ASK MAUREEN “J” Asks: How Much Salt Do I Need?
“In the recipe archive for capicola, the recipe asks for 6 tbsps of salt for 4 1/2 pounds of meat, but on the video the lady only uses 3 tbsps. of salt for 4 1/2 pounds of meat. Could you please verify which of the recipes is correct?”
Good catch, "J"! A bit more salt is safer than a bit too little, but 3% salt to weight of meat is critical for safety and for flavor.
Here’s the thing, typical American volume measurements are terrible for measuring salt accurately. When you simply measure in teaspoons, the type and brand of salt make a huge difference.
Type: You must use non-iodized salt in charcuterie and fermented sausage. Iodized salt interferes with fermentation. Table salt and sea salt usually have smaller crystals. This makes them denser, or "heavier." One teaspoon of table salt is twice as much salt as kosher salt. If you measure salt in teaspoons, table salt will give you much saltier results. Kosher salt is best, but not all kosher salt is alike.
Brand: Did you know that Mortons Kosher Salt is almost double the weight of Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt!
To do the job right, you need two things:
1. the right kind of salt
2. a good digital kitchen scale
For safety, all the volume measurements in UMAi Dry recipes are based on Diamond Crystal Kosher salt. It is the “lightest” and “fluffiest” of the common salts. If you don’t have a scale, you can use the teaspoon measurements in our recipes with confidence. Just keep in mind than any salt other than Diamond Crystal might give you a saltier--but still safe--result.
No scale? Can't find Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt?
You can always buy the UMAi Dry Premixed Curing Salts Blend for 5#. This will give you exactly the right proportions of kosher salt (3%) and Instacure #2 slow acting curing salt (0.25%) for any five pound charcuterie or salumi project.
Sadly, you will still need that digital scale! How else will you weigh your start and finish weight? For safety, always dry until you achieve 35-40% weight loss.
Target weight formula = start weight x 0.65
Hope this helps.
Maureen
UMAi Dry Sales & Support
