U.S.S. Prosciutto, Maiden Voyage

[daveomak]

I would try a timer...  5 minutes every hour or something...

 

[mneeley490]

 
I would try a timer...  5 minutes every hour or something...

Right, that's the idea. I just have to find one that will do that.

 

[gnatboy911]

Check out this website...this guy has a pretty extensive explanation of how he set up a curing chamber.  However, with a project like yours you probably already found it during your research.

Thought I'd share just in case...

http://mattikaarts.com/blog/meat-curing-at-home-the-setup/

 

[actech]

Gonna watch this one !!

 

[hoity toit]

you can put a small piece of cardboard in front of the fan to disperse the air flow. Watch for case hardening. It's my opinion not to use a fan opting to open the door every few days for air exchange, but that again is just my own opinion.  I'm in and will be watching this thread.

HT

 

[litterbug]

I'm in

 

[humdinger]

I love Prosciutto! Keep the pics and details coming. I'll be watching.

 

[travisty]

Following!

 

[mneeley490]

Ok, the hog leg came out of the salt last night. It was very stiff and solid, which I believe is how it is supposed to be.

Got a rinse in the sink, and then another rinse with red wine.

20170412_200517.jpg

• mneeley490
• Apr 13, 2017

20170412_200849.jpg

• mneeley490
• Apr 13, 2017

20170412_201359.jpg

• mneeley490
• Apr 13, 2017

In my haste, I forgot to weigh it again to see how much it had lost. But I think the total 40% weight loss is based on the green weight anyway, so not a huge deal.

After it was thoroughly dry, I applied the mixture of lard, black pepper, and garlic powder to the exposed areas. Something I discovered about lard, is it gets everywhere! Especially with a heavy, unwieldy pork leg.

20170412_212605.jpg

• mneeley490
• Apr 13, 2017

Hanging in the converted wine fridge. It took nearly all the room available.

20170412_215043.jpg

• mneeley490
• Apr 13, 2017

Below it is a dish filled with super salinated water, and my low-flow fan on the left. It is situated so that the air flows down, rather than straight on the meat. I did manage to find a timer outlet for it on Amazon, and easily set it up to run for 5 minutes every hour.


Temp and humidity is just about perfect. So, other than filling the bowl every so often, I think it's good to go for a while.

20170412_220312.jpg

• mneeley490
• Apr 13, 2017

 

[mike johnson]

This looks Great!! Ill be following this 1 for sure.

 

[daveomak]

 

[myownidaho]

See you in 2018! Lol!

 

[hoity toit]

 
Ok, the hog leg came out of the salt last night. It was very stiff and solid, which I believe is how it is supposed to be.

Got a rinse in the sink, and then another rinse with red wine.

20170412_200517.jpg

• mneeley490
• Apr 13, 2017

20170412_200849.jpg

• mneeley490
• Apr 13, 2017

20170412_201359.jpg

• mneeley490
• Apr 13, 2017

In my haste, I forgot to weigh it again to see how much it had lost. But I think the total 40% weight loss is based on the green weight anyway, so not a huge deal.

After it was thoroughly dry, I applied the mixture of lard, black pepper, and garlic powder to the exposed areas. Something I discovered about lard, is it gets everywhere! Especially with a heavy, unwieldy pork leg.

20170412_212605.jpg

• mneeley490
• Apr 13, 2017

Hanging in the converted wine fridge. It took nearly all the room available.

20170412_215043.jpg

• mneeley490
• Apr 13, 2017

Below it is a dish filled with super salinated water, and my low-flow fan on the left. It is situated so that the air flows down, rather than straight on the meat. I did manage to find a timer outlet for it on Amazon, and easily set it up to run for 5 minutes every hour.


Temp and humidity is just about perfect. So, other than filling the bowl every so often, I think it's good to go for a while.

20170412_220312.jpg

• mneeley490
• Apr 13, 2017

I have the same exact humidity temp guage

 

[mneeley490]

 
I have the same exact humidity temp guage

Yeah, it works pretty well. I think I got it from Amazon.

I've been monitoring the fan timer, and it seems to be doing exactly what it's supposed to, 5 minutes on, 55 minutes off. So 

.

 

[hoity toit]

 
Yeah, it works pretty well. I think I got it from Amazon.

I've been monitoring the fan timer, and it seems to be doing exactly what it's supposed to, 5 minutes on, 55 minutes off. So 

.

Super thats good... send me a link on the timer if ya don't mind.

HT

 

[daveomak]

 

 
I have the same exact humidity temp guage

Yeah, it works pretty well. I think I got it from Amazon.

I've been monitoring the fan timer, and it seems to be doing exactly what it's supposed to, 5 minutes on, 55 minutes off. So 

.

Neely, evening...   does that on-off time, for the fan, seem to be doing a good job and not case hardening the meat ??    I just bought a timer on Amazon "special lightening deals"....

it was $16....  I could NOT pass it up...

 

[mneeley490]

 
Neely, evening...   does that on-off time, for the fan, seem to be doing a good job and not case hardening the meat ??    I just bought a timer on Amazon "special lightening deals"....

it was $16....  I could NOT pass it up...

Dave, I think it's a little too early to see if there is any case hardening, but remember it is a low-volume fan. Five minutes every hour should be just enough to keep the air circulating for a year or more.

I had it running constantly for a couple months when I did some capicola, and they turned out fine.

 

[daveomak]

...

....    Thanks....

 

[noble captain]

Wow, this looks awesome,
I bought 2 pork legs a few weeks ago and smoked one. I wanted to try this as well. It looks so good. My husband won't let me get another fridge to do it though, maybe a little later in the year.
I will be following, thank you

 

[humdinger]

Looking good Neely. Loving this thread. Keep the pics coming.