Dry-Cured Pork Fat

Appetizers | Russian cuisine

⏳ Time

30 minutes

🥕 Ingredients

🍽️ Servings

Description

The recipe was provided by Emily Johnson, the chef at a local diner.

Ingredients

Lard - 2 lbs
Salt - 4 spoons
Ground Black Pepper - 1 tablespoon
Garlic - 1 head
Red Long Chili Peppers - to taste
Bay leaf - to taste
Green peppercorns - to taste
Clove - to taste

Step by Step guide

Step 1

For dry curing, prepare a mixture of salt, pepper, garlic, and spices to taste – including bay leaves, which can be slightly crushed, red pepper, and allspice. You can also add cloves for a sharper aroma. Take pork fatback, cut into flat pieces about 5-6 centimeters thick. With this thickness, the fatback cures better and faster using the dry salting method.

Step 2

To infuse the lard with garlic flavor, make incisions and stuff it with garlic. Alternatively, you can skip adding garlic initially and rub it on the lard after brining. However, lard stuffed with garlic has a shorter shelf life because the garlic can spoil. Therefore, it is better to rub the finished salted lard with garlic – whether using the wet method or the dry method.

Step 3

For one kilogram of pork fat, take four tablespoons of salt, one tablespoon of ground pepper, and one head of garlic. However, do not take the kilogram of fat as a single piece; instead, cut it into three or four strips to allow for proper salting. Add spices and seasonings to taste. Then layer the fat on the salt, skin to skin, fat to fat, and sprinkle each layer with the dry mixture. Use coarse first-grade salt. Coat the fat generously with this mixture, leave it at room temperature for a day, and then store it in the refrigerator for 720 to 120 hours. The finished fat should be stored in wax paper in the refrigerator or freezer.