Curing Box/Chamber


 
T

TonyD

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Just bought Ruhlman's book and tried some fresh sausage recipes over the weekend. Came out great!

Next I want to do some dry curing (salami, pancetta, ham, etc). I want to create the right temp/humidity combination, but my basement is too dry.

Does anyone out there have photos/plans for a curing box/chamber that doesn't involve a fridge? Can you simply build a box, add a humidifier and place it in a cooler basement?

Any help is appreciated. Thanks....
 
I have neither plans nor pics but, yes, you can build a box. Stability is the issue - in temp and in humidity.

Monitor your ambient temp and humidity now. That will let you know what you can get away with. I have not found humidifiers to be needed in the majority of cases. Trays of heavily salted water are usually sufficient if the box is of reasonable size. Air circulation is important. Stability of temp and humidity is key.
 
Thanks. Any preference on how the box is constructed or size? Do I need to avoid any materials? I assume I would want it to be easy to clean...
 
Anything toxic or that which will more rapidly deteriorate due to the higher humidity must be avoided. Yes, you must be able to clean it well.

Size depends on you and your likely need in terms of quantities of meats at any one time.

Insulation can be important so stability is more easily maintained. It should be raised off the floor for the same reason. It must be constructed so that crawling critters can't enter.

Really, imo, a fridge is the way to go. It's easy to rig to maintain stable higher temps than what it was designed for (so can be used year round), is easy to clean, is easy to humidify with salted water, is easy to rig for air circulation and, when all is considered, is usually far cheaper to set up. Used fridges are cheap, especially small ones like those for small kitchens or apartments, or dorm-sized.

The can be made with other materials, certainly, though.
 
I have read a bit about building curing chambers, unfortunately it appears as if I haven't save any of the links. We should build a comprehensive database of info regarding curing chamber. I'm going to spend some time on this trying to find the old links I've read and post them here. This one was easy to find, the others might take some work.

http://curedmeats.blogspot.com...-curing-chamber.html
 
I've got a "Chest Freezer" in the garage that I was going to convert to a curing cabinet once the Venison is gone.
 
OK, here's my plan. Please poke holes in it before I go any further!

I bought a large file tote from Staples. It is the type where the top closes with two hinged doors. I can place it on one end so the doors can open outwards instead of up, insert the water pan with salt (as directed in Charcuterie) and drill a couple holes to hang meat from/for ventilation. The plan is to position the box in my cooler temp basement. I'll take some photos when complete.

Tell me where my plan has gone wrong...Thanks
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">OK, here's my plan. Please poke holes in it before I go any further! </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I'm still looking, but I have read of someone doing something similar.
 
I've been wanting to do this as well, and have been wondering about the circulation. Is it just the circulation of the air inside the "box" or does it require fresh air in and stale air out?

Also, I've been considering repurposing a used wine fridge (seem to be a few of those for sale in the bay area) and wonder if I'm going too small. The idea with the wine fridge is that it's already designed to keep the temp in the desired range, all that would need to be worked out is the humidity, either by salt water tray or small humidifier.

What do you think?
 
I've got a pork belly curing now for pancetta. Any final suggestions for a curing box? Need to increase my humidity!!
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">I've got a pork belly curing now for pancetta. Any final suggestions for a curing box? Need to increase my humidity!! </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

not necessarily. As long as you do not roll the belly and hang it as a slab, humidity is a non factor.
 
No need to roll? Is the rolling only for looks? Will I end up hanging it for less time since there will be more surface area exposed?
 
Looks and it probably lengthens drying time. You don't want to risk case hardening which can happen with stuff with large cross sections. If you leave it as a slab, it will dry fast, but you pretty much eliminate any chance of case hardening.

Hang it, and take it down when it's firm but plyable. I got some small pieces hanging now and can let you know what kind of weight loss your looking for.
 
OK,I'm a rookie WSM runner, but very tempted to build a curing chamber. I see that the recommendation is to use an old fridge with the freezer on the bottom.
All the ones on our local craigslist are freezer on the top. Any reason I cant just run mine upside down?
icon_smile.gif
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Any reason I cant just run mine upside down? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

just a guess, but the pump that runs the refrigerant probably is designed to work in one orientation. That way the oil drains into the pan. I worked at a place that sold AC units and we use to tell people to let it sit, right side up, for a few min before turning it on to insure the oil was all in the pan.

The only reason for the bottom freezer is for space. You can cut a hole between the two zones and put you humidifier in the bottom freezer and have the whole top part free for meat.
 
OK, at long last here it is...

After a week of curing the soon to be pancetta, I put together my curing box. As described above, it is a hinged top filing box from Staples. Pan of water and salt in the bottom. Holes drilled in the top to hang the meat from and to allow the sensor from the thermometer/hygrometer to enter. Took the photo right after the set up so hoping that the temp will drop and the humidity will rise! Placed this on the steps of the bulkhead in the unfinished portion of my basement.

Let me know your thoughts....

Curing Box Photo
 
Tony, what kind of humidity are you reading? I get about 50% in my basement (without any supplemental humidification) and don't have problems curing belly. You should be fine.
 
Our house is perched on top of a small hill, so the basement is dry. In the (very limited) readings I've taken, the highest humidity has been approx 30%. Hoping that my curing box can boost that up a bit. We'll see....

One other question, when hanging the belly I noticed one small section of meat that was under a flap of fat that was not cured (grey) as the rest of the belly. Is this an issue? Will I have to watch this spot for mold?
 
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