Charcuterie: Rediscovering the thrill of the cure

Atlanta restaurants such as Abattoir and Holeman and Finch embrace “whole animal” menus that highlight selections of house-prepared sausage, pate and confit.

Even some neighborhood pubs now offer the likes of house-made bacon, pastrami or corned beef.

And Pine Street Market in Avondale is doing a booming business selling its own applewood smoked bacon, Spanish chorizo, bratwurst and kielbasa, as well as several kinds of salami.

Todd Mussman, chef/partner at Muss and Turner’s in Smyrna, is one of the most adventurous local exponents of charcuterie of all kinds.

Currently, Muss and Turner’s menu features his house-smoked steelhead trout, house-cured garlic salami and Szechuan-spiced leg of duck confit.

Mussman also makes earthy Italian-style coppa and simple French-style Saucisson Sec sausages, rustic headcheese and country pate.

At a recent curing demonstration at Muss and Turner’s, Mussman recalled how he first became intrigued with cured meat and fish as a child during visits to his grandfather’s deli in Boston.

“It was a place where you could buy corned beef and lox and all kinds of other things,” Mussman said. “I’d feed myself lox by the handful when I was like 4 or 5 years old.”

Years later, as a student at the Culinary Institute of America, Mussman learned the basics of making charcuterie and quickly realized it was a craft he wanted to pursue in a serious way.

“I got thrilled with it at school,” Mussman said. “And I started thinking back to my grandfather’s deli and all the things I experienced there at an early age. Most people think of charcuterie as salumi or sausage. That really is an art. But there are many other forms and processes, and I love them all.”

Mussman encourages home cooks to try out the most elemental components of charcuterie, such as curing meat and fish with salt.

“For a long time, charcuterie was a dying art. But it’s kind of like culinary magic in the powerful flavors it can create.

"You don’t need a lot of special ingredients to get started doing charcuterie. It’s just like learning to cook. You learn the basics and move on as you gain experience.”

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Recipes

These recipes from chef Todd Mussman of Muss and Turner’s could be called entry-level charcuterie. But each showcases the essential flavor of its main ingredient, intensified with salt, sugar, herbs and spices. And the time-honored techniques illustrate the exciting craft of curing.

Bob Townsend, for the AJC

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Pancetta

Servings: Approximately 32 2-ounce servings Hands on: 20 minutes Total time: 2 weeks, allowing for curing and aging

Pancetta is an Italian form of bacon, and very easy to prepare, but it does take two weeks or more to cure. Unlike American or English bacon, pancetta isn’t smoked but simply cured with salt, sugar and spices and allowed to mature and develop its powerhouse of flavors. This version isn’t rolled but prepared in its natural shape.

1 cup kosher salt

1/4 cup light brown sugar

2 tablespoons black pepper, cracked

1 tablespoon juniper berries, crushed

3 bay leaves, crushed into pieces

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves

2 cloves garlic, mashed

1 tablespoon grated nutmeg

*1/2 tablespoon tinted curing mix (TCM), optional (available at www.sausagemaker.com)

4-5 pounds fresh pork belly, skin on (available at Sweet Auburn Curb Market and Asian markets, such as Super H Mart)

To make the cure:

In a mixing bowl, combine salt, sugar, black pepper, juniper berries, bay leaves, thyme leaves, garlic and nutmeg (plus TCM, if using) and blend well by rubbing them together with your hands.

Weigh the belly or note the weight from the package. Use 2 ½ tablespoons of cure per pound of pork belly. Place the pork belly in a shallow glass or stainless steel pan skin side down. Rub the cure all over the belly, making sure to completely cover on all sides.

To cure the pancetta:

Cure the belly in the refrigerator for seven days, turning the belly over every other day. The belly should feel firm at the thickest point. If not, let it cure a day or two longer. Rinse the belly in cool water to remove excess cure and spices. Pat dry with paper towels. Place the pancetta into a brown paper shopping bag and stash it in the back of the refrigerator for seven days.

To serve:

Cook and enjoy the pancetta in dishes such as pasta carbonara or any recipe calling for fresh bacon.

The pancetta will keep for a week in the refrigerator or it can be frozen for several months. Freezing makes it easier to slice.

