Duck prosciutto is made from duck breast. The breast is cured, dried and smoked and then dried further.
Serve very thinly sliced as an appetizer.
the art of making duck prosciutto
The duck breast is first cured in a brine for 4 weeks in the refrigerator. During this process water gets extracted and the meat slightly salted. Then the breasts are first dried for a day in the refrigerator, followed by a warm smoking at 57 C for about 4-5 hours. Thereafter the breasts are dried again in the refrigerator. The duck breasts lose some 25% moist in the process. Their meat becomes dark red and they harden. Serve very thin slices as an appetizer with a beer or a glass of wine. The curing, drying and smoke turn this meat in something truly delicious!
Special equipment
a smoker, a curing bag (vacuum sealed preferred) container and sufficient place in the refrigerator to let the meat further dry.
Duck prosciutto
Equipment
- smoker
- zip lock bags
Ingredients
The curing
- 10.5 oz (300 g) duck breast (I used two smaller ones)
- 0.8 oz (20 g) salt
- 0.2 oz (6 g) sugar
Instructions
the dry cure
- Dry the duck breasts with a paper or kitchen towel
- Weigh out the salt and sugar
- Rub the salt and sugar mixture for two thirds on the meat side and for one third on the skin side
- Then vacuum seal the breasts, while not touching each other and ensure the entire cure mixture is in the bag.
- store for 4 weeks in the refrigerator
- After this, remove the breasts from the vacuum bag, rinse with running water and dry them with a kitchen towel or paper towel.
- then dry in the fridge further for 24 h
the smoking
- warm smoke the dry cured duck breasts for 5-7 h with an end temperature of close to 60 C
the after-cure
- Let the breasts cool down and then air dry in the refrigerator for another day or several more. The breasts have become very dark red colored and have become hard due to the curing and water loss.
- To serve, slice very thinly and offer with drinks or with cheese
Notes
Remarks
For the smoking use hickory or apple wood. For making the prociutto a longer warm smoking time is fine. In the old days (and still in small villages in the mountains of China, where the art is still preserved) , the meat is smoked for days in the smoke of the fire that heats the house or that is used for cooking. And at the same time further drying takes place.
