Pork carcasses are always cut in the same parts. Some fragments even got their own names. The hip back or scapular front is called the ham. We will not hide the fact that the meat of the ham is far from the softest and most loose, since the thigh is represented by muscle fibers that do not contain sebaceous layers. Despite this, ham dishes do not lose their popularity.
On an industrial scale, the processing of pork meat occupies a leading position. It is available and in demand, due to the fact that it is an excellent source of proteins that are so needed in the structure of fiber. In addition, the consumption of pig meat is accompanied by the replenishment of the body with a number of essential substances, minerals and vitamins.
Choosing a quality product is not easy. Given the variety of opportunities for unscrupulous suppliers to bring products into marketable form, the shelf life of which is coming to an end, it is quite difficult to tell the difference between fresh meat and processed meat. But there are still some constructive tips on this matter.
Initially, you should pay attention to the color of the skin. It should be monochromatic with a pale beige tint. The yellow skin, as well as the yellow layers of fat on the cut, tell about the long shelf life of the product. The exception is the parts of the carcass, butchered on their own. A home-grown pig has a slightly different shade.
Meat can only be assessed by its cut. Sometimes this is enough. If it is loose and does not return its shape for a long time when pressed with a finger, then the loss of elasticity is associated with long-term storage. It is better not to focus on color, as there may be products tinted with potassium permanganate. It is best to focus on the scent. The smell of fresh meat is impossible to describe, but at least it is not unpleasant.
Feel the fibers. If you feel a dry crust, then you can safely ask for a discount. The meat may not have been lost, but it has been on the counter for a long time. The presence of sticky mucus on the meat is a reason to completely abandon the purchase.
To assess the benefits of the product, it is enough to get acquainted with only a partial list of the constituent elements.
Among other methods of preparing pork, it is smoking that turns the product into a real delicacy. Smoked pork ham, cut into thin slices, will decorate even the most expensive holiday table. However, this dish can act as an integral part of soups, side dishes, salads. The characteristic smoke smell instantly raises the appetite. But not always in the store you can buy high-quality smoked meat. In addition, if you cook it yourself at home, then the quality can surpass factory production.
The whole difficulty of preparing a ham for smoking lies in its large dimensions. Naturally, part of the carcass can be divided into smaller pieces. However, not everyone wants to do this, since there is some incomprehensible note of aristocracy in cutting a thin layer of meat with a greasy layer from a whole smoked ham.
Exposure and a properly selected pickling recipe will help to overcome this difficulty. If you understand the principle of marinating meat products, then even a beginner can not only cope with the smoking process, but also come up with several independent options for its implementation.
Salt is an important component in any brine. It penetrates into the fibers of the fabric, providing proper disinfection, moisture removal, and also introducing a flavoring component. This or that recipe depends on how the salting is made and what additional ingredients are used. Based on this data, you can begin to consider the most popular methods to salt pork meat before smoking.
Another recipe for making a real ham at home involves using a liquid marinade. Its principle is that salt is used not in pure form, but in dissolved form. To smoke a pork leg without boiling it, you will need to add a "stronger" brine. It is necessary that the proportion be made up of the following ratio: 80 g of salt should fall on 1 liter of water.
Water and salt are boiled, while adding pepper, bay leaf, a little sugar and garlic to the brine. Everyone can add the rest of the seasonings as they wish. After boiling for five minutes, the brine should cool. The next step is to soak the meat in the marinade. If you marinate in this way, you still have to wait 6 days. The better the meat is salted, the less problems will arise with it when you cook it. Insufficient salting is fraught with not only a loss of taste, but also complete spoilage of the whole ham.
A complete list of ingredients is individually compiled by each. There are unwritten rules by which you can select different spices. They are based on a combination of flavors.
For example, lemon, garlic, mustard, paprika, thyme, basil, dill are suitable for meat. Another little rule used by experienced chefs is that if the meat is combined with a specific seasoning, then it can be marinated with a mixture of these seasonings in any combination.
It is not easy to work with large dimensions of meat. While the deeper fibers begin to bake, the outer ones may burn. Only a skilled master is able to ensure uniform penetration of heat into the smokehouse. However, the lack of experience does not at all prevent a deliciously smoked product, even such as pork legs.
