Chris Amirault

Ah, shee-it. So I came home to put the links into the curing chamber, and thought I'd give them one last blast of heat. So I cranked up the oven for just one minute -- but then Bebe knocked something over, and the dog got into it, and... suddenly they'd been in a 225F oven for several minutes. Then, when I was flailing the door of the oven opened and closed, they all fell off their chopsticks onto the oven floor. So I now have this very skeezy looking set of peperone links hanging in the curing chamber in the basement (which is, of course, a perfect 60F and 70% humidity). I guess I'll try to keep that mist on 'em and hope for the best. I knew that I was going down a dangerous road....

Marlene, I think Chris should weigh in on this one for you because as I recall, his cracked butt was a tidge over 8 pounds and was also boneless. He could weigh in on whether you should tie it so we don't see your butt crack! ← I'd certainly tie it. When I smoked my butt, I pulled it out too early after about ten hours, so... 12? 14?

That's actually quite a relief. I don't know why I'm finding this so extraordinarily stressful....

Since I'm cooler than 78F I'm going to split the difference and take it out late tonight. Do you think that 70F is too low for the inoculation? edited to clarify -- ca

Thanks, Dave. I appreciate it! I have a question, though. They've been in an oven that's been around 70F most of the night; I gave them a little more heat around 11 and 12m, then at 8a and 9a, which bumped the temp up to 90F max. I can't imagine they were in the 75-85 range more than 2 hours total. I can run home at noon and take them out -- 13 hours -- or I can just do it when I get home from work at six -- 19 hours. Given the lower temp, should I leave them extra? Or should I stick to the 12 hour timing?

After over four hours of strangely anxious labor, I now have 2.5 kg of peperone inoculating in my oven: It is very odd to write that sentence. I'm inoculating my food. What a strange world curing is! I followed the peperone recipe in the book pretty faithfully, save for a few things based on the advice here: scaling way back on the bactoferm (1 1/2 tsp for 5# of chuck), using the coarse plate on my KA grinder, substituting 2 T of red wine vinegar for the wine, and adding 2 t of black pepper to the spices. I also combined the spices, dextrose, etc. (not the bactoferm) to the diced cold meat before grinding, which I've been doing consistently for a while to mix the spices in more effectively. Grind, chill, beat for the bind, chill, stuff, and finally hang in the oven with the light on. It's probably going to be about 70 in there, max, so I'm going to give it a blast of heat in the a.m. and then leave it a bit longer than 12 hours. Ruhlman is right: there's something very odd about doing all this work and then hanging a bunch of raw meat around the house.

But I want so for it to be good! I'm going to Chez Pascal for the first time this weekend, so perhaps I can have a new go-to bistro....

Hi tazerowe! I can't answer for cure #2 (yet...), but I found that dredging bacon with a cure #1 mixture is a very inexact science, and you can pretty much count on a good cure with the ratios in the book even with a fairly light dredge. You also can cut back on the salt a bit more than the book suggests, I've found. That's a pretty good description of where I'll be hanging those peperone tonight, so perhaps we need a little joint experimentation to find out! And, if Abra's experience is a guide, we're probably likely to be ok.

First, I'd take Chad's advice about knives, period. Second, I'd like to second... um... agree with the recommendation for Chicago Cutlery knives. Solid, cheap, do the trick. Finally, the OXO bread knife is the best one I've ever had, and it was dirt cheap.

I think that the body of the broth is what's most important to me. I want that rich mouthfeel....

So many chacuteriffic things to discuss.... Aaron! Most excellent! I'm eager to see what you'll do with your products -- so eager, in fact, that I just created this topic devoted entirely to what we do with these remarkable products we're making. Go share! Meanwhile, I'm still working to enter the world of the bacterially-prepared foodstuffs. Thanks to my dad and some dowels, I think I have a decent curing chamber for starters: It's basically a big plastic bin with an off-center rack supported by two oak dowels. I think there's plenty of room below for a pan of salted ice water. And for the good little charcuterie pixies to play, warding off the evil charcuterie demons with their joyful songs about good bacteria and high humidity. ... All right, I admit it. I'm freakin' out, man! Bleached equipment? Distilled water? pH levels? 1/4 cup of bactoferm?? What happened to ziplocks, kosher salt, and finger-poking? And even if I get the prep right: what then? I don't know too much about my basement, but the mold, mildew, and who knows what all down there is probably evil, fuzzy, and green, not friendly, dusty and white. Them bad bacteria probably treat high humidity like an E-ticket ride at Disneyworld! Can I get some reassurance here? I'm about to grind up a few pounds of chuck, mix it with who knows what, and throw these links into a black box. Is this as insane as it feels?

