6% pump and rub.

[wheels]

5 - 6 days may be fine, given the injection. My time was only a guess, hence my request for other opinions.

Phil

[NCPaul]

I'd give it 9-10 days just because it would suit my timing. The nitrite reacts quickly but the salt moves a bit slower. Try to be methodical with the injections; it's easy to cross over into a injection you just made and have the cure come right back out. I do this in a glass dish to keep everything contained. This 6% pump process really holds down the mess of injection curing.

[DanMcG]

The only issue I have is with a 6% pump you're getting fewer individual injections so I'd think the cure wouldn't be distributed as much as a 10% pump initially, so it would take longer. That's just what I think anyways

Depending on your needle and injection technique you should be good after 5-6 days like Phil said, but a couple more days wouldn't hurt either. Being an EQ cure you can't overcure it.

[DanMcG]

I just reread the post and realized we're talking about a 4kg chunk of meat. I think I'd cure it closer to Pauls suggestion of 9-10 days just to be on the safe side.

[Shuswap]

Another intriguing topic but I have had trouble keeping the math all together so I tried this:

6% Pump & Rub

Weight of Meat X 2,000 grams

2% Salt (including 1% Cure #1) Y 40

.025% Cure #1 for Brine only A 5

Net Salt Y – A B 35

6% Brine .06(X) C 120

Rub ½ (Y-A) 35/2 17.5

Water C – (A + 1/2B) 97.5

If this is correct, I will try it for our Easter Ham after I figure out the spices/herbs

[Odin]

Shuswap

I’m by no means an expert especially with math, but yours looks correct. Do you use sugar in your ham cures. Not sure if that’s in your math if you use it. Odin

[Odin]

Thanks NcPaul and DanMcG and of course Wheels

Thanks for all the advice, will be an interesting project. Trying to reach out to diggingdogfarm for his updated opinion. The Picnic ham was cheap so I may cut into it at the 6 or 7 day mark to see what’s going on. I’ll post my results and see if I can post some pictures. Odin

[NCPaul]

Martin is a member here as well.

[Shuswap]

Shuswap

I’m by no means an expert especially with math, but yours looks correct. Do you use sugar in your ham cures. Not sure if that’s in your math if you use it. Odin

Oops, I was so focused on putting all the cure in the brine I forgot the sugar. I've redone my notes but am intimidated by most of you who are my unofficial mentors so will just follow and keep learning. My footnote, however, says that if using maple syrup or honey to put it all in the brine. I assume that reduces the amount of water.

[Odin]

Shuswap morning

I’m dumb as a rock with this stuff. I just read but have not experience, just bacon so far. Working on salamis. My understanding is that you subtract the ingridents to get the final water amount. Now that was with dry ingridents don’t know about adding wet.

[Odin]

NcPaul

I see he is a member but looks like he hasn’t been here in awhile, like 2012?

[wheels]

He visited on Thu Jan 25, 2018 according to his profile, so he's still around.

[wheels]

Another intriguing topic but I have had trouble keeping the math all together so I tried this:

6% Pump & Rub

Weight of Meat X 2,000 grams

2% Salt (including 1% Cure #1) Y 40

.025% Cure #1 for Brine only A 5

Net Salt Y – A B 35

6% Brine .06(X) C 120

Rub ½ (Y-A) 35/2 17.5

Water C – (A + 1/2B) 97.5

If this is correct, I will try it for our Easter Ham after I figure out the spices/herbs

When you have the actual piece of meat, post the weight and proposed cure and someone'll check it for you.

Phil

[Odin]

The deed is done a 6% pump. DanMcG you were right not much liquid to inject for the size of the picnic. I also added some phosphates to the mix.

Out of curiosity if I added some sodium erythorbate to the brine would that have any effect of speed of cure. I realize it’s used in fresh sausages and helps speed the elimination of nitrites but would that be helpful in a quick ham cure. Also I’m not in any hurry to cure anything, I’ve got nothing but time. Just wondering

Odin

[Odin]

I let the brine go for 7 days. I smoked the ham for about 5 hours starting at 225 degrees and increased to 275 degrees after three hours. I removed it at 155 degrees. The picnic had a nice pink color all the way to the bone. It wasn't as moist as I would have hoped and I found it a bit tough. From this experiment I now know I will never use a picnic for something like this, way to much fat and non editable tissue. Probably won’t use a picnic for anything from now on.