Anyone ever made Pancetta?

  • I am going to try and make Pancetta. I am going to use boned Picnic shoulder instead of the traditional Pork Belly. I found two 8lbs. picnics at Food Lion for $1.03/lb. so at least it will only be an $8 experiment if I fail. I will try and trim meat so that it is uniform for rolling. I am debating using the Transglutaminase or Meat Glue for that. Thought it might make for an interesting roll. Now to figure out which of the 18,431 Italian variations to pick?

    If anyone has cured one for Pancetta, using either Belly or shoulder and found it to have wonderful flavor, please share your finding! I am off to skin and bone the Picnic?

    "‘One who puts on his armor should not boast like one who takes it off.’”

  • Boned. I also have it trimmed, Moo Glued & vac sealed for 24 hours, sorry forgot photos of that! The small pieces were put back into the main section and hopefully will bond and it will roll up nicely!

    "‘One who puts on his armor should not boast like one who takes it off.’”

  • Lamb prosciutto, there is a thread about it on here somewhere, it was in the very early days of the forum.



    Traeger - Weber Family Q - Ziggy Twin Burner - Charcoal Grill - Akorn Kamado - Hark Tri Fire - Jumbuck Pizza Oven - Go Anywhere - Asmoke Pellet Grill - Hibachi Grill - Anova Sous Vide x 2

  • I have the 1st phase of the cure on. It is a 4 day process. The meat glue worked pretty well. Thursday will be the 2nd round of cure and 37° for another 4 days. Then it is to hang and air dry at 55° and 50% RH for 3 days. It is then supposed to be put in two 5 inch fibrous casings, which I am not going to do. I am just going to truss. It then Air Dry's for 20 days at 55° and is supposed to be ready to use. Hope it is a valid recipe.

    "‘One who puts on his armor should not boast like one who takes it off.’”

  • Im interested in this MOO GLUE....

    Never heard of it before... I had to throw away a fair chunk of prosciutto off one of my deboned legs recently it had gone bad in the cracks where the bone was removed.

    Im wondering if I try this stuff to hold the meat together to stop the rot????

    Never enough BBQ

    Primo XL, Imperial Kamado, Pro Smoke Offest, Pot belly stove, Flaming coals Spit , Jumbuck 'Rondo' Med spit, Webber Kettles, Small SS battery spit , 5 Burner beefmaster, gasmate portable bbq,

  • side track I know, but years ago i made prosciutto. It got to the sweat stage so i judiciously hung out in my garage, right out in the middle where it would be safe. My son's stag hound must have grabbed a slide rule and paper to work it out, but jumped on the chest freezer, from there to a fridge and finally a perfectly timed and judged leap of faith into nothingness, grabbing the prosciutto and dragging it to the ground.

    When i found the partly devoured meat i couldn't believe she would or could do it, i laughed, i cried, i became so scarred i haven't been able to make another attempt.

  • I do not know for certain, but I doubt it. I do not think it will work on fat or bone, only meat on meat. I was not that happy with the way this came out but better then nothing, Will have some pictures tomorrow and I will show what I mean.

    Im interested in this MOO GLUE....

    Never heard of it before... I had to throw away a fair chunk of prosciutto off one of my deboned legs recently it had gone bad in the cracks where the bone was removed.

    Im wondering if I try this stuff to hold the meat together to stop the rot????

    "‘One who puts on his armor should not boast like one who takes it off.’”

  • This is after 2 days of vac seal and Meat Glue & then 4 days of curing spices. The remaining curing rub is now applied and it is back in the fridge at 37° for 4 more days. I have never seen a spice/cure turn pork that color.

    "‘One who puts on his armor should not boast like one who takes it off.’”

  • The lowest I can get the fridge is 46°, so I am 9° lower then the recipe calls for. Such is life when you don't have the proper equipment. Thought I would see what the weight was (2.73kg). I will now hang for 20 days and is supposed to be done by then. I do these things, and then I realize, if I ever have had Pancetta, it was so long ago I don't remember, so I have no idea what it should taste like. Hopefully, worst case scenario, it will be like very meaty Belly bacon! Will see how much it weights in 20 days,

    Again, please take note of how Professionally the Trussing looks! It's like something out of a Food Magazine!

    "‘One who puts on his armor should not boast like one who takes it off.’”

  • It is to finish curing on the 30th, but I was curious how it would taste and cook now. Having no memory of every eating Pancetta, I have no idea if it is accurate on taste. It is not bad, not quite as good a Belly Bacon, but at a dollar a pound, will go well in the Hoppin' John I am making this Friday!

    "‘One who puts on his armor should not boast like one who takes it off.’”

  • It does not have bad flavor, but the texture is not the same as belly bacon. Much more meat in a rolled picnic then a belly. It works well in beans or dished that like some pork. It would do well in green beans or greens, or the like. If I see them this cheap again, I will try a traditional bacon cure! Not sure it will make a good BLT, but will probably try one if we ever get a ripe tomato!


    "‘One who puts on his armor should not boast like one who takes it off.’”

Participate now!

Don’t have an account yet? Register yourself now and be a part of our community!