Over in the miraculous, slightly obsessive, and wonderful Charcuterie topic, many eGulleteers have been learning from Michael Ruhlman and Brian Polcyn's Charcuterie. As a result, we've got freezers full of bacon, andouille, hocks, pancetta, and who knows what else. This topic is for cooking with those salted, smoked, and cured products. For example, I'm going to start with a very basic recipe, just a simple few steps that lead to a fantastic plate: the classic bistro frissee salad with lardons. This salad -- frissee lightly dressed with a vinaigrette, tossed with lardons (thickly diced and well-cooked pieces of bacon), and topped with a fried egg -- is a fantastic showcase for the high-quality bacon you'll be producing if you start curing and smoking your own. Being able to add lardons that are both crispy and meaty into your salad is a remarkable joy. What else are people doing with their cured products?

All right, here's a real test of Providence-area eGulleteers. I have been chatting with Steve the Butcher at Whole Foods at University Heights, and he is prepared to get Niman Ranch, purveyors of fine pork products, to special order boxes of pork bellies and of back fat. 50 lb boxes, that is. I think I can safely absorb a good bit of that take, maybe 10-20 pounds of each. But he won't order it unless I can commit to using around 30 pounds of each. So, if you're interested in some serious pork haul, PM me and let me know. I'll post here if the deals go through, in which case the WF at UW will have some fine bacon and sausage supplies in the near future!

Ok, what with all the smokin' expertise around here, I thought I'd ask a question about my cracked butt. After a long and smoky wrangle, I served up about half of it, but I still had about 2.5# left over. I vacuum-sealed it and froze it, and when I spied it in the freezer today, I got to thinkin'.... Is it possible to reheat the butt, slowly, so as to bring it to an internal temperature of 200-210F, or have I already missed the butt boat? If so, what's the best method, d'ye think: low roast in tin foil? or back into the smoker? or... butt sous vide?

Here's a good topic on kitchen lighting, which discusses the undercabinet question. I've installed a set of these IKEA Trettio lights under the wall shelving unit. I like them a great deal.... edited to figure out what IKEA names require all caps or lead caps or what... -- ca

I missed this the first time around: So glad to know that there are a few others learning the ropes around here who have such moments (click for mine)!

Haven't done a Japanese dish in a cook-off before...!

Most excellent! I really hope you'll be showing us your equipment! Photos, please! (I mean smokers/grills, woods/charcoal, etc. Get your mind out of the gutter!)

It's a great idea in many ways, but as someone who has spent the better part of a year trying to find fresh masa, I'm loathe to do a cook-off that requires a special ingredient that's so widely unavailable. And I ain't settlin' for no masa harina tamales!

I roast potatoes in the oven frequently, and the trick is getting a cast iron pan really hot (450F) then tossing in the oiled and seasoned potatoes. You also have to shake frequently -- and, yeah, scrape once in a while!

Another mediocre experience at Red Stripe: out of that house red I like so much, burned toasts for the charcuterie plate, and our go-to dish -- the frissee salad -- wasn't frissee and had lousy lardons.

Cleaning it shouldn't be too hard (some Bartenders Friend and elbow grease), but sharpening it might be a pain in the ass. I dunno about the skin/fat question, but I'd aim for 34-35F for the start of the bind. Basically as cold as you can git. Your breakfast sausages are going to kill, Susan!

I've been pretty partial to the pho at House of Noodles on Reservoir Ave in Cranston RI lately, but I had breakfast at Minh Hai Restaurant, 1096 Park Ave, in Cranston the other day, and their pho was fantastic. Specifically, the stock was really great, excellent body and flavor. Where else in NE do people get their pho fix?

Dave, that venison salame looks fantastic! Thanks everyone for the input on the curing chamber. I found a 3'x2' storage container that I can easily drill holes into. I'm thinking that I can place a hotel pan of salt water and ice in the bottom, spray a little if need be, and hang things from a rack at the top. I'm going to try to get it going this weekend. Ron, my heart weeps for those jowls. I had a long chat with the head butcher at Whole Foods, and he's going to try to scare me up some pig parts from Niman Ranch, so's I don't have to special order via the 'net. In the meanwhile, I'm thinking of starting with a basic beef peperone....

It's been a while since I've polled folks for their input for the next cook-off. What do you say? Don't suggest anything American or European, btw, given the last two.