Charcuterie Offerings from Around the Globe Are Making Musclerecla Cuts Dense Foods Available Year-Round
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DRY-CURED ome 4,000 years ago, people realized whole pieces of flesh— muscle and fat that sits between the skin and bones of an START WITH: animal—could be preserved by drying, making these nutrient- eemingly endless charcuterie offerings from around the globe are making MuscleRecla Cuts dense foods available year-round. But if it were only a matter of Jerky: MEAT SPECK ALTO ADIGE PGI Charcuterie their way into American grocery stores just as more domestic producers Time works magic on pig Snecessity, the invention of the refrigerator would have spelled the end HOMEGROWN muscle: unsaturated fats break are turning out innovative, homegrown versions. Overwhelmed by the + down and savory glutamic of dry-cured meats. To the contrary: These days, they are as popular CHARCUTERIE? options? Join us as we dive mouth-first into the world of cured, cooked, acid increases, while crunchy SALT tyrosine crystals—just like as ever. Over millennia, the controlled spoilage of muscle cuts has Sand aged meats. Ahead, you’ll learn what to do with overlooked pig parts (lard lip those in aged cheese—form. S EARLY AS 1550, SOUTH AMERICAN become an art. When cured, animal flesh takes on a new personality, + Quechuan tribes pounded thin pieces of llama 101 gloss, anyone?), why spreadable seafood is on the rise, and how to cut and serve and the process transforms proteins we otherwise wouldn’t taste into A and alpaca meat before salting and drying charcuterie, using any leftovers in expert-approved sandwiches. Simply put, our TIME unique flavor molecules. The resulting whole-muscle items go by them in the sun or smoking them over a fire. They called it ch’arki, which translates to “burn meat,” definitive guide is a carnivore’s delight. different names, depending on where they’re produced; in Italy, for THEN ADD… according to Chuck Watson, owner of Mountain example, cured pork cheeks are guanciale, cured pork belly is pancetta, America Jerky. Spanish conquistadores found North American tribes drying meat from buffalo, WIND a large thigh muscle becomes culatello, and pork legs become prosciutto. Air helps to dry meat, and a elk, bison, and deer. Today, jerky snacks are a $1.5 fast-moving current speeds billion industry, encompassing everything from the up the process. To wit: The Over the ages cured muscle cuts have hung from basement ceilings, where processed sticks ubiquitous in gas stations to Hudson Valley Foie Gras STORE aromatic breeze that rustles low temperatures and humidity levels remain relatively constant. These dehydrated exotic meats that aren’t easily found through pine and chestnut DUCK PROSCIUTTO days, your best bet is the refrigerator, where tightly wrapped pieces may be kept for groves en route to the Parma fresh or cooked. Watson’s company, for one, makes weeks, even months. If the meat looks different after a few months of storage, don’t region in Italy is thought to Salumeria Biellese jerky from kangaroo, snake, and his personal A MATTER of MEAT impart distinct flavors to BRESAOLA despair. Trim off discolored or overly dry areas and wipe away mold spots—“the favorite: Tibetan yak. Prosciutto di Parma. This Italian cured taste and quality should be fine,” says Kathy Eckhouse, co-founder of charcutier La So where’s the jerky on charcuterie platters? “It’s beef is made from Quercia in Norfolk, Iowa. hot for restaurants to have meat and cheese boards, In Émile Zola’s novel The Belly of Paris, the preventing bacterial growth. Over time, the SMOKE top round rubbed but I’ve never seen jerky on them,” says Jeff Bolton, protagonist Florent peers into a charcuterie— meat continues to dry out, concentrating Compounds in smoke with salt and inhibit the growth of harmful spices, including Dense, chewy muscle cuts should always be sliced as thinly as possible, executive chef at Kachina Southwestern Grill in SLICE a cured meats shop. Florent’s eyes skim over acidity and further discouraging maturation microbes, slow the oxidation of juniper berries, which “allows the meat to be chewed more easily and the fat to practically Westminster, Colo. “Which is funny, because it’s cinnamon, and a “temple of gluttony”: past round, golden of harmful bacteria. Other ingredients— fat, and prevent rancid flavors. melt in the mouth,” says McGuan, the Good Food Awards charcuterie committee kind of like our native prosciutto.” nutmeg. chair. A sharp knife is key—use a 6-inch boning knife or seek one designed for slicing While other chefs overlook jerky, Bolton embraces hams; red, varnished, beef tongues; Andouille wind, smoke, microbes, sugar, nitrites, and MICROBES cured meats from specialty stores or online. it. In homage to the Native American and European sausages “bursting with health,” and stuffed seasonings—may be added to virtually any Good microbes, such as those added to ferment certain settler influence on