The secret lies in the fact that at the initial stage, the meat should be boiled. It does not need to be brought to readiness, but you will have to boil it for half an hour after boiling.
First you need to choose a marinade that is delicious in your opinion. It is no different from the usual one used in the above example. The boiled-smoked ham will be salted quickly, so the strength of the brine should be lower. You can take only 50 grams of salt per liter of water.
As soon as the water boils and all the ingredients have been added, a ham is immediately placed in the pan, which needs to be cooked for half an hour. Then the brine cools down, and the product is soaked in it for several more hours. But practice shows that the boiled ham is already quite soft. It remains to smoke it at home or in the country.
The calorie content of smoked products depends on the cooking method. Due to the partial melting of fat during the hot smoking method, the product is less high in calories than during cold processing. In addition to these differences, there are also some characteristic features of these two species. Smoked pork leg will turn out in just 5 hours if the smoke temperature exceeds 80 ° C degrees.
Chips or sawdust are poured into the smoking box to obtain smoke. They will begin to smolder under the influence of high temperature, because the box itself is placed on fire. If the ham is on the sieve, then it will have to be turned over. The most rational solution comes down to hanging the product. During the entire time, while the ham is being smoked, it is necessary to open the smoking box for a few seconds every half hour. Inside the smokehouse, the moisture content of the smoke gradually increases. This is normal, but high moisture content is not useful. It should be discharged along with the smoke at the specified intervals.
When cold smoked, the ham is saved from spoilage by preservatives in the composition of the smoke. This smoke in its composition is no different from that used for hot smoking. It comes from ordinary sawdust or alder chips. When using a ready-made smokehouse, it is unlikely that it will be possible to influence the temperature inside, but the chimney is made so that the smoke passing through it is cooled.
You can adjust the temperature in different ways. Some smokehouses allow you to change the size of the smoke duct. You can try changing the intensity of the flame. But the most effective way is to change the type of wood that creates the flame. After 7-8 days, the ham will be ready. After the obligatory airing, it is served to the table in the form of cutting into thin slices. The cost of time and effort spent on preparing a delicacy is extremely high, but the result is more than these costs. At the sight of smoked meats, one cannot remain indifferent to them.
Smoked pork is a wonderful delicacy. It is known for its excellent taste and high nutritional value. Perhaps that is why pork has recently been increasingly processed in this way.
People have learned to smoke meat products for a long time. This processing method gives the finished product an original taste and noticeably extends its shelf life. This happens due to the fact that as a result of prolonged high-temperature exposure, the original product gradually loses part of its moisture, which in itself is a unique environment for the development of various bacteria. Pig meat is best suited for this. Delicate and soft, during heat treatment it retains its main characteristics, acquiring only an additional aroma and unique taste.
Depending on the nature of the temperature effect, there are three types of smoking:
Each of them has its own special technological modes. According to them, smoked pork can be cooked in a few hours or days. Everything will depend on the chosen processing method and the amount of the original product. It is interesting that after that, smoked pork can be further used to prepare a variety of dishes, adding its own flavor to them.
Everyone is accustomed to the fact that a smoked product can be obtained only by prolonged exposure to high temperatures. However, there are other options as well. For example, you can make wonderful raw smoked meat. And this will take very little time. It is better to take pork for work. She has very delicate muscle tissue and a fairly large amount of intermuscular fat. This is the kind of meat you need for smoking. The following starting products are required:
Everything is done very simply:
The finished product can be served immediately. Pork smoked in this way turns out to be very tender and aromatic. In addition, this method is relatively fast and does not require much labor. With it, you can process a sufficient amount of raw materials.
The most popular smoked pork recipe among the people includes the stage of preliminary soaking of the main product in a specially prepared marinade. Even meat streaked with stringy bacon can be cooked in this way. The result will be simply amazing. For work you will need:
The process technology consists of several stages:
After 4 hours, the product can be taken out. It is necessary to eat such pork only after it has completely cooled down naturally.
There is another way by which you get no less tasty smoked pork. At home, it is used quite often. This method is especially convenient if it is necessary to immediately process a sufficiently large piece of meat. In this case, it doesn't even matter whether it is hard or soft. The following ingredients are required:
Cooking method:
In literally 2 hours, the meat will be ready. But 30 minutes before the end, you can check it by piercing it in several places with a knife.
