Dry Cure Container and brine

beconizer · Post by **beconizer** » Sat Jan 24, 2015 22:28

Hi guys,

I have started during my first pancetta. I wanted to make it dry cured. I have left skin on, used cure 1 and rubbed it generously with salt, sugar and spices. Amount of salt is a bit higher than indicated by cure 1 as per recipe. I have placed it in the plastic container in the fridge.
I have noticed that there is plenty of brine around it.

Should I take it out so pancetta would be dry?

Or I should not put it in plastic container in the first place.
I would really appreciate if someone would tell me what to do with brine in dry currying process.

Derek

Post by **redzed** » Sat Jan 24, 2015 23:11

Hi Derek, welcome to the forum! We could always use some that Luck of the Irish around here. Hopefully some of it will rub off!.

If you were doing equalization curing, that is using precise amount of salt, i.e. 3%, then you would wrap it in a plastic bag, even vaccuum pack it and any liquid that comes out would be reabsorbed. However, if you are using the box method, that is surrounding the curing meat with salt and cure, standard practice is to pour off the liquid, since it will oxidize and leave a green/grey discoloration (nitrite burn) on the pancetta.

Hope this helps. Keep us posted on how the pancetta develops.

redzed

beconizer · Post by **beconizer** » Sat Jan 24, 2015 23:27

Thanks for advice. I am going to take it out of the box so - it is there for the last 7 days anyway. Next batch will do a bit differently so. Next time I will put it on some sort of rack to have real dry cure.