There are two ways of curing meat – a salty brine, or just plain salt. I will share recipes for both.
Curing a fresh ham yourself allows you to control exactly what goes into the process, resulting in tasty, nitrate-free ham that your whole family can enjoy. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll walk through proven methods for curing a fresh ham at home without nitrates or other concerning additives.
Why Avoid Nitrates in Cured Meats?
Nitrates have traditionally been used in curing meats to extend shelf life and add that iconic pink color However, research shows that nitrites can form cancer-causing nitrosamines in the body Other health risks include
- Increased colorectal cancer risk
- Thyroid problems
- Higher diabetes risk
- Interference with blood pressure
Luckily, there are natural, nitrate-free alternatives for DIY curing at home Let’s look at how it’s done.
Dry Brining
For smaller cuts under 5 lbs, a simple dry cure brine works well. Here’s how:
Supplies Needed
- Salt
- Sugar
- Spices like pepper, garlic powder, etc.
- Large ziplock bag or bin
Instructions
- Combine cure mix (2 tbsp salt + 1 tbsp sugar per lb of meat + spices).
- Coat meat fully and seal in bag/bin. Refrigerate.
- Cure 3-5 days per lb, flipping daily.
- Rinse, pat dry. Cook, smoke or freeze.
This allows full flavor and preservation penetration. Use within 2 weeks.
Wet Brining
For whole bone-in cuts, a wet cure brine is best. Here’s how:
Supplies Needed
- 1 gallon water
- 1 cup salt
- 1/2 cup sugar
- Spices like garlic, peppercorns, etc.
- 2-5 gallon food-safe bucket or pot
Instructions
- Bring water, salt, and sugar to a boil. Add spices.
- Cool and pour brine over meat in container. Weigh down if needed.
- Cure 3-5 days per lb, flipping occasionally.
- Rinse off brine, pat dry. Ready to cook!
Keep the meat fully submerged for proper curing Adjust time to control saltiness
Tips for Success
Follow these tips for best DIY curing results:
- Use cool or cold water only.
- Weigh down floating meat fully.
- Cure around 40°F.
- Flip daily for even exposure.
- Rinse thoroughly after.
- Cook within 2 weeks.
- Consider celery powder for extra preservative power.
- Cook to at least 145°F internal temperature.
- Refrigerate leftovers 5-7 days.
Avoid the Health Risks of Nitrates
With these simple dry and wet brining methods, you can ditch the nitrate health risks while making phenomenal homemade cured ham and bacon. Start small to get the hang of it. In no time, you’ll feel confident preparing holiday feasts starring your very own nitrate-free ham as the star attraction.
Curing meats yourself enables full control over the quality and ingredients in every bite. Your family will appreciate avoiding the sketchy preservatives in store-bought versions. As your charcuterie skills grow, experiment with smoking, aging, and creative flavor brines.
Here’s to enjoying old-world cured meat flavors without the mystery chemicals! We hope these instructions give you the confidence to start crafting your own nitrate-free bacon and ham creations that become treasured family recipes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you cure ham without any nitrates?
Yes, absolutely! Traditional wet and dry brining techniques allow you to cure ham at home without nitrates or pink curing salt. The salt and sugar penetrate the meat to inhibit bacteria for preservation.
How long does it take to cure ham without nitrates?
Plan on 3-5 days of curing time per pound of meat. So a 10 lb fresh ham would need 30-50 days in the brine. Flip the meat daily for full exposure.
What ingredients do you need for nitrate-free ham?
Basic cure ingredients are water, salt, sugar, and spices like peppercorns, garlic, bay leaves etc. Salt and sugar are essential. Consider celery powder for extra preservation.
Can you freeze cured ham?
Yes, cured ham freezes well for longer storage. Rinse off the brine, pat dry, wrap tightly in plastic wrap and freezer paper, and freeze. Thaw in the refrigerator before cooking.
How do you cook cured ham?
Cured ham can be roasted, baked, or glazed like a traditional city ham. Cook to at least 145°F internal temperature. Slice and enjoy! Leftovers keep 5-7 days refrigerated.
Curing your own fresh ham at home enables you to control the quality of ingredients from start to finish. Ditch the sodium nitrites for good old-fashioned brining techniques. With some practice, you’ll be on your way to producing amazing nitrate-free ham for your family.
A simple brine cure recipe
This brine is enough for one leg of ham and the short bacon from one whole pig. If you remember from my last post, we roasted the meatier half of the sides of two pigs and made bacon with the other half.
For every liter of water, add 100g of salt and 30g of sugar to make this recipe bigger or smaller.
10 liters of cold water, 1 kg of unrefined, additive-free fine salt (like Himalayan salt, flossy salt, or Celtic sea salt), 300 grams of coconut sugar or rapadura (honey could also work), and a splash of apple cider vinegar.
Mix all the ingredients together in a food-safe, non-reactive container, stirring to dissolve the salt and sugar. Here, fine salt is much more useful than rock salt, but it can be hard to find fine salt that hasn’t been mixed with anything else.
***If you can only find rock salt, you can dissolve it in boiling water by stirring it in. Let the brine cool down before adding the meat.
Place the meat in the brine. If it floats, put something clean, heavy, and non-reactive on top of it to keep it down. I think my friend used her stainless steel mixing bowls filled with stuff. Cover the containers.
Put the meat in brine and let it age somewhere out of the sun that is never warmer than 15ºC. Make sure it’s not so cold that the brine freezes solid.
Leave side bacon in for around 4 days. Take out a pork leg with the bone out after 4 days. If the bone is in, leave it for 8 days. (You can leave the meat in the brine longer, but it will taste saltier.) Our bacon was in for longer, so it’s very salty. But we soak it in water for a while before cooking, so the salt is gone. ).
Take the meat out of the brine and let it dry on a wire rack overnight or until it’s completely dry. You can then smoke it or store it as is.
Salt cure for speck (belly bacon)
Using a mortar and pestle, crush the same number of juniper berries, peppercorns, and bay leaves to make traditional Bavarian speck. You want to make enough of this to completely cover all of the belly except for the skin. If you just want plain salted pork belly, skip this step.
Put enough salt in the bottom of a food-safe container big enough to hold the bellies to cover the bottom. If the bellies are too big, cut them up and use a different-shaped container. Cover a layer of pork belly with salt all the way around. Then add another layer of pork belly and more salt, and so on, until you have a stack of pork bellies with salt all the way around and on top. You should tilt the container just a bit so that all the liquid gathers in one corner. Doing this will mean you don’t have to keep adding as much salt.
Place the container somewhere out of the sun that is always less than 15ºc but not so cold that it will freeze the meat. Cover the container with a lid or cover.
Leave to age for around eight days. In one book, it says it can be as little as two days. But if you leave it out for up to two weeks, it will last longer and be saltier. Ours was aged for about two weeks. Some people find it too salty, but I enjoy the taste. Every day, open the lid to see if the top needs more salt. If there are any cracks in the top salt layer, you will need to add salt.
Once the meat has finished aging, rinse the salt off and leave it to hang and dry. It can either be stored as is, or cold smoked and then stored. to store it, just hang it in a cold place and hack bits off as you see fit.
