Tasso

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Scogar
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Tasso

Post by Scogar » Tue Feb 23, 2021 22:26

I deboned a pork shoulder and made tasso. I used Marianski's recipe https://www.meatsandsausages.com/hams-other-meats/tasso. My only deviations were:
  • 1. Granulated Garlic
    2. Time, i.e., since it was equilibrium cured, I cut it one inch thick, and I wanted full penetration I let it cure for 5 days instead of 2
    3. I dried it overnight in the refrigerator to develop the pellicle
    4. Most times to get my internal temp to the right point, I pull from the smoker and finish in the oven at 200F (93C)
Image


and here we are cut up Image

I must say it is really really good
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Re: Tasso

Post by Lorenzoid » Wed Feb 24, 2021 01:02

Looks a little wet in the cross-section pic. Do you dry it after that?
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Re: Tasso

Post by Indaswamp » Wed Feb 24, 2021 01:39

Now that one is right in my wheelhouse. I live in the heart of cajun country. color looks great!
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Re: Tasso

Post by Scogar » Wed Feb 24, 2021 01:43

It was still hot at 150+ internal temp as it was fresh from the oven. I am assuming that once cooled it will won't have the same sheen. I suspect the wetness was partially heated fat and the fact that there was still a little give in the meat. Meaning I didn't dry it out to the point it was jerky. I say this because Marianski's recipe had the following statement which kinda wanted to push one in the direction of thinner strips
Making tasso resembles making jerky. If you cut the pork pieces into 1/2” strips it will be much easier to dry them out after cooking. Once the moisture is gone the tasso pieces will be considered a dry product and like jerky will last a long time without refrigeration.
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Re: Tasso

Post by Indaswamp » Wed Feb 24, 2021 06:29

Yes, old traditional tasso was dried like jerky so it was shelf stable. It was carried by hunters, trappers, and fishermen into the swamps along with beans. If they killed meat, they had fresh to eat, but if not, then the dried beans and tasso sustained them. All the seasoning for the pot was on the tasso, Nothing else was needed. It was very heavily spiced and very heavily salted. Was not meant to be eaten alone.

New age tasso is not as heavily seasoned, and not dried to be shelf stable. I've not weighed for moisture loss, but it's probably in the 15-20% range after long slow smoking over the fire.

I have a friend that works at the rural life museum in Baton Rouge. He does the old world cured meats for when they have tours of the plantation. If you are ever passing through, it's worth the stop to check it out...
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Re: Tasso

Post by Scogar » Wed Feb 24, 2021 14:26

Thanks IndaSwamp, great info. My only experience with tasso was something picked up from a displaced cajun who opened a grocery/restaurant here on the north side of Atlanta. He would make a weekly run to LA for whatever was then in season. I picked some up and used in gumbo. It was similar to what I made...meaning it was a dense cured hamlike product that was easy to slice but used pretty much as an ingredient. The Marianski's are ever impressive. How would they be familiar with all that they are AND still know that true tasso is jerky. :o :o

Are there any vendors left that make the old style jerky type. I would think that has a place in my larder, esp for camping
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Re: Tasso

Post by Lorenzoid » Wed Feb 24, 2021 15:53

Scogar wrote:
Wed Feb 24, 2021 14:26
Thanks IndaSwamp, great info. My only experience with tasso was something picked up from a displaced cajun who opened a grocery/restaurant here on the north side of Atlanta. He would make a weekly run to LA for whatever was then in season. I picked some up and used in gumbo. It was similar to what I made...meaning it was a dense cured hamlike product that was easy to slice but used pretty much as an ingredient. The Marianski's are ever impressive. How would they be familiar with all that they are AND still know that true tasso is jerky. :o :o

Are there any vendors left that make the old style jerky type. I would think that has a place in my larder, esp for camping
There is the Cajun Meat Company in Marietta--we get our Cajun Thanksgiving turkey there--but I'm not familiar with their tasso offerings. I don't own a smoker (yet), so I have never made tasso, but I do presently have an order in for some from Wayne Jacobs in Louisiana. Theirs is dry, but not shelf-stable dry. If you want a sample when mine arrives, let me know.

I know, I know. I need a smoker. I need to get my curing fridge up and running. I need ....

Learning a lot here for the time being, though!
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Re: Tasso

Post by Scogar » Wed Feb 24, 2021 16:32

Lorenzoid wrote:
I know, I know. I need a smoker. I need to get my curing fridge up and running. I need ....
... the slicer still?? Hoping you made some headway there, but if not once this Covid crap goes away mine turns on and slices whether I made it or you made it. I know it's silly to drive to slice things but if you end up with a bunch of stuff needing slicing and it's worth it, not a problem.

As for the tasso, I would be interested if you could take some pics and post them on here for all to see (or at least me). I'm curious now from what IndaSwamp confirmed that it was jerky like. Not a problem to make, just slice thinner and dry longer but it does seem more difficult to use unless one adds it to a liquid...

So here's mine now that it has been refrigerated overnight. It has the solidity of a dry cured bacon and would be easy to pan fry in strips or small chunks without resorting to rehydration first. And I know I probably left too much fat on it but I consider flavored fat to be my friend and in all truth this is just a protrusion and not a rind all the way around, maybe a tablespoon's worth at most which would just set the grease for the remainder of the dish.

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Re: Tasso

Post by Lorenzoid » Wed Feb 24, 2021 16:50

That does look better. Sure, I'll take a pic to show what I think Indaswamp would say is a good commercial example (Wayne Jacobs). I use it mostly in red beans & rice, though I don't think it's as traditional for that as, say, pickled pork.

I did in fact buy a slicer last summer. Thanks to your Hobart bias I picked up an old 512 and totally refurbished it.
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Re: Tasso

Post by Indaswamp » Wed Feb 24, 2021 19:22

I'm not sure if there is a meat market selling old style shelf stable dried tasso. I never buy it-I make my own! LOL!

The stuff from Wayne Jacobs is top notch. My 2nd cousins are friends with them...live in the same town with the Jacob family. They grew up together....
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Re: Tasso

Post by Indaswamp » Wed Feb 24, 2021 19:28

As far as seasonings...Cajuns were poor people of the land. They either grew it or traded for it. They would not have used exotic spice blends because it would have been too expensive to buy. Salt, Salt peter, cayenne pepper, garlic, and black pepper (sparingly) those are the spices used in old style tasso production. The Creoles along the Mississippi river and down towards New Orleans is where you will start to see more exotic spices and herbs...cinnamon, all spice, thyme, etc.....
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