I started a Capicola

[montanaSalami]

I'm guessing that this is the Coppa. It was the largest muscle in the shoulder. But only 18 ounces from what started as a 5 pound pork shoulder. Lots of other muscle pieces separated out, that I will also dry-cure separately.

[herjac]

Although you can dry cure any piece of meat, the coppa is cut from the back of the neck above the shoulder. A bone-in butt is the cut that you want to start from.

Here is a good explaination from Jason Molinari. http://curedmeats.blogspot.ca/2007/10/c ... t-one.html

[montanaSalami]

Thanks. Looks like I trimmed it to far. The other pieces I'll pack together and dry-cure which might be closer to what I was aiming for.

[montanaSalami]

I did an extra long brine soak of 24 days. The rub is a Hot Capicola recipe. It is a bit too cold and humid for this Charcuterie experiment, so maybe 60+ days to dry cure to complete? Maybe in March....

Wrapped in cheese cloth and stuffed into recycled turkey netting. It ain't much to look at, but the potential for some good eating is there.

[montanaSalami]

Curious? The small piece I weighted at 18 ounces 24 days ago. After the brine soak, rubbed, wrapped and netted it was 25 ounces. Netting maybe 1 to2, rub and wrap maybe another 1 to 2, so does 3 to 5 ounces of absorbed salt sound possible? My weighing wasn't very exact after it was all netted.

[montanaSalami]

After 2 months of hanging the lower hanging Copicola was at 15Oz from a starting weight of 25Oz. This was hanging in freezing temps, high humidity. An experiment. Looks good, taste is strong, salty and spicy. The larger piece I will let hang for another month, just because.

[wheels]

That looks the biz!