How to Cure Pancetta

Pancetta can be found in Italian delis or you can make your own.

Pancetta is an Italian style of bacon, cured and then dried without smoking to concentrate the flavors. Prosciutto --- the corresponding style of Italian ham --- has become very popular in America, but pancetta is harder to find. If you live in a city with an Italian neighborhood you may find some there, otherwise high-end retailers or online ordering are your best bet. For those who want to try their hand at it, pancetta is one of the easiest meats to cure at home.

Things You'll Need

• 1 slab pork belly, approximately 4 1/2 to 5 lbs.
• Cutting board
• Sharp knife
• Bowl
• Kitchen scale
• Basic curing mixture:
• 8 parts coarse pickling salt, by weight
• 4 parts granulated sugar, by weight
• 1 part "pink salt" by weight (see tips)
• Zipper-seal plastic bag
• Flavoring ingredients:
• 1 oz. crushed black peppercorns
• 1 oz. brown sugar
• 2 bay leaves
• Optional flavoring ingredients:
• Crushed coriander seeds
• Crushed juniper berries
• Thyme
• Nutmeg
• Large zipper-seal plastic bag, or plastic container with lid
• Paper towels
• Kitchen twine

Instructions

Brining the Pork Belly

1. Place the slab of belly meat on your cutting board. If it still has a rind of skin on it, trim that off with your knife and reserve it for other uses. Trim the pork belly into a neat rectangle and set it aside in your refrigerator.

2. Prepare the basic dry curing mixture. Start with 1/2 lb. of salt, 1/4 lb. of sugar, and 1 oz. of the pink salt. Weigh each ingredient separately in a bowl on your kitchen scale, then pour it into a plastic bag. Seal the bag, and shake it to mix the curing ingredients thoroughly.

3. Pour half of the curing mixture back into your mixing bowl. Add the brown sugar, pepper, bay leaves and any optional flavoring ingredients. Mix thoroughly.

4. Rub the pork belly thoroughly with the flavored curing mix, ensuring that it is evenly coated. Place the pork belly in a large zipper-seal plastic bag, or a large plastic container with a lid, coated side down. Coat the upper side with curing mixture, as well. If necessary, supplement the mixture with a little more of your basic curing mix.

5. Refrigerate the pork belly for up to a week, turning it every day. Press the belly with a finger every day when you turn it, starting on the fourth day. When even the thickest portion of the belly is firm to the touch, your pork is fully cured.

Drying the Pork Belly

1. Remove the pork belly from the refrigerator when it is fully cured. Rinse off the curing salt with cold running water and pat the pork dry with clean paper towels.

2. Roll the pork belly into a tight cylinder, like a jelly roll, and tie it in place with kitchen twine. It could also be left flat, like conventional bacon, but the rolled shape is traditional.

3. Cut a small hole in a corner of the pancetta and run a loop of kitchen twine through it. Hang it in a cool place with good air circulation, where it will be safe from pets or opportunistic pests. If you have a spare refrigerator with nothing else in it, set it to its warmest temperature and hang the bacon in the fridge.

4. Dry a flat slab of pancetta for seven to 10 days, then package it for refrigeration or freezing. Rolled pancetta will take longer to dry, approximately four to eight weeks depending on the temperature and degree of air circulation where it hangs. The roll can be cut in half to speed drying, if desired.

Tips & Warnings

• Some surface mold may appear on a rolled pancetta while it is drying. This is normal, and can simply be washed off with vinegar and water.

References

• Fine Cooking; Pancetta vs. Bacon; Jennifer Armentrout; June 2003
• Leite's Culinaria; Homemade Pancetta; Micheal Ruhlman; May 2005
• Culinary Tips; Make Your Own Pancetta at Home; May 2010

Resources

• "Charcuterie: The Craft of Salting, Smoking and Curing"; Michael Ruhlman et al.; 2005