*TCM is a curing salt that helps to preserve the pink color in smoked and cured products. It helps to prevent food poisoning when cooking or smoking products at very low temperatures. This recipe does not require any cooking or smoking, so TCM is listed as an option used for color preservation.

Per serving: 277 calories (percent of calories from fat, 92), 5 grams protein, 1 gram carbohydrates, trace fiber, 28 grams fat (10 grams saturated), 38 milligrams cholesterol, 1,427 milligrams sodium.

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Pork Rillettes

Serves: 6 Hands on: 45 minutes Total time: 5 hours, including cooking and chilling

Rillettes are made by stewing boneless cubed meat with aromatic vegetables, spices and herbs. The cooked meat and vegetables are separated, and the meat is blended with some of the fat and stock to make a spread. The mixture is normally stored in crocks or ramekins and then a thin film of fat is poured over the top to preserve the product.

1 bay leaf

1 tablespoon peppercorns

2 cloves garlic, crushed

2 sprigs parsley

2 sprigs thyme

1 small onion, large dice

2 celery stalks, large dice

2 carrots, large dice

1 pound fatty boneless pork shoulder meat, cubed

1 quart of beef stock, as needed to just cover the meat

Salt and pepper to taste

To cook the pork:

Place the bay leaf, peppercorns, garlic, parsley and thyme in a piece of cheesecloth and tie with string to make an aromatic sachet.

In a saucepan or Dutch oven, combine the onion, celery, carrots and pork and barely cover with the stock. Add the sachet, season with salt and pepper and cover. Simmer very gently for two hours either on top of the stove or in a 350-degree oven.

Separate the meat and vegetables, reserving the fat and stock. Allow the meat to cool slightly before proceeding.

To prepare the rillettes:

Transfer the warm meat to the chilled bowl of a standing mixer with a paddle attachment. Mix on low speed to break up the meat, tasting for seasoning and consistency. Adjust the consistency by adding fat and stock back to the meat to make a spread, not runny or dry. If you don’t have a mixer, make a rustic spread using a wooden spoon or rubber spatula to crush and mash the meat into a smooth but fibrous mixture.

Fill your mold of choice (either one large or several small ramekins) and tap on the counter lightly to remove any air pockets. Ladle some reserved fat over the top of each mold and chill completely until set. Bring to room temperature before serving.

To serve:

Rillettes can be simply served with crusty bread, pickles and mustard or used as a filling for canapés or sandwiches. Will keep for up to two weeks in the refrigerator.

Per serving: 205 calories (percent of calories from fat, 55), 13 grams protein, 8 grams carbohydrates, 2 grams fiber, 11 grams fat (4 grams saturated), 40 milligrams cholesterol, 96 milligrams sodium.

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Gravlax (cured salmon)

Serves: 4-6 Hands on: 20 minutes Total time: Allow up to two days for curing.

Fishermen in Scandinavia once prepared this salt-cured and unsmoked salmon by packing freshly caught and filleted fish in salt. They buried their catch near the shore and continued up river.

1 cup kosher salt

1/3 cup granulated sugar

2 tablespoons cracked black pepper

1.5 pounds fresh salmon fillet, skin on, pin bones removed (choose the thickest fillet possible)

1 bunch fresh dill, chopped

To cure the salmon:

Combine salt, sugar and pepper in a bowl and set aside. Lay a piece of plastic wrap on a rimmed cookie sheet and sprinkle a thin layer of the cure mix in the center (about the same size as the salmon fillet). Place the fish on top of the cure and pack the rest of the cure all over the fish. Top the fillet with the chopped dill and loosely wrap in the plastic. Place the fillet in a dish with a rim to cure, as the fish will release some liquid (this is normal and what you want). Refrigerate the fillet for 36 to 48 hours, depending on the thickness. The fish should be firm to the touch when cured. Scrape the cure off the fillet and give it a rinse under cold water. Pat dry with paper towels.

To serve:

Using a very thin, sharp knife, slice the fish as thinly as possible on the bias, removing it from the skin.

Serve the salmon with steamed baby potatoes and sour cream and fresh minced chives or dill.

Salmon will keep for up two weeks, tightly wrapped in the refrigerator.

Per serving, based on 4: 239 calories (percent of calories from fat, 23), 34 grams protein, 11 grams carbohydrates, 1 gram fiber, 6 grams fat (1 gram saturated), 89 milligrams cholesterol, 2,937 milligrams sodium.