otherwayup Posted September 30, 2012 Report Share Posted September 30, 2012 A friend is sending his two pigs to the great piggery in the sky next week and I'm down for a back leg and the blood. So, as well a googleing etc, I thought I'd ask here if anyone has any advice on making black pudding and what to do with the leg. Cheers, Darren. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kes Posted September 30, 2012 Report Share Posted September 30, 2012 Watch the early series of River Cottage - he keeps 2 pigs and shows how to make parma ham and other leg recipes as well as how to make sausage and black puddings from the blood. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonty Posted September 30, 2012 Report Share Posted September 30, 2012 (edited) If you can get away with having the leg in the fridge for a month, and have somewhere to hang it afterwards, making an air dried ham is easier than you'd think. I've got a few on the go, some using a really foolproof method and some more experimental, but the foolproof method produces really good results. I'd be happy to make you up some cure and send it to you if you wanted a go Leg of pork with bone removed (helps reduce the chance of going off and makes it easier to slice) Rubbed with cure Wrapped in clingfilm and into the man fridge in the garage with a breeze block on top to flatten it After two weeks, it gets rinsed, more cure and then back into clingfilm and into the fridge for another fortnight. After that it's rinsed and looks like this Hang it somewhere warm for a day or so (it's cured now so shouldn't go off) then hang it somewhere fairly well ventilated where the temperature is about maybe 12-15 degrees for a few months. Here it is after a month It will be ready after a few months, but like wine, they do improve with age I'm not trying to hijack your thread and turn it into a how to cure post - just wanted to show how easy it is ith very little equipment required. I'd avoid the river cottage way as it can result in very salty ham. Like I said, if you wanted a go, I'd be happy to make you some cure up. Edited September 30, 2012 by Jonty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
otherwayup Posted September 30, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 30, 2012 I'm not trying to hijack your thread and turn it into a how to cure post - .... This is exactly what I was hoping for, advice from people who have done this sort of thing a few times. Air dried ham was something I had wondered about. I'm going to start asking around for someone with a bit of fridge space. Maybe the guy who's pigs they are; he has a massive walk in Hop store (lucky ****** owns a brewery) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hafod Posted September 30, 2012 Report Share Posted September 30, 2012 yeah jontys right remove the bone as if its left in , it can produce whats called bone taint , if you do leave the bone in then you need to put a pinch of saltpetre into a number of holes made into the leg around the bone , to stop the taint , be carefull with nitrates , check current food hygine regs . saltpetre can be bought at any chemists , just tell them you want it for curing a ham joint thats on the bone my father always used saltpetre in his cures when he cured the hams and gammons on the one bacon pig he always reared and killed every year ( bloody things were huge 250 / 300 kgs ) , the hams ,the gammons ,and the flitches of home cured bacon were always first class , as to the black pudding i,m afriad i cant help on that one finely be very careful using any of HFW recipes as they contain great amount of misinformation especially on the subject of the home curing of hams , gammons , and bacon . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonty Posted October 1, 2012 Report Share Posted October 1, 2012 For a first attempt and introduction to curing, I'd be tempted to avoid saltpetre. It sounds like Hafod's Father knows full well what he's doing and saltpetre is perfect for curing in experienced hands but it needs to be used cautiously and accurately measured to ensure that it dissapates over time. For the uninitiated there's a 'diluted' version of saltpetre called 'Cure 2' which is a mixture of sodium nitrate and sodium nitrite. It's used in air dried hams, salami, chorizo etc. It does the same job as saltpetre in making the meat safe by preventing botulism etc and then if used at the correct cure to meat ratio, it ends up harmless within the meat. The packs of cure will have the grammes to kilogrammes of meat ratio on the pack, this makes it much easier and safer to. Basically you mix a cure up containing salt, sugar, cure 2, herbs etc and rub the whole thing over the leg. Like I said, I'd be happy to make some up. Hafod - I don't want to sound like I disagree with your old man's methods, they sound great to me, I just wanted to point someone who may be just starting out down a slightly easier route whilst they learned the ropes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zapp Posted October 1, 2012 Report Share Posted October 1, 2012 What's the damage for a whole leg then? Jonty, your pig pics are almost as good as your brewing ones! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
