VENI HAM
- Thread starter swampy
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flyingfisherman
Well-Known Member
I was toying with the idea of buying one but thought it a bit extravagant if I only use it once!
flyingfisherman
Well-Known Member
Here's a link to mine.. Don't know if it works??
It's the smoked one. Smells good, tastes good, just like jerky really.. Definitely need to get the butcher to whizz it through a proper slicer..
It's the smoked one. Smells good, tastes good, just like jerky really.. Definitely need to get the butcher to whizz it through a proper slicer..
Hung one of mine in the larder where it stays around 10-12c and about 70% humidity at the moment which I think should be ok although it has no air flow. The other one I thought I'd hang in the smoker box which may impart a subtle smokiness while it's drying just by being in there as it smells lovely!! Will keep an eye on them and post back,
Stratts
Stratts
Michael McCormick
Member
Damn! That looks a quality piece of meat FF. Probably worth about £400+ if it was in Harrods!! 
flyingfisherman
Well-Known Member
Thanks, to be fair im surprised how well it has turned out.. legolas was a great help on here.. I took it to a friends restaurant and showed his old italian chef, who makes his own beef bresaola.. he said it was a bit over cured as when you cut through the haunch, there was probably 30% of pink/red meat in the middle, which he said is what you're looking for, the rest was a dark port colour. he also said about doing the muscles separately in stead of doing the whole haunch.
It still tastes bloody good though.. As for the smoked vs unsmoked.. i think i preferred the unsmoked..
It still tastes bloody good though.. As for the smoked vs unsmoked.. i think i preferred the unsmoked..
Erik Hamburger
Well-Known Member
I tried it recently with a leg of Muntjac, following a recipe to the letter.
The meat was inedible salty and covered with differrent coloured moults so I binned it.
I think the completely burying a haunch in salt is a huge overkill and can only end up with a very salty end product. I think it became a popular method when Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall took that approach with making a proscuitto with a pigs leg. When you bear in mind that some 75% of the pig leg is coveredd with skin as opposed to the completely uncovered venison haunch, it's not surprising that you'd end up with a very salty ham. You can dry cure a ham with far far less salt then you would expect, I have a 3 year old pig ham that I cured with approx 1 tablespoon of salt, a lot less than I usually use but I was copying an old method I'd read about, it aged beautifully over 3 years and tastes fantastic, I wouldn't suggest going down that route for a first attempt, but as an experiment, and for my own consumption only, I was happy to give it a go. Personally I think that using a cure which is a mix of a reasonable amount of salt, cure#2 and your own herbs and spices is the best way to go. I'm pretty new to curing venison haunches so I don't have any definate ratios or timings yet but It's certainly interesting working it out.
Buggered
I fear my 2 haunches may be buggered as it got warm in my larder the last couple of days and I forgot to move them somewhere cooler!! The white stuff smells like cheese and looks like the outside of a nice brie, lol!! I wiped them down last week with vinegar as there were some mould spores appearing but I think they're destined for the bin!
I fear my 2 haunches may be buggered as it got warm in my larder the last couple of days and I forgot to move them somewhere cooler!! The white stuff smells like cheese and looks like the outside of a nice brie, lol!! I wiped them down last week with vinegar as there were some mould spores appearing but I think they're destined for the bin!
flyingfisherman
Well-Known Member
Stratts... i wouldn't throw them out if i were you.. Legolas may be able to advise?
Mine turned out great. Apart from the debrief points i listed. I did talk to a local butcher and he reckoned any redness in the middle showed something that was UNDER cured..
Im not sure what the right answer is, but seem to think that as long as it doesnt start humming and rotting then it should be ok to eat.. Ive got a tiny bit of my smoked one left and about 1/2 of the unsmoked..
Mine turned out great. Apart from the debrief points i listed. I did talk to a local butcher and he reckoned any redness in the middle showed something that was UNDER cured..
Im not sure what the right answer is, but seem to think that as long as it doesnt start humming and rotting then it should be ok to eat.. Ive got a tiny bit of my smoked one left and about 1/2 of the unsmoked..
flyingfisherman
Well-Known Member
Hey Stratts.. Any updates?
Mine worked.. Im doing another two mini ones with the faux fillet from the haunches.. Idea is that they wont take as long to dry. They will be going in the smoker next week and then hung to dry. More to come..
Mine worked.. Im doing another two mini ones with the faux fillet from the haunches.. Idea is that they wont take as long to dry. They will be going in the smoker next week and then hung to dry. More to come..
flyingfisherman
Well-Known Member
nwalker. Sounds like a good idea in principle. What recipe did you follow and why didn't it work?
Hey mate sorry I forgot to reply to this thread, mine dried out too much in the end. I could slice off some bits but they ended up like jerky strips so it ended up in the bin. Some of the softer meat further in was ok but no-one else that tried it liked it so I'll be sticking to jerky from now on. It also got a bit of mould in the crevices of the meat so I thought it may be a bit dodgy to keep eating,
Stratts
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