Curing

Home cured pancetta portioned and ready for use.

I know you have all been waiting with palpable anticipation for this, the conclusion to my pancetta adventure.  After eight days in the refrigerator covered in salt and spices, on March 6, I rinsed the cure from my pancetta-to-be and considered the biggest variable of homemade pancetta: to roll or not to roll?

As pancetta post number one discussed the cured pork belly that is rolled into the familiar jelly roll shape is called pancetta arrotolata in Italian and if it is left as a flat slab it is called pancetta stesa.

Predictably, I think this is an ideal situation for a pros-and-cons, pancetta showdown.

Rolled pros: When finished drying and sliced the slices have the familiar and attractive swirl-of-pork-fat pattern; a lower ratio of surface area to volume means that the belly takes longer to dry so may develop more intense flavour;  vaguely more authentic in that the grandmothers in more Italian villages would roll their pancetta but it is by no means unanimous; the pepper goes on the surface that is rolled into centre so it is more likely to stay with the meat.

Rolled cons: It is difficult to roll the belly tightly enough to prevent air pockets that can host dangerous microbes that thrive in a dark, moist, meaty environment; the belly needs to be trimmed more closely so that when rolled the meat cylinder has a relatively flat top and bottom–this causes waste; the pancetta should stay rolled throughout the process so it is difficult to observe how the centre of the roll is progressing.

Slab pros: More lean meat is exposed to the air (and observation) so it is easier to judge progress by colour; easier to thread twine (or a hook) through on corner of a slab than it is to carefully tie a roll; more easily divided for freezing.

Slab cons: Because it is supported by twine at only one corner stretches to become thinner and diamond-shaped; more surface area is exposed to microbes that can live with more light and air (like mold). (more…)