Guest guest Posted April 21, 2006 Report Share Posted April 21, 2006 I suddenly have half a pig coming from a local farm, it was just butchered today. After the meat has hung at the butchers, I would like to just take it home and cure my own bacon, sausage and ham. While butcher shops can leave out all the nasty preservatives and other ingredients my sons are allergic to, the chance of cross contamination is too high, and don't want to find we cannot eat this pig. So, what do I do to cure the bacon, sausage and ham? I was thinking simple, like beet root powder, a little honey and redmond's sea salt, but am not familiar with the process. Any help would be most appreciated! Thanks in Advance! Summer --------------------------------- New Yahoo! Messenger with Voice. Call regular phones from your PC and save big. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 21, 2006 Report Share Posted April 21, 2006 I saw instructions on curing pork on Raman Hassad's site, I think. I'm pretty sure it is SCDiet.com. I didn't bookmark it though, it was one of those SCD recipe sites. The only thing we have ever had cured when we get sides of pork was ham and bacon. The sausage was never cured. What are you concerned about cross contamination- sugar? You may want to talk to your farmer and see if they could cure your meat with honey and salt rather than sugar and salt. We are looking into this with our farmer right now. He sends the pig to a butcher and then a different guy does the smoking. I guess I don't get concerned about cross contamination with a small amount of sugar, considering that bacon with sugar is even legal as long as only used once a week and cooked crisp. The contamination would be on the outside of the meat only. Now gluten is a completely different concern for us with cc. Did they give you the option of cut combinations? Our farmer does, so in the past I have chosen to get fresh ham steaks instead of a large smoked ham roast. You could also just request plain ground pork that could be then made into sausage patties. Becky mom to Noah (6, HFA) and (3, NT) SCD 6 wks > I suddenly have half a pig coming from a local farm, it was just butchered > today. After the meat has hung at the butchers, I would like to just take > it home and cure my own bacon, sausage and ham. While butcher shops can > leave out all the nasty preservatives and other ingredients my sons are > allergic to, the chance of cross contamination is too high, and don't want > to find we cannot eat this pig. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 21, 2006 Report Share Posted April 21, 2006 but ham and bacon, does it even have to be cured if it > is headed strait to the chest freezer? No. The first pig I got, the ONLY thing we had smoked was bacon. This was pre SCD. My DH doesn't really like ham. Fresh ham steaks will taste similar to pork chops. My son cannot process sugar properly. The bacon with sugar fried to a > crisp once a year, while SCD legal is not tolerated by him. Then you definitely don't want the risk. >Butchers use a > number of curing ingredients. We have MCS, so stuff like nitrates, BHT, > BHA, soy, yeast extracts, gluten, dairy cow, etc. in addition to sugar, we > have to worry about. Ahh, the place I go never uses any of that stuff anyway. Just sugar and salt (and spices for the sausages). Of course we don't use the smoked ham anymore or the premade sausages because of this. Next pig I'm going to see if I can get them to cure it with honey instead though and omit sugar from sausages or just get plain ground pork. I've never been given the option to have my sausages smoked. Hey, you may want to ask them for some sausage casing so you could fill them yourselves. I've never done it but it's my next experiment. Another tip- if you have a choice of hermetically sealed in plastic (not saran wrap but the thick stuff), instead of paper wrap, I'd get the plastic. It keeps much better and it doesn't leak. Becky mom to Noah (6, HFA) and (3, NT) SCD 6 weeks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 21, 2006 Report Share Posted April 21, 2006 >>> Ahh, the place I go never uses any of that stuff anyway. Just sugar and salt (and spices for the sausages). Of course we don't use the smoked ham anymore or the premade sausages because of this. <<< That's great! >>>Next pig I'm going to see if I can get them to cure it with honey instead though and omit sugar from sausages or just get plain ground pork. I've never been given the option to have my sausages smoked. Hey, you may want to ask them for some sausage casing so you could fill them yourselves. I've never done it but it's my next experiment.<<< That is a terrific idea! That sounds rather fun, I bet I could pick up something to make hot dogs out of the cow when it comes. >>>Another tip- if you have a choice of hermetically sealed in plastic (not saran wrap but the thick stuff), instead of paper wrap, I'd get the plastic. It keeps much better and it doesn't leak. <<< Again, thank you for the information! I've been getting my meats from a local farm, buying individual cuts, so I have been spoiled and haven't had to think about all these details yet. I am getting my first chest freezer next week! Thankies for your imput! Summer --------------------------------- Talk is cheap. Use Yahoo! Messenger to make PC-to-Phone calls. Great rates starting at 1 & cent;/min. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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