FOOD BRETHREN!
I need some advice. I have one last piece of pork belly confit in the fridge. I brined these bad boys for about 5 days (brine included pink curing salt), vacuum sealed the squares of pork belly with lard and sous vide them at 158 F for 16 hours. I cooked this on 11/10/16 and its been in my refrigerator since.
Here is the general recipe I followed, with some modifications based on my taste: https://www.chefsteps.com/activities/...
The last piece is still vacuum sealed and submerged (mostly) in lard. Any visible pork only has contact with the bag.
It's staring at me. And calling my name.
I want to deep fry this sucker and have a little date night with the handsome devil I see in the mirror every morning, but the last thing I want is spoiled food. I can't find any conclusive information about how long pork confit lasts for. I've only seen references that duck confit or in general that the confit technique will last for months in the fridge. I have found no sources which directly addresses pork confit.
Questions/Factors I'm Considering:
- Does pork confit keep for as long as duck confit?
- Does vacuum sealing have any effect on the length of preservation?
- Does sous-vide cooking method affect the length of preservation?
I know I am probably being a bit paranoid, but I thought I would do my due diligence before taking the plunge, so to speak. Any advice on these questions would be extremely helpful and appreciated!
The Franzisaurus-Rex
PS - you should totally make this if you are into sous vide, confit, food, or have any respect for the enjoyment of life. Flash-searing these things after cooking was OUT OF THIS WORLD.