Curing meat

[lkern]

Why do my recipes call for curing the meat for ss for 3 to 4 days at 38 to 40 deg f and receives on the internet do not mention this step. My receives are 20 yes old from the sm

 

[thirdeye]

There are many European sausage recipes that call for curing meat before making sausage. Here is a good read that might explain the reasoning:

Curing meat for sausages

Raw meat materials used for sausages were cured first with salt and potassium nitrate or sodium nitrite and then ground, stuffed into casings, smoked and cooked. Whole meats such as loins, butts, hams and bellies were cured whole and then smoked.

www.meatsandsausages.com

 

[SmokinEdge]

The Polish almost exclusively cure meats prior to making sausages. It’s a texture thing that can make a superior end product. I’ve done it both ways and mostly choose to not pre cure, but pre cure is a big thing in certain areas of Europe.

 

[millerbuilds]

There are many European sausage recipes that call for curing meat before making sausage. Here is a good read that might explain the reasoning:

Curing meat for sausages

Raw meat materials used for sausages were cured first with salt and potassium nitrate or sodium nitrite and then ground, stuffed into casings, smoked and cooked. Whole meats such as loins, butts, hams and bellies were cured whole and then smoked.

www.meatsandsausages.com

The Polish almost exclusively cure meats prior to making sausages. It’s a texture thing that can make a superior end product. I’ve done it both ways and mostly choose to not pre cure, but pre cure is a big thing in certain areas of Europe.

Learn something new everyday. Gotta love SMF!

- Jason

 

[SaltPorkResearch]

Curing the meat right away before you take the time to stuff the sausage is a good idea if it will take a long time. Stuffing sausage by hand with your finger and a broken bottle might take all day if you happen to live in the Soviet Union or the like. Getting Cure on the meat as soon as you could may have been a very necessary food safety step when you were making sausage to survive with no special equipment, just a knife and meat. Cutting mince by hand without a fancy meat grinder takes time.

I make sausage by cutting the meat with just a knife and hunk of oak firewood which has been flattened. It takes time, so you either freeze your fingers or throw some cure on the meat.

That's my guess. Putting the cure on early helps me make sausage slowly without worrying so much about the meat staying freezing cold or turning brown.