Those who think that smoked products can be eaten exclusively in their natural form are mistaken. A skilled culinary specialist can easily prepare many interesting and tasty dishes from them. For example, smoked pork can be stewed with potatoes. It will turn out to be a great option for an appetizing and rather hearty dinner. For work you will need:
The whole procedure will not take long:
The finished dish can be immediately laid out on plates and served, sprinkled with plenty of herbs.
From the photo of smoked pork, it is not always possible to guess in what way it was cooked. For example, many do not even suspect that it can be done even in an ordinary multicooker. For cooking, you need a minimum of components:
Literally in 40-45 minutes, the device can be turned off. But the meat should lie inside for a few more minutes. Then you can take it out and eat it with appetite, while enjoying the wonderful aroma. Even the youngest and most inexperienced housewife can handle such a dish.
Many people believe that the ideal snack is with a photo, which always helps to better understand how to act in order to prepare such a product. Experts advise using for work:
To cook boiled-smoked brisket, you need:
After the specified time has elapsed, the original smoked brisket can be taken out and cut into thin slices, served as a snack.
The ham is smoked to give the meat a delicate flavor and to increase shelf life. To do this at home, you need to make a smokehouse and stock up on wood and sawdust.
The simplest smokehouse is a barrel with slats for hanging meat. Smoking is best done outside. A shallow ditch is dug in the ground, the middle of which is covered with a sheet of iron. A barrel without a bottom is installed from one open edge of the pit, the lower part of which is dug in with earth, and the upper part is tightly wrapped. At the other end of the pit, a place is prepared for smoldering firewood and sawdust. The smoke from the hearth through the ditch will enter the barrel and envelop the ham suspended in its upper part. Firewood and sawdust of fruit trees, alder, oak are suitable for smoking, and conifers, except for juniper, and birch are not suitable - they emit tar and tar, add bitterness to smoked meats, and emit a lot of soot. Juniper, on the other hand, gives the ham a beautiful color and a special aroma.
If it is not possible to install a smokehouse on the ground, you can do it easier. Two or three barrels (with a volume of at least 40 liters) are placed one on top of the other, a filter (for example, a wet burlap) is placed between them. Sawdust is placed on the bottom of the lower barrel, meat is hung on the crossbars of the upper barrel. A tightly closed container is placed on the stove or fire, which will ensure the smoldering of the sawdust inside the smokehouse. Of course, small pieces of meat are smoked this way, but the product is of good quality.
Meat for smoking is pre-salted dry or wet. In the first case, the pieces are rubbed with a mixture (for 1 kg of meat, 50 g of salt and 10 g of sugar, pepper to taste), laid in layers (with the skin down) and kept for 3 weeks, turning the meat over every 4th day. Then it is taken out of the brine and left for another four days, after which it is soaked, rinsed and dried for 12 hours.
With the wet method of preliminary preparation, the meat is kept in brine for a week: 100 g of salt and 10 g of sugar are taken for 1 liter of water. Then the prepared product is dried for 7-8 hours.
Distinguish between cold and hot smoking. With the cold method, the product is smoked for 2-3 to 7 days (depending on the size of the meat), while the smoke should not be hot (the recommended temperature is 18 to 25 ° C). During smoking, moisture evaporates, and the pulp is soaked in smoke, so such a ham will be dryish, but fragrant. Due to the low moisture content, the resulting product can be stored for a long time.
With hot smoking, meat is processed at a high temperature (up to 100 ° C) for only 4-6 hours. At the same time, the ham will turn out to be juicy and tender, with a bright taste and smell of smoking. The disadvantage of this method is the relatively short shelf life of the product.
Salting mix recipe
Sea salt, pepper, coriander, juniper, garlic, a little sugar,some sugar syrup.
Salting before smoking
If pre-salted hams are supposed to be smoked, then they should be soaked for 2 - 3 hours before being moved to the smoking chamber. If the salinity is strong, then they will have to soak all six hours. Having passed the twine between the tendons, the hams are hung to dry in a cool, constantly ventilated place. When the raw material is dry, it is sent to the chamber for subsequent smoking.
