Those of you familiar with this blog know that I made my own bacon a few weeks ago for the first time. You may also remember that one of the mini-slabs that I cured was destined to become pancetta, the unsmoked Italian form of bacon. After being steeped in a flavorful cure of salt, sugar, garlic, thyme, juniper berries, bay leaves, black pepper and nutmeg for a week, then rinsed and dried, I rolled the slab into as tight a cylinder as I could muster, and tied it with cotton twine. I hung it up in an old beverage fridge that maintains a constant 58 degrees, no matter what, for 2 weeks, and Voila!
My very own pancetta! Hanging it up for the two weeks dried and firmed it a little, and will supposedly deepen the flavor. I haven't had an opportunity to use it yet, but I couldn't wait to share with you.
