newbie question

[Andre]

I'm one of those people.... "if all else fails ...read the instructions "
Just finished curing and started smoking a couple of hams and bellies. All of my equipment is in a shed and we've had some pretty cold weather. Colder is better ...right ?
To make a long story short...is there a problem with curing and smoking in below freezing temperatures ?

[DarrinG]

Hello Andre and welcome! Nice to have another fellow Ontarian on the board.

From what I know (which is limited) the curing process slows/stops in temperatures below 34F. Also if you are hot smoking, below freezing temps can be a pain in the butt to deal with but if your cold smoking the lower the outside temp the better.

But thats just my 2 cents,

DarrinG

[dougal]

I can think of several reasons why freezing would not be a good idea...

I've not been there, so its a shot in the dark, but I'd expect any time below freezing 'not to count' as curing time.
Thats a very rough approximation.
Because the stronger the brine, the lower its freezing point. And the brine concentration (saltiness) will vary through the thickness of the meat during curing... so the freezing point of the meat will vary through its thickness, with the least cured being the easiest to freeze.
Saltpetre/nitrAte curing is rate-dependent on bacterial action, which slows right down around 40F/4C (thats why fridges run at those temperatures). But nitrIte curing isn't purely bacterially controlled... but does still rely on diffusion through unfrozen liquid to permeate the meat... (and remember that freezing point depends on the salt content)... not easy... As I said to begin with, not a good idea. I suspect the risk is rather uneven curing.