Hot smoked ham
Hot smoked ham is cooked in twelve hours at a relatively low temperature, from 45 to 60 ° C. Smoking begins with a relatively weak stream of smoke, and only later it is gradually increased.
As a source of smoke, firewood is used, folded in a dense pile and covered with a thin layer of sawdust. Moreover, it is important to choose sawdust that gives the maximum amount of smoke. But you should not make a strong flame, but if this happened, then you can bring down the fire with the help of wet sawdust, which is added to the common layer. The readiness of a ham can be determined by the color of the crust. It becomes a warm light brown shade, and does not leave wet marks when touched. After cooling, the ham can be boiled or baked.
Cold smoked ham
If the ham is to be stored for a long time, then it is better to cook it using cold smoking. The process will take from two to four days, and it goes in a stream of cold, with a temperature of 20 - 25 ° C, smoke. After smoking is complete, the ham should be ripened in a cool, ventilated room. Suspended, the meat will have to spend from 3 to 5 weeks, and then the raw smoked delicacy is ready to eat.
All bones and cartilage are removed from the pork piece. Next, the meat is placed in a boiled and already cooled brine. To prepare it, you need to take: five liters of water, 900 grams of salt and 25 grams of sugar.
After two weeks, the meat is thoroughly washed, dried and, having tied a string, smoked by cold smoking until an appetizing brown crust appears on the pieces. Fillets wrapped in parchment or clean gauze can be safely stored in the cold, in a place with sufficient ventilation for up to 2 - 3 months. In this case, it is better to hang the pieces.
Question: what to cook from pork shoulder?
Take 10 kg of pork shoulder, you also need 300 g of salt, sugar - 30 g, 2 g each of black, red and ground pepper.
Preparation: wash the pork, dry it with a linen napkin. Mix salt, sugar and spices, and then rub the pork with this mixture. We put the meat in a container for salting, shifting it with chopped garlic, install a press on top. We place the container for 3 hours in a warm place, and then transfer it for a week to a cool, well-ventilated and dark place, from time to time the meat needs to be shifted, changing the layers in places.
Then remove the pieces of meat and place in cold water for 4 hours to soak the meat. Remove the meat, rinse it in running water, make small slots and pull twine through them (you can use a thin hemp rope), hang the pieces of meat in a cool room for 2-3 hours. Wrap each piece with paper, slightly moistening it (this way you not only protect the meat from soot pollution, but also prevent the paper from burning and smoldering).
Smoke the prepared pieces of pork for 5-10 hours.
Allow to rest. The product is ready!
For cooking, you will need the back of the pork - 10 kg, salt - 200-300 g, sugar - 50 g and 6-8 bay leaves.
Preparation: rub the washed and dried meat with a mixture of sugar and salt, after which we put it in a salting container, placing a press on top. We place the container in a warm room for 24-36 hours. Then we take out the meat, rinse it and hang it in a ventilated and cool place for a day. Then we smoke the pork for 3-4 hours in a hot way. During smoking, the meat will release juice, add 10 liters of water, bay leaves to it, lower the pork ham and cook for 1.5-2 hours.
For cooking, you will need the back of pork - 10 kg, salt - 250 g, juniper berries - 150 g, sugar - 140 g, 8 g of pepper, cloves - 2 buds, cinnamon to taste.
We wash the meat and cut into portions. Mix 130 g of salt, 70 g of sugar and pepper and grind in a mortar, rub the ham with the mixture, put the pieces in a pickling container, sprinkling with juniper berries. We install the press and leave the container at room temperature for a day, after which we transfer it to a cool place for 6 days.
Dissolve the remaining sugar and salt in 5 liters of boiling water, add cloves and cinnamon, boil for 2-3 minutes, filter, cool, and then fill the meat with brine. After that, we keep the meat in brine for 2.5 - 3 weeks in a cool place. We dry the meat and then smoke it in a cold way for 1.5-2 weeks in a cold smoked smokehouse "Dachnik".