Southwestern cuisine, his team links that hang “like tassels of some opulent recipe; some aid in preservation, others foster sausages, increase meat’s Bring sliced meat to room temperature before setting it out. This butchers a bison each month, turning cuts into SERVE tapestry.” The charcuterie, then, is a beautiful flavor development. Limitless variations on acidity, encourage chewy encourages “the release of ethyl esters—those responsible for pleasant sweet chile and habanero jerky. Some is served place, where art and science collide with meat, this basic formula result in charcuterie’s texture, and develop flavor. fruity and nutty flavor notes,” McGuan says. Don’t allow spiced or smoked meats to at happy hour, while a portion is set aside and touch other varieties, as flavors will transfer. Thin meat slices tend to stick together, dehydrated further to grind into powder, which Bolton full of what Zola eloquently termed “vast “vast quantities of succulent things.” SUGAR La Quercia making it hard for guests to pick them up. Separate strips and “ribbon” them, one-by- folds into compound butter. An umami-laden dollop quantities of succulent things, things that Beneficial bacteria adore this FLAT PANCETTA Red Table Meat Co. carbohydrate—it keeps them COPPA one, into a loosely folded, airy pile, says Corrie Quinn of butcher shop Goose the atop bone-in bison ribeye steak highlights jerky’s melt in the mouth.” happy and working hard. Market in Indianapolis. untapped potential in cooking—and in pairing. Charcuterie’s very definition embodies its Sugar is usually added to meat (along with starter cultures) in diversity—“the art of preparing various meats, more industrial facilities. in particular pork, in order to present them NITRITES in the most diverse ways,” according to These chemical compounds culinary encyclopedia Larousse Gastronomique. interact with the muscle A treasure hides on every pig’s back, Meat morsels, including those we sometimes pigment myoglobin to create THE CASE FOR HOT DOGS? the red color of cured meat— just under the skin: a firm, choppable overlook, may be chopped and emulsified to If we refer to the Larousse definition, almost any they also discourage growth make mousse, pâté, terrine, and rillettes. prepared meat may be called charcuterie. Think of harmful Clostridium layer of pure, snow-white fat. Like botulinum bacteria (which about it: A hot dog is emulsified meat stuffed into This spreadable charcuterie is usually cooked cause botulism). muscle cuts, “fatback” may be rubbed and salted, sometimes canned, occasionally a casing, while meatloaf—baked, spiced, ground with herbs and spices and cured. The WRITTEN BY MOLLY MCDONOUGH meat—is essentially a terrine. It may be simply a SEASONINGS Gary West Artisan preserved beneath a layer of fat, and always tasty. Spices, herbs, fruits, matter of perception, says Good Food Awards Smoked Meats resulting lardo, as it’s called in Italy, vegetables, booze, even PHOTOGRAPHED BY NINA GALLANT • STYLED BY MOLLY SHUSTER Two other styles found on a charcuterie charcuterie committee chair Michael WOOD RIVER SMOKED pounds of jamón eaten annually cheese—you name it, Dehesa Cordobesa WAGYU JERKY LARDO plate—whole-muscle cuts and sausages—are McGuan. Meat becomes charcuterie LOMITO IBÉRICO DE BELLOTA 11per person in Spain, the world’s may be rendered into cooking fat or somebody’s probably This cut has a chestnut aroma from top consumer of cured pork typically cured. This process extends the shelf when we see it as charcuterie. enhanced preserved sliced and served as charcuterie. the sweet bellota (acorns) that Iberian LESSON meat with it. life of meat using salt and time. Salt draws pigs gobble in Spanish oak forests. moisture out of cells through osmosis, CHEESE+ 2016 culturecheesemag.com 83 82 culturecheesemag.com CHEESE+ 2016 CHEESE+ 2016 culturecheesemag.com 81 Cheese+ 101 FINAL.indd 80 3/28/16 3:45 PM Cheese+ 101 FINAL.indd 83 3/27/16 11:21 PM Cheese+ 101 FINAL.indd 82 3/27/16 11:21 PM Cheese+ 101 FINAL.indd 81 3/27/16 11:23 PM KABANOSY Sausages hailing from Northern and Eastern Europe—such as this Polish version—are hat about the other animal parts—trimmings, fat—that don’t slice small ramekin of brown paste might look diminutive often smoked to off in perfect morsels? We’re not sure who first had the idea to chop MAKE YOUR OWN solidify, dry, and next to a leg of ham, but make no mistake: This is a protect the surface and stuff them into intestinal casings, but we’re forever grateful. As charcuterie grows in popularity stateside, so do against humidity. Spreadables fascinating and diverse charcuterie category. The craft of resources for DIYers seeking guidance. Sausages may be made with raw meat and cooked before eating, making super-smooth mousse, velvety pâté, and chunky, Wbut it’s links cured with salt and time that are most likely to show up on a Asliceable terrine was refined in France, where mixtures are usually Sandor Katz’s The Art of Fermentation: An charcuterie platter.