'll ask him for samples next time he's visiting.

[reg]

Alex, generally the schinken does come from the rear leg. I have a chef friend from California who's father (that grew up in the Black Forest area) has perfected schinken using the loins but out of respect would never ask for his recipe.

Francois. Might be a good idea to ask the rep if they carry Prauge Powder #1 and #2 also.
You will never get the same outcome without using the curing agents. They add texture and flavours while controlling botulism and other dangerous bacteria, in my opinion they are a must !

Reg

[iratherfly]

Reg I think that the reason you see a lot of less expensive schinken made of front legs is because rear legs are far more expensive (high demand for far more expensive products such as Prosciutto, sliced ham, or holiday ham).  If it could be done as well without all that expensive hind fat... why not? I find the front leg to be more meaty and lean, but also a bit drier

[foodabc]

I think sodium erythobate and erythobic acid can added into cheese