When we were in New Orleans a few weekends ago we ended up eating dinner at an Italian place where one of the appetizers on he menu was a simple salad of arugula, parmigiano reggiano, and bresaola. I pointed it out to Cheryl and said something like ‘you know that beef I cured and hung downstairs? well this is what it’s going to turn into.’ Of course, we ordered it.
A few weeks back I found myself wanting to have a go at curing something other than pork and looked in Salumi for ideas where I found a recipe for bresaola, cured and air-dried beef from Lombardy. The narrative recommended using a very lean cut of beef because unlike the fat in pork cuts which gives more flavor, beef fat doesn’t take well to air-curing. So I picked up some eye of round roast, trimmed off the excess fat (not much), and got to curing.
Just like curing whole pork muscles there’s not much to curing whole beef muscles. Make up a cure, cure the meat for a few days, rinse off the cure, tie up the beef, then hang and dry until it loses 30% of its weight. I’m really starting to get the technique down. One difference in this particular cure is the addition of some wine which makes it a wet cure as opposed to just rubbing the cut with salt and aromatics. The only new (and exciting) thing I really can report on about this curing experiment is I actually got some of the good white mold on it! One day I went downstairs to check on it, opened up the fridge and saw some white stuff on the outside. First reaction was ‘oh no’ but when I pulled one of the pieces out to get a closer look I realized it was the beneficial, protective kind of mold. Well done, helpful bacteria! 3-4 weeks later I had some wonderfully cured beef which has a smooth texture and a nutty, salty, beefy taste.
Bresaola is a great ingredient for the seasonal segue into summer from spring. It takes arugula around 35 days to mature. Almost the same amount of time it takes to cure bresaola. Hmmm. Coincidence? I think not! And like many things, it’s best when kept simple. I feel bresaola is meant to be served just like the salad we ate: thinly sliced with a little lemon, arugula, and Parmigiano. Pepper, salt, acid, cheese. Not many ingredients but oh the taste! You can even take those same ingredients and put them on top of some pizza dough or focaccia. I can’t stress enough the squeeze of lemon. While you’re going to be very happy with your bresaola, the acid in the lemon just opens up the flavor even more and adds a nice balance to the saltiness.
Don’t worry, I haven’t stopped learning how to cure pork. If you follow me on Twitter you know what was in the curing fridge alongside the bresaola and while I don’t mean to brag I think the bresaola’s fridge-mate might be the best thing I’ve cured yet! Tune in next week for that one.
Bresaola (adapted from Ruhlman and Polcyn’s Salumi)
- 3-4 lb beef eye of round
- Kosher salt
- 2 tsp ground black pepper
- 2 tsp thyme
- 10 juniper berries, crushed
- 4 bay leaves, crushed and ground
- 1 tsp nutmeg
- ½ C white wine
Using the salt box method, dredge the beef in the salt, making sure it is covered entirely.
Place beef in a Ziploc bag big enough to hold it.
Mix all other ingredients together and pour into bag. Rub seasonings all over beef, seal up bag, and place in refrigerator for 7-9 days. Flip the bag over and redistribute the cure every other day or so.
When the time is up remove the beef from the bag, rinse off the cure, dry off, and allow to air dry on a baking rack on the counter for 3 hours.
Tie it like a roast, weigh and record the amount. Hang in your curing chamber for 3 weeks or until it loses 70% 30% of its weight.
The Roaming GastroGnome 
Incredible! I’ve got to get my book out and start curing!
Just wait for this week’s post… 🙂
Great article. You made an error at the end though. It’s till it loses “30% of its weight.” Not 70%. That would make it beef jerkey 🙂
Thanks for the catch! Correct, it should be 30%.
awesome charcuterie!!!
i just made my bresaola from water buffallo….
Thanks! That sounds wonderful!
Enjoyable article! I’m working on my own Bresaola this morning. I’ve done the curing over the last two weeks. Where I’m deviating from your method is to use a quality food dehydrator to speed the drying. Of course, I won’t get those beneficial molds and the extra enzymatic action your more natural method produces. But…I don’t have a proper environment for slow curing.
Thank you! Interesting idea, let me know how it turns out!
Does this recipe need curing salt or does the kosher salt do the job.
Kosher salt is all you need.
Thanks. I just tried some and it’s really good.
You know your stuff !
Thank you! That one always cures great.
Peter I can’t believe how much I’m enjoying the Brasaola. It officially passed a huge test this past week. I gave some to an italian friend who’s 20 or so relatives are visiting him from Italy. He said their eyebrows raised in joy and they asked him where he got it as it was as good as they get at home. Oh yeah I think starting this week that I’ll be carrying a piece with me. Mmmmm
Thanks for sharing
Steve
Glad to hear it! Yes, I’ve also gotten rave reviews by people from the old country. Keep up the good work!
Ruhlman uses the curing salt, yours doesn’t.. how does that affect the final product? Does it keep longer, or cure faster or slower? Sorry if this was already addressed, I may have missed it. I’m just getting into curing meats and charcuterie, so I thought I’d ask.
Curing salt is added more for protection against bacteria during the curing process rather than aiding the cure or speeding things up. It does add some color and piquant taste, like in bacon. Some cures require it more than others. For whole muscle cures liek this it isn’t necessary. Need it more in things you smoke, like jagerwurst, or sausages you’re curing like salami. Does this help?
Thanks for the reply, every little bit helps! I’m always ready to learn new things when it comes to food! I’m waiting on my Duck Breast Prosciutto to finish up and I’m about to start the Bresaola. The pork belly bacon I did a few weeks ago was fantastic, hopefully these latest turn out just as good or better!
Really enjoying your blog, thanks!
Very down to earth instructions!Now, how about your curing chamber.What kind of environment are you looking for?Particular humidity, temperature, air circulation?
Thank you.
Peter
Sorry for not responding sooner! From what I’ve read and studied you are suposed to start the humidity high and lower it gradually. Practice-wise, I really just keep a big pan of water in the curing fridge. Temp should be between 50-60F, I like to keep mine around 55F. As far as air circulation, I feel this is the most important of the three. I keep the door ajar with a piece of wood dowel and have a small fan inside the fridge which I have plugged into one of those light timers so it goes on and off every 4 hours. Set-up works just fine!
How do you control your humidity? I was considering picking up another wine fridge to cure in, but the humidity thing has me thinking.
For something small like a wine fridge, a large pan/baking dish filled with salted water will work just fine. I’ve been using that method in a small upright fridge and results have been fine.