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Pancetta
Total Project Time: 29 days
The first-world problem we're often faced with is, "I have pork belly. Do I turn it into Bacon or pancetta?" While the obvious answer is "both", sometimes we only have a limited supply and have to choose one or the other.
This time, we're going to make pancetta. This is an Italian specialty that calls for curing pork belly, then wrapping it and hanging it in a cool, dry place for 3 weeks.
It's spiced differently than Bacon, tending to be made a little less sweet, and a tad more savory and herbaceous. Here is a base recipe for pancetta that uses Juniper Berries and nutmeg, and we're pretty sure that you'll find yourself in your own first-world dilemma next time you're touching a pork belly.1. Intro
2. Procure Materials
3. Buy Ingredients
4. Prepare the Belly
5. Measure Spices
6. Rub That Belly
7. Nap Time
8. Wash 'n' Dry
9. Roll that Belly
10. Tie 'er Up
11. Hang Time
12. The Unveiling
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2. Procure Materials
Before Event
The day before the event, procure the following:
• Chef's Knife
• Cutting board
• Spice Grinder
• Mortar and Pestle
• Food preparation gloves
• Plastic wrap
• Butcher string
• Sealable plastic freezer bags
• Masking tape
• Sharpie -
3. Buy Ingredients
Before Event
The day before the event, purchase the following ingredients:
• 1 12 lb. pork belly
• 1 ⅓ tbsp. Instacure No. 1 curing salt
• ⅔ cup Kosher Salt
• ⅓ cup brown sugar
• 10 cloves garlic
• 10 bay leaves
• 30 Juniper Berries
• 2 whole nutmegs
• ⅓ cup black peppercorns
• 2 sprigs rosemary
• 6 sprigs thyme -
4. Prepare the Belly
Day 1
Divide the pork belly into 2 pieces, roughly 6 pounds each.
Trim any tough areas of fat or cartilage from the belly.
Now, we want to ensure the belly is even, so that when we wrap the pancetta later, there won't be any air pockets, which create a place for unhealthy molds to grow. Trim away any excess fat to ensure that the belly has an even thickness, and cut the sides of the belly to create an even rectangular shape.
Each piece of belly should be about 5 pounds in size when finished. Keep the trimmed pieces of pork belly for use in other charcuterie projects, like Italian Sausage or Andouille. -
5. Measure Spices
Day 1
Measure out the following ingredients:
• 1 ⅓ tbsp. Instacure No. 1 curing salt
• ⅔ cup Kosher Salt
• ⅓ cup brown sugar
• 10 cloves garlic
• 10 bay leaves
• 30 Juniper Berries
• 2 whole nutmegs
• ¼ cup black peppercorns
• 2 sprigs rosemary
• 6 sprigs thyme
Mince the garlic. Remove and chop the rosemary leaves. Destem the thyme. Pound the Juniper Berries in a Mortar and Pestle. Grind the whole spices in a Spice Grinder.
Place all of the ingredients in a mixing bowl and stir until mixed together well. Divide the spices equally for use with each of the pork bellies. -
6. Rub That Belly
Day 1
Place a plastic tablecloth or numerous trash bags beneath the cutting board at each prep station to catch the loose spices. This will help make cleanup a cinch.
Measure out 1 ⅓ tbsp. Instacure No. 1 curing salt, divide it up and place it at each prep station. Place the belly meat side down on a cutting board.
Wearing food preparation gloves, sprinkle curing salt over each belly and massage it in. Flip, and repeat the process on the other side.
Sprinkle half of the spice mixture over one side of the belly. Massage the spices into the meat until packed on well. Flip, and repeat. -
7. Nap Time
Day 1
Wrap each of the spice-laden pork bellies separately in plastic wrap. Place the wrapped bellies on a baking sheet to catch any leakage.
Using masking tape and a Sharpie, label the package Pancetta: Smoke on May 29, 2013. Put the wrapped bellies in the refrigerator for 7 days. -
8. Wash 'n' Dry
Day 8
7 days later, remove each of the pork bellies from the plastic wrap and rinse them off with water to remove the spice rub.
Either pat each of the bellies dry with paper towels, or use a Bacon hanger to hang the meat and blow dry with a hair dryer. -
9. Roll that Belly
Day 8
Measure out 2 tbsp. black peppercorns. Coarsely crush the peppercorns in a Mortar and Pestle. Sprinkle over each side of the bellies.
Grabbing the long end each pork belly, roll it tightly until it is in a cylinder shape. -
10. Tie 'er Up
Day 8
Tightly wrap the butcher string around each end of the rolled belly, and tie them off.
Now, run 2 butcher strings lengthwise along the belly, running the string underneath each of the tied strings, so that there is a string along each quadrant of the rolled belly. Leave one foot of string at the top of the pancetta, which we will use to hang the pancetta.
Finally, tie butcher string around the belly at 1-inch intervals.
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11. Hang Time
Day 8
Hang the pancetta in a cool, dry place for 3 weeks. The optimum conditions are a cool, dry, dark area, such as a basement, at around 60F and 50% humidity.
Use a Sharpie to write Pancetta: Hang until June 12, 2013 on masking tape, which you can then wrap around the hang string. -
12. The Unveiling
Day 29
After 3 weeks of hang time, the pancetta should be relatively firm to the touch. Cut down the pancetta.
Slice the pancetta in roughly 1-inch intervals, between each of the strings tied width-wise. Place each pancetta round in a separate sealable freezer storage bag. Use a Sharpie to label each bag Pancetta: made on May 22, 2013.
Store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks, or in the freezer for up to 2 months.
Please cook the pancetta before consuming it. Dice the pancetta up into small pieces called lardons, saute them, and use them in omelets, sauces, or to make one bitchin' pasta alla carbonara.
