The Accidental Smallholder Forum

Food & crafts => Food processing => Topic started by: Geraint on October 27, 2013, 08:26:30 pm

Title: First time at air dried ham at home. Advice needed please
Post by: Geraint on October 27, 2013, 08:26:30 pm
Hi everyone
We're hoping to try air dried ham at home but need some advice please.
We have a 6kg boned out leg of pork in the fridge and a big bag of sea salt.
We've read a lot about the process but wonder if we need to keep the box in the garage or is it essential to keep it at 4C as suggested by some?
Also is the addition of nitrite/nitrates essential? I have a kilo of salami curing salt with added curing product which I thought we could use in the cavity and then use the sea salt in the box to cover?
What do you think in your experience?
Cheers and thanks in advance for any help!
Geraint
Title: Re: First time at air dried ham at home. Advice needed please
Post by: Greenerlife on October 27, 2013, 09:50:57 pm
My experience is that my garage is as good as it gets for hams.  If your ham is ready to go now - it will be cool enough.  I have never used additives at all.  I am not sure why you'd need the salami cure on the insides - I always do a tunnelbined ham, and I just use salt well rubbed into the cavity.


Good luck whatever way you go!
Title: Re: First time at air dried ham at home. Advice needed please
Post by: Geraint on October 28, 2013, 10:56:34 am
Hi Greenerlife
Thanks for the advice on this. I thought that as the salami salt had added nitrite that it would keep the ham pink and not go grey?
If you use salt does it matter what type of salt? Surely salt is salt?
I shouldn't have read so much into the topic...keep it simple might be the best way forward!
Thanks again!
 
Title: Re: First time at air dried ham at home. Advice needed please
Post by: Greenerlife on October 28, 2013, 12:34:44 pm
If you add nitrites it does keep the ham pink (like gammon you would buy from Sainsburys) but for air dried ham, I personally think it might look wrong.  i actually prefer not to add any - it doesn't look as attractive,but not sure grey is the colour of my ham! (or bacon) 


I usually use bulk salt I buy from caterers supplier.  It's just cooking salt -£5 for 25kgs.  I am sure that Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall probably uses air dried salt from outer Mongolia, rubbed into crystals on the thighs of luscious ladies, but I use ordinary! Something like Maldon salt does taste quite different to refined table or cooking salt and I expect it dissolves at a different rate, but that kind of salt is way too expensive.
Title: Re: First time at air dried ham at home. Advice needed please
Post by: Sudanpan on October 28, 2013, 01:37:21 pm
We've done air dried ham for the last couple of years now - incredibly simple method:
Rub salt (normal catering) into every aspect of the meat, as much as you can to fill all crevices.
Pack meat into a container with at least an inch of salt under, over and to each side of the meat so the meat is not in contact with the sides of the container.
Leave in salt for 3 days every kilo of meat.
Take meat out, rinse off salt with cider vinegar
Hang meat in a meat safe, or wrap in muslin and hang.
Leave for 6-9 months
Don't panic at how disgusting the resulting meat looks......... :innocent:


We leave the meat in the salt in our garage, then hang in the eaves of our barn.
Title: Re: First time at air dried ham at home. Advice needed please
Post by: Bionic on October 28, 2013, 01:38:23 pm
Exactly the same as I do, even down to the garage and barn eaves
Title: Re: First time at air dried ham at home. Advice needed please
Post by: Geraint on October 28, 2013, 03:29:36 pm
Wow! Brilliant! Thanks to you all for the advice! Greenerlife; do you mind if I ask which catering suppliers you got the salt from please? I can't find it that cheap. The salt we have was £17 for 25kgs which we thought was an ok price but its coarse sea salt and free of Mongolian thighs!
 
Sudanpan; thanks, I'll be giving the pork preserving a go tonight, nitrite free.
 
Cheers
Title: Re: First time at air dried ham at home. Advice needed please
Post by: Greenerlife on October 28, 2013, 03:53:18 pm
The salt i had is branded as Glacia and i got it from a local wholesalers who let me in!
Title: Re: First time at air dried ham at home. Advice needed please
Post by: Geraint on October 28, 2013, 04:33:04 pm
Great. Thank you!
Title: Re: First time at air dried ham at home. Advice needed please
Post by: Geraint on October 29, 2013, 12:04:43 pm
Hiya
We salted the ham last night and its now sitting comfortably in the garage under a weight, picture attached. (hopefully)!
Cheers for all the advice
G
Title: Re: First time at air dried ham at home. Advice needed please
Post by: Possum on October 29, 2013, 06:12:30 pm
That's interesting. Do any meat juices leak out of the box or does the salt soak them all up?
Title: Re: First time at air dried ham at home. Advice needed please
Post by: Geraint on October 29, 2013, 06:15:54 pm
So far there has been no leaking and I think the salt may soak up most of the moisture, there is a plastic tray underneath just in case!
Since yesterday the weight has started to push the wood on the top of the salt down, so it must be leaking moisture somewhere..


