Pancetta - Botched?

S

SKA BBQ

Guest
Hey Brethren - I made some pancetta but with out really following the proper procedure. I made a fresh bacon cure but swapped the spices for a pancetta flavour and then hung it. I skipped the cure it for a week part and went straight to hanging it. I took the cheesecloth off and I have a nice red crust but my problem is the ends went a really dark brown almost black. Is this a cause for botulism/mold or just over-drying in which case I can just cut the ends off. Should I rinse and hot smoke or just go ahead and fry some up.
 
SKA BBQ said:
Hey Brethren - I made some pancetta but with out really following the proper procedure.

I skipped the cure it for a week part and went straight to hanging it.
Click to expand...

Toss it. If you are going to air dry it had to be cured, and the procedures should be followed.
 
It was rubbed with dry cure before being hung. But according to Charcturiere book I should have cured in the fridge for a week before hanging it.
 
I have not made pancetta yet BUT I would toss it since it did not cure in the fridge first. Sounds like an important step.
 
you need to cure it at the proper temp(36* to 40*) for the appropriate tome before you hang it out to dry.
 
SKA BBQ said:
It was in my garage which is 4-5 Celsius (41 farenheit)
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Let me say this first... Curing meat is a science. You should follow procedure! If you have not done so, toss it! You want to be safe than sorry...

That said... your garage is close enough to fridge temp to be ok IF you are sure that it was indeed at that temp (41) the ENTIRE time and there were no major fluctuations.

Not a risk I'd be willing to take however... JMO.

Cheers
 
I would toss it it should have been cure first taking salt. We always put meat in out building in Nov salt it down , then hung it after a month, some people wold put their meat in a wood box fill with salt.
 
People have been making pancetta long before there was refrigeration and these old ways are still being followed in the farm villages of many countries. They do have their techniques that they follow and there is variance between them. To modify a modern recipe has me a bit nervous. As far as spoiled meat is concerned, your nose is an excellent guide. Do you have someone else you can test it on?
 
Jestridge how did you handle it this year? Since it has been so warm I would think you could have had a problem using an outbuilding.

Mike
 
Botulism, from the Latin botulus, or sausage!

SKA BBQ said:
Hey Brethren - I made some pancetta but with out really following the proper procedure.
Click to expand...

^^ Ahem! Er, uh...I think this says it all; even if you're pretty sure it's OK, toss it and next time follow the rules exactly. Not worth making yourself or someone else ill. I've had food poisoning and it's a picnic compared to botulism; still, it's the only time I ever thought dying might improve how I felt! :sick:
 
If you salt it down good it will withstand some of those warmer day we had this year > I agree this was a bad year to cure meat
, also use some tender quick to be on safe side
 
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