Recently the topic of salted under-skin pig fat was raised in the Ketogenic Diet thread. Psyche found an Italian recipe which requires marble containers and enormous amount of time to make. I'd like to offer another recipe, much simpler, for a dainty called salo.
Salo [sɑ:lɔ:] is a traditional Ukrainian and Russian food, and it is an unofficial "symbol" of Ukraine. :) There are many anecdotes about Ukrainians and salo. Usually salo is used as a snack and served with vodka, but KD people may find it as a delicious main course. To make it you will need:
[list type=decimal]
[*]Cut fat so it fits into your container. Salo is kept in the freezer, so consider its size as well.
[*]If you are going to use spices mix salt, garlic and pepper together.
[*]Put bay leafs on the bottom of your container
[*]Now "massage" salt into fat cuts so they have a 1-2mm layer of salt. Or you can put the salt on a table and roll cuts in it, like it's done with flour.
[*]Put salted cuts into container and leave it at room temperature for two days.
[*]When two days pass put your container into cool place (refrigerator) for another couple of days.
[*]Clean all the salt from salo and put it in the freezer. When salo is kept frozen it is much easier to cut, though you can keep just in a cool place and it wont go bad for a long time.
[/list] Best served with home-made mustard. Bone appetite !
P.S. This is a close-to-classic recipe. I don't use spices and keep at room temperature for one day and in a refrigerator for another one, and I'm happy with the result. :)
Salo [sɑ:lɔ:] is a traditional Ukrainian and Russian food, and it is an unofficial "symbol" of Ukraine. :) There are many anecdotes about Ukrainians and salo. Usually salo is used as a snack and served with vodka, but KD people may find it as a delicious main course. To make it you will need:
- Some under-skin fat (with skin) from a pig. Make sure fat has width of least 2cm or salo would be too salted. Fat may have meat parts like in bacon, just make sure that there more fat than meat.
- Coarse ground salt. Get about 1/4 of fat mass.
- Optionally: fine cut garlic, ground red and black pepper, several bay leafs. It is relatively safe to take more than optimal amount of spices, since you will peel them in the end.
- Glass of enameled steel container
[list type=decimal]
[*]Cut fat so it fits into your container. Salo is kept in the freezer, so consider its size as well.
[*]If you are going to use spices mix salt, garlic and pepper together.
[*]Put bay leafs on the bottom of your container
[*]Now "massage" salt into fat cuts so they have a 1-2mm layer of salt. Or you can put the salt on a table and roll cuts in it, like it's done with flour.
[*]Put salted cuts into container and leave it at room temperature for two days.
[*]When two days pass put your container into cool place (refrigerator) for another couple of days.
[*]Clean all the salt from salo and put it in the freezer. When salo is kept frozen it is much easier to cut, though you can keep just in a cool place and it wont go bad for a long time.
[/list] Best served with home-made mustard. Bone appetite !
P.S. This is a close-to-classic recipe. I don't use spices and keep at room temperature for one day and in a refrigerator for another one, and I'm happy with the result. :)