Title: Re: First time at air dried ham at home. Advice needed please
Post by: rockstar on October 29, 2013, 07:09:51 pm
good luck with your ham,I am doing air dried ham for the first time this winter.Can someone tell me once it is cured and dried for 6 months can I just cut slices and eat it raw in salads etc ,will it be normal ham.
Title: Re: First time at air dried ham at home. Advice needed please
Post by: Greenerlife on October 29, 2013, 07:10:12 pm
The lovely Hugh does his in a wine box like that.  My piggy leg was too fat, and the leg didn't fit in with space for the salt.  Pretty sure the salt will absorb any spillage.  Looking good so far though Geraint.  :yum:
Title: Re: First time at air dried ham at home. Advice needed please
Post by: Geraint on October 30, 2013, 09:27:00 am
Thanks Greenerlife
It was a Christmas present from the OH, great present I thought, I think she had thoughts on doing a ham and that was to prompt me  ;D
It was a small leg so it fitted with enough room for the salt.
Cheers
Title: Re: First time at air dried ham at home. Advice needed please
Post by: Sudanpan on October 30, 2013, 05:43:02 pm
Can someone tell me once it is cured and dried for 6 months can I just cut slices and eat it raw in salads etc ,will it be normal ham.


Yup that's exactly what you can do - you need to slice it as this as is humanely possible (so you can practically see through it) as this really does make a HUGE difference to the taste.
Just think parma ham, that's what you are producing.


Though a word of warning..... you will need to get past all the mould and rock hard outer layers before you get to the divine stuff on the inside, but don't be deterred, it is absolutely worth it.  :thumbsup:
Title: Re: First time at air dried ham at home. Advice needed please
Post by: Geraint on November 16, 2013, 11:48:29 am
Hi everyone
Thanks for all the support and help on this topic so far..
It's roughly that time now..the leg has been in the salt now for three days for every kilo and it's time to unearth it.
One question I have is do I have to rinse off all the salt from inside the cavity or leave it in there?
Looking forward to seeing what it looks like, will post a photo if I remember.
Thanks in advance.
Title: Re: First time at air dried ham at home. Advice needed please
Post by: Sudanpan on November 16, 2013, 05:43:33 pm
We rinse all the salt off from everywhere - basically the salt should have done its job of drawing out the moisture and disrupting the bacteria, now it's a question of the the meat drying out.
If you leave the salt in the cavities I think you will get some incredibly salty meat which will be inedible.
Title: Re: First time at air dried ham at home. Advice needed please
Post by: benkt on November 16, 2013, 05:52:59 pm
I rub some white wine vinegar on the outside of mine after washing and wrap in a couple of layers of cheese cloth. Not sure about insides as I always leave the ham on the bone when air-curing.
Title: Re: First time at air dried ham at home. Advice needed please
Post by: Greenerlife on November 16, 2013, 08:02:05 pm
We rinse all the salt off from everywhere - basically the salt should have done its job of drawing out the moisture and disrupting the bacteria, now it's a question of the the meat drying out.
If you leave the salt in the cavities I think you will get some incredibly salty meat which will be inedible.
Well - i was waiting for that answer!  I have always tunnel boned hams and rubbed salt into the cavities, then washed the outside only.  My hams have always been salty in that cavity (which obviously gets compressed) although far from inedible.  I like it - but next time I will definitely wash it out.  thank you.
Title: Re: First time at air dried ham at home. Advice needed please
Post by: Geraint on November 16, 2013, 09:09:19 pm
Thanks everyone
We washed the salt off and vinegared all over. It had got a lot harder and the meat is very dark but looks great.
We have hung it up in a thick cotton bag in the garage. Should we worry about leaking juices/smells?
Fingers crossed now  ;D
Cheers again
Title: Re: First time at air dried ham at home. Advice needed please
Post by: Bionic on November 17, 2013, 09:27:31 am
Geraint, we never had any leaks or smells but then ours was hanging outside and maybe we wouldn't have noticed. It was hanging too high for foxy to get at too.  ;D
Title: Re: First time at air dried ham at home. Advice needed please
Post by: Geraint on November 17, 2013, 09:34:29 am
Thanks and fingers crossed we won't either  :)
Tried to upload a pic but it was too large (the picture not the pork)