Composition:
Pork (back) - 10-11 kg;
Red wine - 400 ml;
Garlic - 3-4 cloves;
Juniper berries - 150 g;
Salt - 950 g;
Sugar - 100-110 g;
Cloves (buds) - 2-3 pcs;
Bay leaf - 3-4 pcs.
Cooking pork leg:
Pieces of pork must be washed, dried well, and then grated with chopped garlic and sprinkled with salt. Add the juniper berries and place the pork in the salting container.
Brine preparation: add sugar, bay leaf, cloves, and the remaining salt to boiled water (10 liters). After boiling all the ingredients for 15-20 minutes over medium heat, you need to filter the brine and cool. Then pour our pork with the resulting brine and let it brew for a week in a cool place.
After the pork is salted, take out the pieces of meat and dry (this will take 6 hours). Now you need to boil the meat until half cooked in boiling water. After cooling and drying the pork, wrap it in paper, previously moistened with red wine. Then pull the meat tightly and compactly with twine. Constantly impregnating the paper with red wine, smoke the ham in a cold way in a cold-smoked smokehouse "Dachnik" for one and a half weeks.
Composition:
Pork (brisket with a small layer of meat) - 10 kg;
Bay leaf - 3-4 pcs;
Sugar - 50 g;
Garlic - 3-4 cloves;
Ground red pepper - 10 g;
Salt - 300 g.
Preparation:
The ideal brisket for smoking - with a small layer of meat and having a fat thickness of only 2-3 cm. The brisket must be cut into rectangular pieces, rinsed and dried well. Pre-prepare a mixture of sugar, salt, chopped garlic and bay leaves for salting. Thoroughly grease the pieces of meat with this mixture, place them in a bowl suitable for salting, and leave for half a day at room temperature.
Pork brine preparation: add sugar, salt and pepper to boiled water (7 liters). Boil the brine for 15 minutes. Then let it cool and fill the meat with it. After that, leave the brisket for a week and a half in a cooler place.
After this period of time, drain the brine, and soak the pieces of meat in ice water for half a day. Rinse in cool water and dry thoroughly. It is necessary to smoke in a cold way in a unique cold-smoked smokehouse "Dachnik" for no more than two days. The smoke temperature will not exceed 25-30 degrees Celsius. And the final stage is to hang the brisket in a well-ventilated room for final drying for a week.
Composition:
Pork (ribs) - 10 kg;
Pork stomach - 2 pcs;
Red pepper (ground) - 10 g;
Black pepper (ground) - 10 g;
Savory - 4 g;
Cloves - 4 g;
Marjoram - 4 g;
Salt - 1 kg.
Preparation:
Prepare pork stomachs by rinsing them thoroughly under running water. Turn them inside out, carefully remove the mucous membrane. Then rub the stomachs well
pre-calcined salt (150 grams will be enough).
Rinse and chop the pork ribs. It will be most convenient to cook if you cut them into 3 - 4 pieces. Mix spices (savory, marjoram and cloves, as well as pepper) with 500 g of salt. Grate the ribs with the resulting seasoning.
Place the meat in the pork stomachs. Sew up each stomach, and then sprinkle with 350 g of salt. Hang stomachs in a cold room. After 5 days, clean off excess salt from them and smoke them in a cold way, for at least 7 days. Best used.
Composition:
Pork (legs) - 10 kg;
Several cloves of garlic (to taste);
Bay leaves - 5-6 pcs (also to taste);
Ground red pepper - 10 kg;
Cinnamon - to taste;
Salt - 500 g;
Sugar - 100 g.
Preparation:
Thoroughly clean the pork legs, rinse well, place in a bowl suitable for salting, with pre-chopped garlic and well-chopped lavrushka.
Brine preparation:
Add sugar, salt, cinnamon and red pepper into boiled water (10 liters). Then cool well. Pour the legs with cold brine, put under oppression and leave in a cool room for a week.
After that, remove the legs from the brine, rinse well and dry, placing them in a smoking chamber. They must be doused with hot smoke for half an hour. After cooling, tie the meat tightly with a thick thread, then boil for no more than 1.5 hours over low heat. It is best to dry pork legs in a room that is well ventilated for 3 days, after wrapping them in dry paper to dry thoroughly.
Composition:
Pork - 10 kg;
Salt - 450 g.
