Top Tips On How To Prepare Cured And Smoked Meat At Home

Cured and smoked meat is delicious, but preparing it home can be tricky. Curing meats requires specialized ingredients that may or may not be in your pantry or fridge. Smoking meats can require a smoker, which also takes up space and time to use properly. Curing and smoking meat at home will save you money, keep it fresh for a long, and give you the ability to experiment with new recipes. Click here on what are meat snacks. Let’s get your taste buds wet with these top tips on preparing cured and smoked meat at home.

Get Your Ingredients And Equipment

Cured meats use some specialized ingredients that can be difficult to find in your local grocery store. Curing salt, sodium nitrate (or pink salt), and potassium sorbate are all used to cure meat at home. Curing salts like InstaCure or Prague Powder (which is a blend of the two salts) should be available at your local butcher. Curing salts contain the sodium nitrate and potassium sorbate needed to cure meat, as well as other preservatives that ensure it stays fresh longer. Curing salt is not the same thing as table salt, so don’t use regular old iodized. Curing salt is toxic in high doses, so keep it away from pets, kids, and your eyes.

 For smoking meats, you will need some sort of smoker for barbequing, which should also have proper ventilation. You can, with this reverse flow smoker bbq, get the best-smoked meat you have ever tasted. They come in different types and sizes; no matter how much you have in your pocket, you will be able to get the perfect smoker of your dream.  In addition to all this, using a gas smoker works best for smoking meats because they’re easier to control the temperature.

Select The Right Meat

Curing meat is simple, but you also need to know the right cuts. Cured meats are often made with pork or beef because these animals have a higher fat content than others, like chicken and turkeys. Cured meats only deal with nonfrozen proteins, so it’s best not to cure poultry at home unless you’re using frozen pieces of meat. Cured meat is typically made with cuts of meat that are high in fat, so you can cure them and still be able to reduce the risk of food poisoning. Cured meats may also contain nitrates which act as ingredients that prevent botulism.

Smoked meats work particularly well with pork because it’s an excellent type of meat for smoking. Cured meats are also prepared using a wet method that requires curing the meat in water or brine before it’s covered with spices and smoke. Smoked meats typically have a dark red colour, which is why they’re very popular to eat during holidays like Christmas and Thanksgiving, but you can smoke just about any type of meat; cured, dried beef is known as “jerky” or “biltong,” but you can use other types of meat like bison to make jerky as well. Check out which beef jerky is the healthiest. 

Recipe For Curing Your Meat

Cured meat is a great way to save money and eat well in the colder months. Curing your meats at home means that you can choose which cuts of meat, if any, are going into it. You also have control over what types of spices or other products you add to adjust flavour profiles based on personal preference. Here’s what you need:

• Curing salt (sodium nitrite) – this is added to prevent bacteria, especially botulism. You can find it at any butcher or online. For 100 lbs of meat, you’ll use around one ounce per every five pounds, plus a quarter cup for good measure. This amount will cure between 80 and 160 lbs of meat. Curing salt is also the reason that cured meats, like bacon or salami, are pink in colour; it’s not blood.
• Salt (kosher).
• Sugar (white granulated).
• Spices to choose from – black peppercorns, bay leaves, garlic powder, onion powder, crushed chilli pepper, crushed cinnamon sticks, or cloves.
• Curing containers.

You Will Also Require Directions:

1. Step One – weigh the meat and calculate how much salt, sugar, and curing salt you’ll need for your recipe. For 100 lbs of meat, use one-ounce of kosher salt for every five pounds of meat (plus a quarter cup). Curing salts are optional, but it’s important to add sugar for flavour and texture. Curing salts prevent botulism by decreasing the water content of meat and creating an environment where bacteria cannot survive.
2. Step Two – combine all ingredients in a bowl or food-grade bucket large enough to hold your meat.
3. Step Three – place the meat in the bucket and cover it with the curing mixture. Cured meat should be kept below 40 degrees Fahrenheit at all times, so store in your refrigerator or freezer until ready to use.
4. Step Four – once you’ve used up all of your cured meats, dispose of any remaining curing salt. It is not safe for human consumption. Rinse out containers before placing them into your recycling bin.
5. Step Five – cured meats can be stored in a refrigerator for up to six months or frozen indefinitely.

If you’re looking for a quick and easy way to rack up some meaty treats, then this recipe is just the ticket. By following these simple steps, you can have yourself some tasty smoked meats in no time at all. Remember that while it’s possible to use any type of meat with this process (from beef brisket to pork shoulder), select cuts that are fatty enough so they won’t dry out during smoking. Once your meats are cured and ready for cooking, be sure not to overcook them, or else they’ll turn into jerky rather than juicy slices of heaven on earth.