Curing with Tenderquick

Humphrey Chimpden Earwicker

I just managed to scare up a fresh ham. The place I'd been trying to order it from told me finally they were out of stock. Went to my local butcher and he had it in a day. Shoulda gone there first.

So.

Last year, i used the recipe in "Charcuterie", with 1-1/2 cups of salt to 1-1/2 ounces pink salts. Since the pink salts are mostly salt, with very little (6.25% nitrite), that gave me a concentration of about .66% nitrite compared to all the salt.

Tenderquick is sort of premixed salt/sugar and nitrite. Its concentration is lower. There is .5% nitrite concentration, the rest is salt and suger (i don't know how much sugar).

So. um. stupid question.

If a recipe calls for 1-1/2 cups of salt plus pink salts, can I simply substitute an equal measure of Tender quick for the amount of salt called for, and omit the pink salts?

I don't want to have a brine that won't adequately cure the ham, likewise, one that is too salty.

Sorry for the math. I'm trying to wrap my head around this. Looks like with Tenderquick, Morton is trying to supply essentially "salt" with enough nitrite (and nitrates too actually) added to remove the need for people having pink salts at home, because they'd be dangerous in high concentrations. With the tenderquick, using too much would make it too salty. right?

:ermm:

Got the tenderquick from thirdeye, and will smoke with a chunk of his pecan, too. Got an email in to him too.

Beernuts

so my stupid question (as I think about doing bacon) is why bother with either pink salt or tenderquick? why not just use salt? am I right the only benefit is the nitrates will make the meat last longer?

more than slightly confused about this becuase it seems to me if I plan on cooking it or freezing it pretty quick I could just use salt

2Fategghead

Hey Jeff, Hope you find your answers. I want to follow along. I may want to cure a ham. Tim

Humphrey Chimpden Earwicker

nitrites and nitrates are two different things (sorta). the nitrites physically change the meat, firm it up, give it texture. nitrates are used in addition to nitrites in things like dry-cured sausages, mainly for long-term protection against botulism.

you can of course salt cure. prosciutto is salt cured ham. but it is different in flavor and texture than ham cured with nitrites. you can salt cure bacon, too. but that firm pink and decidedly different texture to the meat comes from the nitrites. yes, they were originally added to provide protection and extended storage time, but we grew to love the flavor and texture, and so cure it mainly for flavor these days.

don't need to make cheese either, because we can keep milk cold far longer. cheese was, after all, merely developed as a way of storing milk long term. but we love cheeses of all kinds, so continue to make it. that's pretty much the same for bacon and ham.

Humphrey Chimpden Earwicker

i may just buy the pinks salts on line and wait.

Little Steven

Stripsteak,

Is salt petre nitrate or nitrite?

Steve

Humphrey Chimpden Earwicker

salt petre was used for years to cure meats. it is potassium nitrate. in Charcuterie they mention that it is harder to use or less stable than the more modern nitrite compounds used in pink salt. and i think it is much more potent and requies much finer measuring. not grat for the general public,.

yesterday i actually asked the local hardware store if they had it....

Jeffersonian

Heh...you probably got put onto an FBI watch list for that little inquiry.

Didn't I read in Ruhlman that nitrates are more of a time-release nitrite, actually curing as they lose one oxygen atom and become nitrites?

Jeffersonian

I calculate that with 1-1/2 oz of the pink salts, you'll have:

NO2 = 1.5 * 0.0625

or 0.09375 oz of nitrite in the salt/pink salt mix. If your Tenderquick is 0.5% nitrite, you'll need

0.09375 = 0.005 * TQ

or 18.75 oz of Tenderquick to get the same amount of total nitrites using that only. I'm not sure if that will give you the action/flavor you want, but that's the math.

I'm loving the book, and already have plans on starting my first bacon cure this weekend.

lowercasebill

i have a bag of tenderquick that i have not used as the instructions are not helpful neither is their website and i sent for the 32 page book "curing meats at home"
did not get it..
that said for unground meat products it appears they recommend 1 half oz [1 tbs] per pound cure for three to five days,, brine instructuons are on the bag,
let us know if you find specific instructions somewhere
bill

AZRP

Jeff, according to the Morton curing book you can just use Tenderquick, measure out 1 1/2Tbs per pound then divide into 2 parts. Apply the first part then wait 5-7 days and apply the second. The cure time is 2 days per pound. This is for a ham you are not going to age. -RP

Hoss

You have mail. VIA the FORUM.