Since you are making a 'dry cured ham' focus on that method in this paper....
301 Food Safety and Inspection Service, USDA § 319.106 § 319.106‘‘Country Ham,’’ ‘‘Country Style Ham,’’ ‘‘Dry Cured Ham,’’ ‘‘Country Pork Shoulder,’’ ‘‘Country Style Pork Shoulder,’’ and ‘‘Dry Cured Pork Shoulder.’’ (a) ‘‘Country Ham,’’ ‘‘Country Style Ham,’’ or ‘‘Dry Cured Ham,’’ and ‘‘Country Pork Shoulder,’’ ‘‘Country Style Pork Shoulder,’’ or ‘‘Dry Cured Pork Shoulder.’’ are the uncooked, cured, dried, smoked or unsmoked meat food products made respectively from a sin-gle piece of meat conforming to the definition of ‘‘ham,’’ as specified in § 317.8(b)(13) of this subchapter, or from a single piece of meat from a pork shoulder. They are prepared in accord-ance with paragraph (c) of this section by the dry application of salt (NaCl), or by the dry application of salt (NaCl) and one or more of the optional ingre-dients as specified in paragraph (d) of this section. They may not be injected with curing solutions nor placed in cur-ing solutions. (b) The product must be treated for the destruction of possible live trichinae in accordance with such methods as may be approved by the Ad-ministrator upon request in specific in-stances and none of the provisions of this standard can be interpreted as dis-charging trichinae treatment require-ments. (c)(1) The entire exterior of the ham or pork shoulder shall be coated by the dry application of salt or by the dry ap-plication of salt combined with other ingredients as permitted in paragraph (d) of this section. (2) Additional salt, or salt mixed with other permitted ingredients, may be re-applied to the product as necessary to insure complete penetration. (3) When sodium or potassium ni-trate, or sodium or potassium nitrite, or a combination thereof, is used, the application of salt shall be in sufficient quantity to insure that the finished product has an internal salt content of at least 4 percent. (4) When no sodium nitrate, potas-sium nitrate, sodium nitrite, potas-sium nitrite or a combination thereof is used, the application of salt shall be in sufficient quantity to insure that the finished product has a brine con-centration of not less than 10 percent or a water activity of not more than 0.92. (5) For hams or pork shoulders labeled ‘‘country’’ or ‘‘country style,’’ the combined period for curing and salt equalization shall not be less than 45 days for hams, and shall not be less than 25 days for pork shoulders; the total time for curing salt equalization, and drying shall not be less than 70 days for hams, and shall not be less than 50 days for pork shoulders. During the drying and smoking period, the in-ternal temperature of the product must not exceed 95 °F., provided that such temperature requirement shall not apply to product dried or smoked under natural climatic conditions. (6) For hams or pork shoulders labeled ‘‘dry cured,’’ the combined period for curing and salt equalization shall not be less than 45 days for hams, and shall not be less than 25 days for pork shoulders; and the total time for cur-ing, salt equalization, and drying shall not be less than 55 days for hams and shall not be less than 40 days for pork shoulders. (7) The weight of the finished hams and pork shoulders covered in this sec-tion shall be at least 18 percent less than the fresh uncured weight of the article. (d) The optional ingredients for prod-ucts covered in this section are: (1) Nutritive sweeteners, spices, seasonings and flavorings. (2) Sodium or potassium nitrate and sodium or potassium nitrite if used as prescribed in this section and in ac-cordance with a regulation permitting that use in this subchapter or 9 CFR Chapter III, Subchapter E, or in 21 CFR Chapter I, Subchapter A or Subchapter B. [42 FR 3299, Jan. 18, 1977, as amended at 64 FR 72174, Dec. 23, 1999] EFFECTIVEDATENOTE: At 46 FR 1257, Jan. 6, 1981, the Safety and Quality Service, De-partment of Agriculture, announced that ‘‘the temperature and time period provisions of 9 CFR 319.106, paragraphs (c)(5) and (c)(6), have not been in effect since November 17, 1980, and will not be enforced pending future Agency action in the matter. However, ham and pork shoulders must continue to be pre-pared in compliance with all other provi-sions of 9 CFR 319.106 in order to be labeled ‘country ham,’ ‘country style ham,’ or ‘dry cured ham,’ and ‘country pork shoulder,’ ‘country style pork shoulder,’ or ‘dry cured pork shoulder.’’’