Made my own Prosciutto

[a.lee.hagen]

So back in October of '09 I, after quite some time going over the "what-if's," decided to make my own Prosciutto, or air dried ham. I had to buy two from my proveyor so I went ahead and did both. After sitting in a mountain of Kosher salt for 21 or so days, and checking them each week, they were washed off. I then rubbed them down with bacon fat and sprinkled them heavily with black pepper to discourage flies from congregating around the beauties. Then I wrapped them up in cheesecloth and hung them in my dry storage area(the servers HATED looking at them and bumping into them!!) Withinn the last two weeks I cut into one and was able to put it on my menu with some freshly made Porcini lavasch, fresh mozzarella and a little Mesclun w/ oven dried grape tomatoes and a squeeze of lemon. The second one is still hanging as it can hang for as much as 3 years, I'll cut into it when I need it. This last week I bought two more hams to start a second round. Oh, and when u are ready to cut into it, shave off the hard outter skin and fry it up, the best pork rinds you ever had!!!

The quality, I think, is better than any "prosciutto" I could buy from Sysco. Aside from the time it took, I'd much rather bring a craft to my town that is otherwise not practiced, than pay the high price of the Parma hams. I recently constructed a "true" cold smoker and may hit the next two with a few hours of cold smoke before drying... not quite sure yet.

Any thoughts, questions or comments would be appreciated.

[Blether]

That sounds like quite a success. What was the source of the pork legs / how particular were you about it ?

[adey73]

Any Photo's?

[a.lee.hagen]

I wasn't particular about it at all, I didn't want to spend a lot on the legs in case something went wrong or it didn't come out for some reason, I would have much rather paid $1.69 a pound and thrown it out if something got screwed up.

[a.lee.hagen]

I do, I'll get them up soon, they are on my phone, gotta link up first.

[Blether]

I wasn't particular about it at all, I didn't want to spend a lot on the legs in case something went wrong or it didn't come out for some reason, I would have much rather paid $1.69 a pound and thrown it out if something got screwed up.

Right. That's fascinating for me, because for one thing, it's said that the quality of cured pork depends on the quality of the source meat, and for another, that the cost of cured prosciutto takes account of the amount of the hams that spoil during the curing process.

[ScoopKW]

I think it's fortunate that servers' heads bumping into the hams didn't lead to the transfer of some nasty or another.

Human hair carries a lot of funk. That's why we get so grossed out by seeing one in our bouillabaisse.

I'd be most interested in knowing the temperature and humidity level of that walk in. If there's a way I can make my own proscuitto in Las Vegas, that's a big deal for me.

Congratulations on making good salumi. And please flesh out the process a bit. This is something I'm sure a lot of us would like to try.

[Paul Funyun]

I've been interested in this as well. Could you also tell me how much the supplies cost? There's a certain cool factor to making your own, but if I'm spending more money to make it than I would be buying it, I'm not sure how feasible it is.

[oldwhiteguy]

I started a prosciutto last May and another in June. And another two months ago. I think there's a name for this particular disorder. I 'opened' the first one last week (at 11 months) and the flavour is exceptional! A wee bit salty by prosciutto standards, but salt-free by ham standards, and more moist than I expected. It is very tender, with a nice nutty sweetness and a distinctive 'bite', and slight acidity, which I presume is mainly from the lactobaccilus fermentation.

I started with a Berkshire leg, because I knew the flavour would be like pork used to taste fifty years ago i.e. like pork. At almost double the price, it's still cheap compared to finished prosciutto. There are lots of web sites dealing with how it's done, if not exactly how to do it.

First, get a leg with shank attached (for hanging, and also to minimize exposed flesh) and with the aitch bone removed. Get your butcher to remove the aitch bone. It's part of the pelvis/pubic bone that includes the femur socket. It's a weird shape, and you can't see all of it, and if you try to remove it yourself, you will end up shredding the adjoining flesh, like I did the first time. It's important that the exposed flesh be relatively smooth and flat (and unshredded) to minimize the surface area so the ham won't absorb too much salt, and also to minimize crevices where undesirable molds and bacteria can get going. Trim off protruding bits.

Place the ham, meat side up, in a pan that will fit in your fridge, supported off the bottom of the pan on a shallow rack. Cover the exposed flesh liberally with coarse salt. Use a bit on the skin. Keep replacing the salt daily as it dissolves and runs off. Siphon off the salty liquid in the pan. The salt is pre-drying the outer layer by osmosis, and also innoculating it against most nasties which don't do well in salt. The fridge prevents the salt from penetrating too quickly and the ham from drying too quickly and forming a crust.

After a week, scrape off the salt and apply a fresh layer. I think this is to avoid bridging, where the salt in contact with the meat disappears, but the rest of the salt forms a crust that is locally separated from the meat by an air space. Repeat for another week. Some recipes say two weeks. So that is 2-3 weeks total of salting.

Remove the ham, and brush off the salt. Pound the ham with a mallet etc, then roll it towards the big end with a rolling pin, both sides, to expel any blood from the femoral artery and femoral vein. Liquid in here can cause spoilage. This is sometimes done prior to salting. This also helps produce the flat mandolin shape,which facilitates carving.

Leave the ham in the fridge, with only the salt that clings to the surface, for another six or eight weeks. (Or less, if you need your fridge.) It should not be sweating anymore during this stage, and the surface should feel only slightly damp.

Wash the ham in warm water. Some say to rinse with white wine, but I'm cheap. Dry it off, and leave it in the fridge for a couple of daysto dry.

