In today’s recipe we get to test out another project using our home ice chest. The device I’m using to make this happen is called the CELR-12 and it claims that you can successfully dry cure meats in your home ice chest! Well, I have a 45-quart Rtic cooler, and I think today we should put some pork belly in it!!
If you want more information on the CELR-12 Dry Curing Device for your home Ice Chest, you can check out their website here: https://tablesmith.us/
Be sure to use the discount code TGC50 for a discount off your order.
Here are a few things you might find useful when making this recipe
- SavorYe (flavor enhancer)
- Eco Cure #1
- #8 Netting for Tenderloin
- Collagen Sheets
- Butchers Twine & Dispenser/Cutter
- Iodophor Sanitizer
- Kotai Knife
- Sausage Pricker
- CELR-12 Use the discount code TGC50 for a discount off your order (this is for dry curing meats in your home ice chest)
If you want to see the different things that we use in operation our be sure to check out our new Amazon Store.
2 Guys & A Cooler Amazon Storefront
I hope you enjoy this week’s video and recipe. If you give this a go be sure to let me know how you came out and if you have any questions, ask away in the comment section below.
No Nitrite Italian Bacon (Pancetta)
Ingredients
- 1000 g pork belly skin removed
- 16.6 g kosher salt
- 10 g EcoCure #1
- 7 g SavorYe
- 3 g black pepper
- 4 g smoked paprika
- 6 g granulated garlic
- 3 g onion powder
- 1.5 g bay leaf powder
Instructions
- weigh the raw meat and record the weight. Enter the weight of the meat into the box that reads "How much do you want to make" on this recipe from my website.
- Mix together all of the spices.
- Season the meat with 100% of the spice mix and place it in either a vacuum bag or a zip lock bag. Be sure to scrape up any spices that fell off the meat and add those to the bag as well.
- Measure the thickness of the meat. Head over to the website: salt brining calculator (genuineideas.com). Click on the "Brining Time" option, then enter your information. Once you receive your results be sure to add an additional 20% to it. This ensures it cures completely to the center.
- After your pork belly round has finished curing, wrap it in a "Dry Aging Wrap". The meat needs to be a little tacky in order for the wrap to adhere properly, so you can splash it with a little water or wine if it needs it.
- once wrapped, weight the meat and record the weight. I like to target a 30% weight loss for a shelf stable product. If you don't plan on eating this raw you can just let it age for 1-2 weeks but you'll have to cook it. Whichever you choose, write down your target on a piece of paper.
- Spray the meat down with a protective mold (either mold 600 or mold 800) and place the meat into your dry curing chamber
- The conditions in your chamber should be an average temperature of 55f (13c) and an average humidity of 80%
- Once you hit your weight target you are done.
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Hi Eric
I have never done curing, but wanting to try coppa and pancetta in my refrigerator. I watched your video for doing coppa using dry age wraps. 2 things, would I use ecocure #2? for both projest? Can this pancetta be done in a refrigerator using steak wraps and ecocure?
Thank you for making such great videos and getting me interested in learning and doing some of these projects.
I would use EcoCure #2 for Coppa and EcoCure #1 for pancetta. Both can be done in the home fridge using the dry aging steak wraps.
I have just cured this and put it in the cooler with the celr12 2 days ago. And there is some liquid accumulating below them. Is that normal? If not, how do I fix?
Also second question, can I make your Genoa salami in the celr12 as well?
the liquid is normal. It will also help with keeping the humidity. As far as genoa, yes you can. Just follow my instructions and place the genoa in the CELR-12 to either ferment and dry or to just dry.
So how long do you let it sit in the curing mode, with spices, before removing and hanging to finish the cure? Your recipe didn’t state a time.
It all depends on the size (thickness) of the pork belly. I use a curing calculator to determine the amount of days: https://genuineideas.com/ArticlesIndex/saltbrinecalculator.html