Pancetta done yet?

[Ty520]

Have had a pancetta in the curing chamber for ages. In the last 2 weeks, it has only dropped 10 grams, hitting the 30% mark. It still needs to drop another 85 grams to hit 35% weight loss. At the start of December it was losing 2 grams a day, and at that rate I had hoped it would be done by new year - but now it's projecting at at least another 4 months.

I'm hoping maybe the drastic slow down is a sign that its ok to pull? It's also pretty fatty, so maybe expecting it to get to 35% is too excessive anyways?

Thoughts?

 

[indaswamp]

It's done when it is done.....
Fatty cuts do seem to take a little longer. What RH% are you running in your chamber? when was the last time you calibrated your RH% controller?

 

[indaswamp]

Also keep in mind that fat only has about 15% water whereas meat contains about 75% water. If your belly is over half fat, then targeting 35% weight loss might take a while. How does the pancetta feel when you squeeze it? This is where the art of the craft comes in....it may be dry enough now.....

 

[Ty520]

Also keep in mind that fat only has about 15% water whereas meat contains about 75% water. If your belly is over half fat, then targeting 35% weight loss might take a while. How does the pancetta feel when you squeeze it? This is where the art of the craft comes in....it may be dry enough now.....

It's at 50 deg/75% RH. The outer fat layer is still a bit soft, but there is no give whatsoever even when i squeeze it hard

 

[indaswamp]

Rind off or rind on? If removed, what did you use as a casing?

 

[indaswamp]

The outer fat layer is still a bit soft, but there is no give whatsoever even when i squeeze it hard

Safety wise, it is likely done. Firmness wise, it is a personal preference, but with high fat content, pancetta will never firm up like a coppa.

 

[Ty520]

Safety wise, it is likely done. Firmness wise, it is a personal preference, but with high fat content, pancetta will never firm up like a coppa.

I'm guessing then that there aren't any other double checks like there are for sausage, e.g. pH

 

[indaswamp]

I'm guessing then that there aren't any other double checks like there are for sausage, e.g. pH

Nope, no pH readings needed since it is a whole muscle.

 

[indaswamp]

@ 30% weight loss, most salumi and salami is biologically safe to eat, reaching an Aw of 0.90-0.88....
Dryer intensifies the flavor, and allows the fats and proteins to break down more. Also gets more complex from the 'funkiness' of the mold enzymes working in the meat.

 

[SmokinEdge]

20-25% weight loss on pancetta is more realistic. That’s because of the fat content. At 30-35% loss you enter some strange funk in taste. I say you are done where you are, but maybe you want to go longer?

 

[indaswamp]

Here ya go...weight targets for various salumi and salami:
https://tasteofartisan.com/salumi-weight-loss-targets/

 

[Ty520]

Perfect, thanks. Unfortunately, it seemed the pancetta was a failure. I couldn't place my finger I why. - no signs of spoilage inside, nor did it taste "bad" per se - just not particularly "good".

 

[indaswamp]

Perfect, thanks. Unfortunately, it seemed the pancetta was a failure. I couldn't place my finger I why. - no signs of spoilage inside, nor did it taste "bad" per se - just not particularly "good".

rind on or removed?
Was the fat yellow? could have oxidized too much if the rind was removed.

 

[Ty520]

Rind on. It tasted what I would assume raw uncured pork would taste like. Couldn't taste any of the spices. The best way I can describe it is that It had a bit of a Tang to it, akin to buttermilk. Odd thing is I cured it with another belly with the same cure for the same amount of time but the other one was hot smoked and it came out absolutely delicious and full of flavor

 

[indaswamp]

How much salt did you use on the belly you dry cured?

 

[Ty520]

3%. the piece i hot smoked for bacon was almost too salty.

 

[indaswamp]

How much sugar did you use? Sounds like you had wild bacteria ferment the sugar on the pancetta and too much acid was created.

 

[Ty520]

1% sugar.

assuming that's the cause...I did not treat it with vinegar, as it never formed any mold - i would guess that might help?

 

[indaswamp]

That was likely the cause with 1% sugar, wild fermentation in the middle when you rolled it with the sugar on the surface. 1% will definitely produce enough acid to give you a tang.

 

[Ty520]

you think there was enough sugar left on the surface even after i gave it a rinse? should i go lower or no sugar next time?