Buzz
I'm a huge fan of pork. Whether it's cured, uncured, roasted, or breaded, I enjoy every form. From the least expensive machine-pressed slices to the finest acorn-fed Iberico, pork has a place in my heart. While most pork dishes are simple to prepare at home, 'homemade cold cuts' is a term you don't often hear. This is unfortunate, because with an immersion circulator, you can easily make them at home.
Sous-vide cooking has its limitations, especially when it comes to temperature. Many foods require a finishing touch, such as broiling or searing in a hot pan, to achieve a bit of browning or char. However, browning and charring are not desirable in cold cuts. What you want is tender, juicy slices of salty meat; dry cold cuts are a major turnoff. This makes sous-vide a perfect option for our cold cut recipe, but slow-cooking pork alone won't give you the right texture. To achieve authentic, sandwich-ready ham, you’ll need curing salt, which is readily available online. (And if you're concerned about nitrates and nitrites, remember that most 'uncured' pork products in grocery stores—those with celery listed in the ingredients—are, frankly, misleading.)
Currently, my go-to curing salt is Morton Tender Quick, a blend of salt, sugar, and curing agents. It imparts that signature pink hue and cured taste to meats and even fish, and it does so quickly. For every pound of meat, mix one tablespoon of curing salt with two tablespoons of brown sugar and rub it thoroughly into the meat. Place it in a bag and refrigerate overnight, and by morning, you'll have a firmer, pinker, saltier piece of pork. (Note: Morton doesn’t recommend this product for making bacon as fat content can vary greatly from belly to belly.)
With just Tender Quick and sous-vide cooking, you can easily create your own homemade ham-like lunchmeat. I say 'ham-like' because I used pork tenderloin instead of a leg, but it has the taste of ham. Tenderloins are uniformly shaped, allowing for even curing, and unlike legs, they are small enough to fit into even the tiniest of refrigerators (like mine). The result is a cured, sous-vide cooked tenderloin that is both salty-sweet and incredibly tender. Although it’s not technically ham, it provides the cured flavor you’re after, with a texture similar to slow-cooked pork, but with just a bit more chew. It’s perfect for sandwiches. To prepare it, you’ll need:
1 pork tenderloin (They often come in pairs, so feel free to double up or save the other for marinating in this stuff.)
1 tablespoon of Morton Tender Quick
2 tablespoons brown sugar
Start by trimming any tapered ends off your tenderloin to create a uniform cylinder. You can snack on the ends for dinner. Remove any silver skin and excess fat using a sharp knife, gently separating the undesirable parts from the meat with your fingers. In a small bowl, combine the curing salt and sugar. Place the tenderloin and the curing mixture into a gallon-sized freezer bag. Shake the bag to coat the tenderloin thoroughly, ensuring that all parts of the meat, even the ends, are well-covered. Refrigerate the bag overnight (8-12 hours).
After curing the meat, set your immersion circulator to 140℉ to prepare your water bath. While the water heats up, take the meat out of the bag and pat it dry with paper towels. Then, place the tenderloin into a fresh freezer bag or a vacuum-seal bag, removing as much air as possible using the water displacement method or a vacuum sealer. Cook the meat in the water bath for three hours, then transfer the bag into an ice bath for 30 minutes. After that, chill it in the fridge for at least an hour (the longer it chills, the easier it will be to slice).
Once the meat has cooled, slice your homemade, cured lunchmeat, then make yourself a sandwich. Enjoy it, and then make another one to take to work, where you can boast about making your own ham that isn’t technically ham, but sure does taste like it. Enjoy the envy and praise from your colleagues as they munch on their tough, store-bought slices, and repeat as necessary.
