First project: Goat leg prosciutto
Hello, I'm following this video to make my own goat leg prosciutto. I've cured fish multiple times in the past with generally good results, however, this is the first time I'm attempting to cure meat so I'm a newbie. I deviated from the video by removing the shank so as to minimise the risk of unwanted bacteria developing on the bone (and it doesn't have much meat anyway). I would use a small amount of nitrate/nitrite, but I don't have access to any currently, and I've read that the risk of developing botulinum bacteria is negligible for whole muscle cures.
This is how the meat looks like on the first day! (day of starting the thread too)
Starting weight is 1330 grams
I only have access to a fridge anywhere between 3-7 degrees Celsius which will get opened and closed a lot during the drying time, how big of a problem will this be? I'm in an otherwise warm environment too, so can't hang it elsewhere.
[Update 1] - 4 days later:
I got a hygrometer, which gave me a reading of 65% humidity and 4.5 ˚C at the topmost part of my fridge WITH a plate of water close by. So, I decided to sort of abort curing the whole piece as it was too risky. However, I cut out a smaller piece of 285g (with no bone) to experiment with. I'll soon set it up to dry after it has stayed with salt for a bit longer. I'll cook the rest!
[Update 2] - almost 3 weeks later:
Here is the result after almost 3 weeks of drying in my fridge. Smells and tastes quite good, although too salty, as I didn't properly measure the amount I put.