Hang it by the ankle in a cool dryish well-ventilated place, 55-65F, 65% - 70% RH for four or five months. These conditions can be almost impossible to find, but they seem not to be an absolute requirement. This is the stage where the medium-dry, slightly salty ham picks up the desirable bacteria, notably but not exclusively lactobaccillus. I wrapped mine in window screen to deter mice and flies.

After about seven months from the start, when the ham has lost about 25% of its original weight, cover the exposed flesh with a mixture of lard stiffened with flour and black pepper to halt further drying. Stash it in a basement to finish the cure. The bacteria will continue to work, enzymes will tenderize it, and the moisture concentrations will equalize. Leave it for another year, if you can. (18 months total)

[a.lee.hagen]

This was essentially how I did it... Although after salting I went straight to larding and hanging. I did not do the additional hanging in the walk-in for 6-8 weeks.

I did just start two more hams 2 weeks ago, this time I cold smoked them each for 2 hours w/ cherry wood.

[oldwhiteguy]

Congrats on getting two more going.

My understanding of the prosciutto process is that bacteria, mainly lactobacilli, are necessary to develop the characteristic flavour, and that enzymes in the meat tenderize it over time. I would describe the flavour as having a slight nip, a bit like old cheddar, as well as a nutty component. I am told there are many kinds of lactobacilli, which mainly ferment glucose and produce lactic acid, as in dill pickles, yogurt, sauerkraut, summer sausage, and sourdough. The lactobacilli can tolerate salt as well as a slightly dry surface, whereas these conditions discourage most other micro-organisms. The lactobacilli are supposed to get going while the slightly salty and partially dried prosciutto is hanging at room temperature or a bit cooler. The lard is applied later to prevent it from getting too dry. The bacteria and enzymes continue to do their thing after larding.

[a.lee.hagen]

Of my first two, I have cut into one and am using it. The other is still hanging, it will be interesting to see if the flavor mellows out or if it intesifies...

[Two fingers of Scotch]

WOW you are my hero! I would love to make my own prosciutto one day..

As I live in a hot climate I'm waiting on my husband to build me a cold room. What temperature would you say you had / need to keep the pork while drying?

Does anyone know if it works in a cold room facility??

[a.lee.hagen]

The room I used to air dry the hams was about 65-75 degrees

[Blether]

Thanks for posting such a well-written explanation, oldwhiteguy: Just what's needed, no hurry or fuss, and enough background to be able to adapt the procedure to different conditions. Great !

The only thing that read as strange to me was:

... The fridge prevents... the ham from drying too quickly and forming a crust.

Where I am, the fridge is normally drier than the surrounding air. I use that sometimes - for drying out the surface of poultry before cooking, for example. Where are you located ? Anyway I'm guessing that what you wrote is how you did it, right ?

Any more comments about 'nutty' and 'slightly sharp' and I'll be digging a cold cellar into the apartment below.

[oldwhiteguy]

Drying rate is a function of both relative humidity (dryness) and temperature. (I'm an HVAC engineer) Relative humidity inside a fridge is determined by the design of the fridge, not by climate -unless the fridge is really leaky. The mobility of water inside the meat towards the surface is also much slower at low temperatures, hence the effectiveness of air-drying chicken (or prosciutto) at low temperatures. The idea with prosciutto is to keep the water activity of the surface low enough so that spoilage bacteria never have a chance. This is accomplishedby starting with salt, moist salt having a water activity of 75%, and then cool drying, and finally warmer drying. Traditionally, prosciutto was always started in January or February in Italy, long before refrigeration.

I started my first prosciutto in May without refrigeration, and it continued to "sweat" long after it should have, so I had to prolong the salting. I also briefly got a bit of something slimy growing on the surface of the skin, which I was able to eliminate with a vinegar wash and more salt. In spite of my ignorance and incompetence, the prosciutto turned out fine.

[Blether]

Well if you're going to get boastful, I'll bet I can give you a run for your money on incompetence and ignorance, any day of the week

I wasn't clear, but my intention was to point out the difference in drying rate because of different humidity inside & outside the fridge (guessing fridges are fairly consistent, but ambient varies), rather than to suggest that the outside humidity determines that in the fridge.

Thanks for your more knowledgeable explanation, from which I've been able to learn something.

[dougal]

... my intention was to point out the difference in drying rate because of different humidity inside & outside the fridge (guessing fridges are fairly consistent, but ambient varies), ...

There's another thing - air movement.

Moving air dries stuff faster than still air at the same humidity and temperature.

The still air inside the fridge (well, its still compared to the world outside) doesn't dry stuff as fast as you might think from its humidity. And yes the lower temperature is reducing the evaporation rate as well.

And in fairly still air, as in most domestic fridges, you don't need to cover things tightly to effect a significant increase in their local humidity.

The downside of still air, however, is that the local humidity in the crevices in 'shredded' surfaces can get much higher than the chamber's measured humidity. And nasty moulds do prefer those higher humidities ...

[dachickenfarmer]

I started a prosciutto last May and another in June. And another two months ago. I think there's a name for this particular disorder. I 'opened' the first one last week (at 11 months) and the flavour is exceptional! A wee bit salty by prosciutto standards, but salt-free by ham standards, and more moist than I expected. It is very tender, with a nice nutty sweetness and a distinctive 'bite', and slight acidity, which I presume is mainly from the lactobaccilus fermentation.

I started with a Berkshire leg, because I knew the flavour would be like pork used to taste fifty years ago i.e. like pork. At almost double the price, it's still cheap compared to finished prosciutto. There are lots of web sites dealing with how it's done, if not exactly how to do it.

)

This is the best write up I could find - thanks - any update on your results of your multiple Prosciutto's? I'm interested to hear what more you may have learned. Thanks!