otherwayup Posted October 1, 2012 Author Report Share Posted October 1, 2012 What's the damage for a whole leg then? I wouldn't mind knowing that as my mate hasn't told me yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
docholiday Posted October 1, 2012 Report Share Posted October 1, 2012 Jonty those look stunning and given me the urge to give it a go Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonty Posted October 1, 2012 Report Share Posted October 1, 2012 I pay about £30 for a free range leg from a butcher who rears his own pork, if you think about it, the butcher isn't doing much to it so there's no processing costs. There is always a chance of a leg going bad but apart from that, it's a fairly straightforward process than anyone can have a go at. The ideal thing is to have somewhere to hang them that's about 13-17 degrees C and around 60% humidity . But, once you've done the initial curing, they will survive in less than the ideal conditions. I'm no expert, but happy to kelp anyone I can if they want to have a go - this time of year is perfect as the temperature is down and humidity is slightly up so you'll find cupboards/sheds etc are all good places to hang them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zapp Posted October 1, 2012 Report Share Posted October 1, 2012 Thats not as much as I thought it would be. I can see me having a go at this for next Christmas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin lad Posted October 1, 2012 Report Share Posted October 1, 2012 For a first attempt and introduction to curing, I'd be tempted to avoid saltpetre. It sounds like Hafod's Father knows full well what he's doing and saltpetre is perfect for curing in experienced hands but it needs to be used cautiously and accurately measured to ensure that it dissapates over time. For the uninitiated there's a 'diluted' version of saltpetre called 'Cure 2' which is a mixture of sodium nitrate and sodium nitrite. It's used in air dried hams, salami, chorizo etc. It does the same job as saltpetre in making the meat safe by preventing botulism etc and then if used at the correct cure to meat ratio, it ends up harmless within the meat. The packs of cure will have the grammes to kilogrammes of meat ratio on the pack, this makes it much easier and safer to. Basically you mix a cure up containing salt, sugar, cure 2, herbs etc and rub the whole thing over the leg. Like I said, I'd be happy to make some up. Hafod - I don't want to sound like I disagree with your old man's methods, they sound great to me, I just wanted to point someone who may be just starting out down a slightly easier route whilst they learned the ropes. good call jonty i cure all our meats at our farm butchers shop from hams to chorizo brisola etc and for the beginner these ready made cures are ideal you dont want to be messing around with nitrates and nitrites unless you know what you are doing, also there is a product called easicure they do plain, smoked, sweet, and many other cures with easy to follow instructions worth a go colin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonty Posted October 1, 2012 Report Share Posted October 1, 2012 good call jonty i cure all our meats at our farm butchers shop from hams to chorizo brisola etc and for the beginner these ready made cures are ideal you dont want to be messing around with nitrates and nitrites unless you know what you are doing, also there is a product called easicure they do plain, smoked, sweet, and many other cures with easy to follow instructions worth a go colin That sounds like a shop I'd like to visit Colin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin lad Posted October 1, 2012 Report Share Posted October 1, 2012 That sounds like a shop I'd like to visit Colin its something i have been getting into for the last few years one you may want to try and is very cheap is guanciale cured pigs cheeks made by the romans and it tastes fab though it can be heavy going if you eat too much, cure it very similar to what you are doing now but as cheeks are small it only takes a fraction of the time, all our pigs are reared on the farm so much better than commercial pork that a lot of bacon is made from nowadays colin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zapp Posted October 1, 2012 Report Share Posted October 1, 2012 Where in Bedford is your shop Colin? I'm out that way a fair bit so I might pop in one day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin lad Posted October 1, 2012 Report Share Posted October 1, 2012 Where in Bedford is your shop Colin? I'm out that way a fair bit so I might pop in one day. we are in the village of stagsden browns farm shop www.brownsofstagsden,co,uk but the web site is dated now and needs updating colin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rabbiter Posted October 1, 2012 Report Share Posted October 1, 2012 lol,+1 for a farm shop butcher,mines up in the north east though,and like colin,i do all our curing....DAZ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FalconFN Posted October 1, 2012 Report Share Posted October 1, 2012 That looks great. We buy most of our meat direct from friends, it's all good quality local meat and comes butchered. We've just picked up half a pig (for £80) and I was hoping to cure a portion of the leg, is that possible or is doing the whole leg a better bet? