Gammon curing

[captain wassname]

Hello

Sorry I didnt think to look here but here I am thanks to Dave..
http://forum.sausagemaking.org/viewtopi ... 362843e216 is where I came from.

Ive just been to Tescos and purchased a 2.5kg boneless leg joint for �3 per kilo. (chickened out from buying something decent for a first attemt) I intend to cook half as a ham and keep some for gammon steaks and boiling bacon

Dont know if Ill make a start tonight (making pumpkin soup and watching football)
I will post pictures but be warned I have a knack of making any pictures I take of food look like roadkill.

Jim

[captain wassname]

crap. dont know why the link didnt work Ive done it before. I cut and pasted. Ill work it out later.

Jim

[saucisson]

I'll fix it for you

My brine is made up and ready to inject

Dave

[saucisson]

Here's the text, I'll insert the pictures shortly:

10% pump and rub as from the link Wheels posted. I am using the second recipe, the cure # 1 and saltpetre combination.

This is a two stage process so for my convenience I split it over two days. There is no reason not to do the second stage immediately after the first. You can make all the cure up together and split it into that which will go into the brine and that which will dry rub, but I prefer to make them up separately so I am completely sure there is no separation of the individual components between the two sets.

My boned and rolled shoulder weighs 3.73 kilos so for a 10% pump I need 373 g brine:



So I'll make up 400ml:

71.4g Salt
38.8g Sugar
0.78g Saltpetre
6.6g Cure # 1

Accurate scales capable of measuring 0.1g are essential.



Because the joint is boned and rolled, inevitably some of the brine will enter the cavity, so I inject it through its shrink wrap so as to keep as much brine within the meat as possible. I insert the needle close to the centre of the meat and pump as I withdraw the needle slowly, leaving a trail of brine behind it within the meat.



If the meat is thin enough you can insert the needle almost to the far side and do the same thing, injecting as you withdraw the needle. To prevent leakage I go in from the top and sides only. With a naked piece of meat you can do it all over.



This needle has the hole to one side so doesn't easily clog

I then leave the meat like this until the next day in the fridge to give the brine a head start before unwrapping it and potentially allowing some brine to escape from the central cavity. More to follow...

[wallie]

Dave
I am a bit thick on the maths and I realize you need 373 g brine for a 3.73 kilo joint so you make up 400ml which I think is the same as 400grams.

But how do you calculate the amount of salt, sugar, saltpetre and cure # 1 for this amount of water.

wallie

[saucisson]

It's not quite Wallie as the salt and sugar increase the density of the solution so 400ml weighs more than 400g. So I make up 400ml and weigh out 373g.

The instructions give enough for 454.6g, we only need 294g for a litre of brine, we also don't need a whole litre, just 0.4l. So divide 294 by 454.6 =0.647. Now multiply that by 0.4 to get the factor for 400ml = 0.2588. Now multiply each ingredient in the original recipe by 0.2588 to get the amount required for 400ml brine. So for salt 276g x 0.2588 = 71.4g, which to my great relief is the same number I quoted earlier

I will be applying the same sort of calculations to get the dry rub. I need 23g dry rub per kilo, so 85.8g in all. 85.8/454.6 = 0.189 so I need 276 x 0.189 = 52g salt, 28.4g of sugar, 0.57g of saltpetre and 4.8g of cure #1. Oh and 500ml beer .

Dave

[wallie]

Thanks Dave
The reason I asked was because I have a ham in curing now and I made the whole litre of Oddley's brine for pumping, then finished up dumping 3/4 of it.
Anyway I know now how to calculate the desired amount.

Thanks
wallie

[saucisson]

Curing Part 2

I have written this guide so that I can follow it next year. If it still reads like a simpleton's guide I have pitched it just right

No photos tonight, the camera let me take them and there was no memory card in it.


After unwrapping from the shop wrapper there were nearly 200ml fluid knocking around. The meat was looking a lovely red colour. I cut it into two more managable joints, rubbed the 85g dry rub in, bagged them up and poured in 100ml of the fluid into each bag, and back in the fridge.

Then relaxed to a small bonfire for bonfire night, watched over by the pumpkin I carved last week for Halloween:


[URL=http://g.imageshack.us/img231/img1727je2.jpg/1/]

[wheels]

Wow, that's just brilliant - is it anyone in particular?

(if we're meant to instantly recognise it I apologise)

Phil

[wheels]

Oops, the wife says it's someone called Barry Potter? Larry Potter?

Shows how out of date I am - can I be a high court judge now please?

[saucisson]

It's from:

Barry Trotter and the Shameless Parodies.

(Quite a good book apparently, by Michael Gerber)



Nah, it's Harry Potter

I didn't quite get Daniel Radcliffe's nose right, but as I have never carved anything that intricate before I think I might be forgiven

Dave

[captain wassname]

Pansy potter: The Strong Mans Daughter

Dave

my maths says that your 373 gms of brine contained 84.7g of cure and 285.3g of water. I assume that the critical amount is the 84.7 g of cure My question is is it possible to cut the water component down to try to avoid leakage. Or is this another stupid question.

Jim

[captain wassname]

Dave sorry I forgot to thank you for the fix so Thank you

Jim

[wheels]

It's from:
I didn't quite get Daniel Radcliffe's nose right, but as I have never carved anything that intricate before I think I might be forgiven
Dave

Dave
It's absolutely superb
Phil

[saucisson]

Dave
My question is is it possible to cut the water component down to try to avoid leakage.

Jim

I honestly don't know Jim, but I suspect having the brine too concentrated will draw moisture out of the meat to compensate and it may end up a) tough and b) too salty, so I wouldn't...

I tend to collect any leaks that occur initially and re-inject elsewhere, without getting too fussed about it (or you'd be there all day). Just make sure it all ends up in the bag with the meat.

Dave

PS thanks for the thanks.