Bay leaf - 3 - 4 pcs;
Ground red pepper - 5 g;
Allspice - 5 g;
Ground black pepper –5 g;
Sugar - 40 g;
Garlic - 3 - 4 cloves.
Preparation:
Carefully cut the pork leg into pieces, the thickness of which is 3-4 cm, remove the existing fat. Salt and sugar, red pepper and black pepper, then mix the resulting mixture thoroughly. Coat the pork tenderloin with the resulting mass on both sides, put in a bowl for salting, throwing in the chopped allspice and bay leaf. Establish oppression and hold for a couple of weeks in a fairly cool room. After removing the oppression, soak the pieces of meat for a couple of hours, you can a little more. Then dry for about 6 hours in a well-ventilated area. Then the pork is placed in a cold smoked smokehouse "Dachnik", where it is smoked in a cold way for 3 days. Then place the pork tenderloin between cutting boards for 4-5 hours and hang in a cool room for a week for a final airing.
Composition:
Fresh pork (shoulder) - 5 kg;
Rye flour - 125 g;
Black pepper - 5 peas;
Allspice - 7 peas;
Bay leaf - 2 pcs.;
Salt - 750 g.
Preparation:
Dry the washed pork a little, then let it ventilate for a couple of days. Then put the meat in a bowl for salting, pouring the pieces with allspice and black pepper. Add bay leaves.
Brine preparation:
Boil five liters of water, add allspice peas and salt to it. Boil seasoned water for another 10 minutes. Then remove the dishes from the heat, cool the brine.
Pour cold brine over the meat, put under a press. After 24 hours, the pork dishes should be moved to a cold room and left there for 3 - 4 days.
After the specified time, remove the meat from the brine and hang in a warm room. It will take about 5 hours to dry completely. Sometimes - a little more. After the pork is dry, gently roll each piece in rye flour. Meat should be smoked hot. The fire should be kept even and the smoke should completely cover each piece. Finished pork has a pleasant smell and a reddish crust.
Composition:
Pork loin - 4 kg;
Ground red pepper - 8 g;
Garlic - about 7 cloves;
Salt - 200 g;
Sugar - 40 g.
Preparation:
Cut the pork washed in cold water into pieces. The pieces should be large, no need to grind. After cutting, the pork should be rinsed again and then dried well.
Peel the garlic cloves, rinse under running water. Grind all 7 cloves. Add red pepper, salt and sugar. Grate each piece of loin thoroughly with the seasoning prepared in this way. After that, the meat must be folded into one salting container and placed in a cold room. The load must be installed on top.
After 14 days, the meat is washed. You need to smoke the loin hot, at a temperature of at least 119 ° C. In order for the meat to smoke evenly, you can sprinkle sawdust on the wood. Also, do not forget to put a dish under each piece of pork, into which excess fat will drain.
Smoking will take about 12 hours. A reddish crust is a sign of meat readiness. Boil the finished loin for 90 minutes. The cooking fire should not be too intense.
Composition:
Pork (it is better to take ham) - 3 kg;
Ground red pepper - 6 g;
Ground black pepper - 6 g;
Garlic - 15 cloves;
Salt - 450 g.
Preparation:
Rinse the pork well. Then cut the meat into strips, keeping the skin, approximately 3 cm thick, having previously separated it from the bones. Rinse again with cool water and pat dry.
Mix pepper and salt. Peel and chop the garlic, add it to the mixture. Season each strip of pork. Place carefully in a container, put under a press.
After 2 days of such salting at room temperature, the meat will absorb the aroma of spices and salt. Then you need to remove the press, dry the pork a little and roll each strip into a tight roll. The skin should be on top. Tie the rolls with a thread.
Pork rolls should be smoked in a cold way, in a magnificent cold-smoked smokehouse "Dachnik", for at least 3 days, after which the meat should be boiled over low heat. Cooking will take about 3 hours.
For a delicious pork roll, meat goes from the chest, from which the rib bones are removed, and then placed in a pre-made brine for 13 - 15 days
To make a brine, 5 liters of water and 1250 grams of salt are taken. The liquid is brought to an even boil and cooled.