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zapp Posted October 1, 2012 Report Share Posted October 1, 2012 we are in the village of stagsden browns farm shop www.brownsofstagsden,co,uk but the web site is dated now and needs updating colin Nice one, I'll pop in next time I'm out that way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hafod Posted October 1, 2012 Report Share Posted October 1, 2012 jonty you are correct about what you said about the saltpetre so no offence taken , i totally aggree its not something a first time curer should play with thats the reason why i added the caution to check with current food hygine regs . the cures that my father used were passed down through the generations in our family ( every farming family in the south wales valleys had there own special cures for bacon , gammon, and hams ) sadly curing skills like this have all but died out with the older generation ( i do however dabble now and again though to keep the tradition alive , i still have the blue pennant salting stone that my g g grandfather used in 1862 for salting sides of bacon ) . jonty do you buy your cures from scoobie direct , sounds like one of their mixes . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hafod Posted October 1, 2012 Report Share Posted October 1, 2012 its something i have been getting into for the last few years one you may want to try and is very cheap is guanciale cured pigs cheeks made by the romans and it tastes fab though it can be heavy going if you eat too much, cure it very similar to what you are doing now but as cheeks are small it only takes a fraction of the time, all our pigs are reared on the farm so much better than commercial pork that a lot of bacon is made from nowadays colin colin what your describing there my father used to call it ,chook , that was my job when we killed the yearly baconeer , to cut off the cheeks and cure it , when it was cured we used to cut and use it like streaky bacon , your spot on it tasted fantastic ,though the cheeks off a big bacon pig were usually about 8-10 lbs in weight ,we ate that when waiting for the rest to cure Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonty Posted October 2, 2012 Report Share Posted October 2, 2012 Thats not as much as I thought it would be. I can see me having a go at this for next Christmas. Zapp, if you wanted to experiment before committing to a whole leg, you could have an experimental run on a piece of belly pork using the same process, just scaled down a bit. That way you don't risk losing the full leg on a first attempt. Alternatively, there's lonzino which is just a cured pork tender loin which would cost a fiver and cure in a couple or three weeks, or bresola which is beef (or venison for the stalkers) which again could be made from a supermarket £5-£10 joint and cure in a few weeks. Would be happy to post some pics/info if you weere interested. That looks great. We buy most of our meat direct from friends, it's all good quality local meat and comes butchered. We've just picked up half a pig (for £80) and I was hoping to cure a portion of the leg, is that possible or is doing the whole leg a better bet? Hi falcon, I'd probably either use the whole leg or go for a different cut. A lot of people use the leg minus the foot and shank, I keep it on to make hanging it easier. jonty do you buy your cures from scoobie direct , sounds like one of their mixes . Hafod, I just buy Cure #1 and cure #2 and mix my own now. Here's my current batch, there's a couple of hams that are both a year old , then some goose salami, venison salami & venison chorizo that I made last week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
docholiday Posted October 2, 2012 Report Share Posted October 2, 2012 How would a venison haunch cure, ?? would love to give that a try and would you be prepared to talk me through the making of the venison chorizio yum yum Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonty Posted October 2, 2012 Report Share Posted October 2, 2012 Doc, a haunch is on my to do list along with a goat leg too. It would need closer watching than a pig leg as the absence of skin would mean that it woud dry out very quickly, one way around this is to smear lard to retard the drying, some others just accept the quicker drying process, I'd be really interested to give it a go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin lad Posted October 2, 2012 Report Share Posted October 2, 2012 (edited) How would a venison haunch cure, ?? would love to give that a try and would you be prepared to talk me through the making of the venison chorizio yum yum how far are you from Bedford i can let you know when i am next making some chorizo you could come and have a go colin i did a venison butchery display for pw this time last year if we could get enough people interested i could do the same for dry and wet curing and other charcuterie colin Edited October 2, 2012 by colin lad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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