Here’s a go at making a five-pound batch of Mortadella. My wife loves this stuff, and so after recently make 10-pound of bologna, she asked me to try my skills at making some traditional mortadella
For those unfamiliar with this Italian delicacy, mortadella is a firm, emulsified pork & beef product with visible bits of high-grade white pork fat. Often it also contains black peppercorns and pistachios. Good mortadella is slightly spicy (not hot) with a distinct ‘good bologna’ aroma, and a pleasantly smooth texture. Unlike it’s distant cousin, bologna, mortadella is usually very thinly sliced & served as is—no frying. It makes a great sandwich or simply eaten by itself.
First we need to start with some good meat. — 2 to 1, pork to beef ratio. I’m using a fairly-lean beef chuck and pork loin, with a bit of pork shoulder I had :
Very important to this recipe is the addition of pork back fat. Belly fat is considered not ideal due its softness and ease of rendering, so I was able to pick up a thick slab of the back fat from a local carnicería. I cut a half-pound into ¼” cubes.
Ratio of meat to fat for this mortadella is 80-85% lean/15-20% fat—so in fact the end result will actually be much leaner than the vast majority of store-bought lunchmeats. Traditionally, mortadella is 70/30 lean to fat; so I’ve trimmed the fat down just a bit.
Here are the list of ingredients I’ll be adding to the ground meat. Although this product is not smoked, the cure adds the traditional color & texture to the final results. The whole peppercorns and whole pistachios (locally-grown!) will be added, along with the fat cubes, prior to stuffing.
Grind Number One: 4.5mm medium grind to start. I’ll next add the majority of spices:
MIX: Using my Kirby Bucket mixer; meat in and spices added…
Less than a minute later, the meat is well-mixed and ready for a second grind:
2nd GRIND: Using a 3.0mm plate for a fine grind.
Final mix: Adding the last ‘whole’ ingredients to the meat paste- the whole peppercorns, the pistachios, and the fat. I’ll mix this in and let it rest overnight.
Going to do some stuffing next.
More to come….
Kevin
For those unfamiliar with this Italian delicacy, mortadella is a firm, emulsified pork & beef product with visible bits of high-grade white pork fat. Often it also contains black peppercorns and pistachios. Good mortadella is slightly spicy (not hot) with a distinct ‘good bologna’ aroma, and a pleasantly smooth texture. Unlike it’s distant cousin, bologna, mortadella is usually very thinly sliced & served as is—no frying. It makes a great sandwich or simply eaten by itself.
First we need to start with some good meat. — 2 to 1, pork to beef ratio. I’m using a fairly-lean beef chuck and pork loin, with a bit of pork shoulder I had :
Very important to this recipe is the addition of pork back fat. Belly fat is considered not ideal due its softness and ease of rendering, so I was able to pick up a thick slab of the back fat from a local carnicería. I cut a half-pound into ¼” cubes.
Ratio of meat to fat for this mortadella is 80-85% lean/15-20% fat—so in fact the end result will actually be much leaner than the vast majority of store-bought lunchmeats. Traditionally, mortadella is 70/30 lean to fat; so I’ve trimmed the fat down just a bit.
Here are the list of ingredients I’ll be adding to the ground meat. Although this product is not smoked, the cure adds the traditional color & texture to the final results. The whole peppercorns and whole pistachios (locally-grown!) will be added, along with the fat cubes, prior to stuffing.
Grind Number One: 4.5mm medium grind to start. I’ll next add the majority of spices:
MIX: Using my Kirby Bucket mixer; meat in and spices added…
Less than a minute later, the meat is well-mixed and ready for a second grind:
2nd GRIND: Using a 3.0mm plate for a fine grind.
Final mix: Adding the last ‘whole’ ingredients to the meat paste- the whole peppercorns, the pistachios, and the fat. I’ll mix this in and let it rest overnight.
Going to do some stuffing next.
More to come….
Kevin
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