When the pork is salted, it is taken out, allowed to dry on a cloth and, spread out on the table, generously rubbed with grated garlic and a mixture of chopped spices, for example, black and red pepper. The prepared layer is tightly twisted and often pulled with twine, leaving 2 - 3 cm between the turns.
A tied pork roll is smoked until a rich golden crust appears on the pieces, and the delicacy is kept in the cold, suspended, for up to two months.
Smoked pork leg
Smoked pork
Pork Recipes - 2012
A simple recipe for cold smoked products
You need to purchase meat in advance, and not before smoking itself. This is due to the fact that it will need to be pre-marinated. For some recipes, one day is enough, while for others, it takes about a week.
You need to buy only a high-quality product, since the whole dish depends on it. You need to choose exclusively fresh meat. It should not have any foreign smell, and the color should be pinkish. Lard and veins will be white if the pork is young, and the old one is always yellowish. You can also check the quality by touching the meat with your finger. If the dent quickly disappears, then everything is in order, and the piece can be taken.
Fresh pork leg
The purchased product will need to be thoroughly rinsed under running water so that no foreign particles remain. Then it should be dried with paper towels. There is no need to cut into pieces, as it is best to smoke it whole. It is only permissible to split in half if the pork leg does not completely fit into the smokehouse.
It is the correctly selected brine that makes the smoked pork leg the most delicious. At home, the meat needs to be marinated for several days so that it has time to absorb a sufficient amount of spices.
Ingredients:
The water needs to be put on fire, adding a little salt, sugar, pepper, cinnamon and cloves to it. You can put a few bay leaves. When the liquid boils, the ham should be placed in it. By boiling it in advance, you can reduce the smoking time. The meat itself will become softer and more tender.
Soak the ham in the marinade for at least a day
After about 20-30 minutes, the stove must be turned off, and the pork must be allowed to cool. Put the pan in the refrigerator for several hours, then take out the meat and let it dry slightly.
Salt, sugar and pepper must be mixed and poured. You can, if desired, add other spices that seem necessary. The resulting mixture should be grated on the boiled ham. The product must be placed in a container, sprinkled with juniper berries. Put a press on top, and then place the pork in a cool and dark place. After 2-3 days, it can be smoked cold or hot. This is how a boiled-smoked ham will turn out at home.
If you wish, you can simplify the preparation process, and just salt the pork. To do this, rub the piece with salt, pepper, garlic and spices, then wrap it in foil and send it to the refrigerator. You need to withstand for about a week to get the most delicious.
It is believed that smoked pork leg is made the fastest by the hot method. The whole process takes from 2 hours to 5 hours depending on the size of the meat. First you need to prepare your smokehouse. It is good if you have a private courtyard where you can cook a product. This will be more convenient than smoking in the apartment.
The device itself is not difficult to buy. But you can do it yourself.
Hot smoked smokehouse
Now it remains to make sure that the pork leg is not over-smoked. Excess smoke should be released every 20 minutes by opening the lid. This is necessary so that the meat does not come out bitter.
On average, a product takes 2-4 hours to cook, but it may take longer. You should monitor its condition and decide for yourself when it will be time to put out the fire. If the pork was boiled in advance, then it may smoke earlier, from 1 hour to two.
The finished dish does not need to be rushed to be served on the table or sent for storage. You need to let it hang in the fresh air for at least a few hours, or preferably a day. After that, you can use it at your discretion.
If we talk about smoking in an apartment, then the principle is the same. The only thing is that instead of a fire, an ordinary gas stove is used. You will need to turn on the burner on it, and place the smokehouse on top.
Cold smoking can be used to cook pork leg. It will give a different taste to the dish, and it will also increase the shelf life. This method is more laborious than the previous one. A special smoker will be required. By the way, the one that is intended for the hot method will not work.
The smokehouse should be equipped with a chimney through which chilled smoke will enter the chamber. A pipe can cope with this function, which in turn comes from a fire. Smoke will flow through it. This is necessary so that the temperature is lower than with conventional smoking. The degree should not rise above 20-25.
In time, the cold method lasts much longer. It will take from several days. It is not worth pulling out the meat prematurely, as it may turn out to be raw. You should hold it enough so that it has time to completely smoke up. After that, leave it hanging outside for a few days, and then use it for food.