Dry salt curing

This recipe was traditionally made with deer or boar meat.

In cold winter evening you can smell the thick aroma of smoke and spices. The autumn note of juniper dancing with the delicate summer thyme. And then comes that moment, I recall vividly from my childhood, when you cut the first slice and reveal the marbling of the meat.

— a villager recalling their young days

Curing combined with salting is a common practice among the Sáveni. It is one of the most popular techniques for preserving meat, along with drying and smoking, but is far less time-consuming than other methods.

Where does the salt come from?

There are two primary sources of salt in the Sáveni region: sea and underground deposits. The region of Brûdhe has the luxury of retrieving salt from the sea by building special farms or boiling down the seawater. In Gáláwá the primary source of salt are the rock salt deposits. The region of Cymru has the luxury of choosing which source is more beneficial at the given moment.

Preparing for the curing process by Angantyr

Recipe

Step 1

Take the fresh fatty piece of side and remove the ribs. If possible leave as much meat on the skin side of the cut as possible. For every stone of meat take a fifth of salt (mountain salt from Gáláwá works better than sea salt from Brûdhe as it is less bitter). Use cloth or similar to dry the surface, then rub in the salt, carefully filling all cavities, especially on the meaty side. Let it rest in a cold place overnight. The salt will force moisture out of the meat. If some salt remains undissolved, rub it over the surface until it's even again. Let it rest for the day.

Step 2

Pour out the brine and cut the meat into slices, about the width of a closed hand. Prepare the herbs. For every stone of meat add to a small pot: a tenth of dried marjoram, a twentieth of juniper berries. Crush everything to a powdery paste and set aside a small amount the size of a small wallnut, then rub generously onto the meat side. In the small pot, where the paste was prepared grind a twentieth part of salt and mix thoroughly with the paste that was set aside. Rub the mixture into the skin part. Take a loosely spun cloth and wrap each piece of meat in it, skin facing down. Hang in dark, slightly warm and draft place to let the herbs penetrate the meat. This process will take at least three weeks.

Step 3

Unwrap the cloth over a clean surface and clean the meat of any herbas that do not stick to it. Save it for later use as a source of salted spice. The meat is stabilized and should be resistant to mold, moths and rot. Store it in cold and draft place.

Cured salted bacon in herbs by Angantyr

Variations

In some recipies juniper are removed from the process altogether. More time-consuming recipies add a smoking as a subsequent step but are less generous with the salt.

Connected techniques

A modification of this technique is Wet salt curing, which uses a specially concocted brine.

Uses

When undergone this process the meat is too salty to be eaten alone, unless in thin slices as a drinking snack. It is worth noting that fatty meat is far better for dry salting as it remains soft enough to be cut with a knife. Lean meat should only be dry salted in thin slices as it becomes very tough afterwards. Typical uses for the end product include various additions to the dish, where salt and depth of flavour are needed. One such example is the Searbh brot, in which dry salt cured bacon is often used as the only source of salt and meaty depth.