Charcuterie : the craft of salting, smoking, and curing

__Charcuterie__—a culinary specialty that originally referred to the creation of pork products such as salami, sausages, and prosciutto—is true food craftsmanship, the art of turning preserved food into items of beauty and taste. Today the term encompasses a vast range of preparations, most of which involve salting, cooking, smoking, and drying. In addition to providing classic recipes for sausages, terrines, and pâtés, Michael Ruhlman and Brian Polcyn expand the definition to include anything preserved or prepared ahead such as Mediterranean olive and vegetable rillettes, duck confit, and pickles and sauerkraut. Ruhlman, coauthor of __The French Laundry Cookbook__, and Polcyn, an expert charcuterie instructor at Schoolcraft College in Livonia, Michigan, present 125 recipes that are both intriguing to professionals and accessible to home cooks, including salted, airdried ham; Maryland crab, scallop, and saffron terrine; Da Bomb breakfast sausage; mortadella and soppressata; and even spicy smoked almonds. 50 line drawings

The only book for home cooks offering a complete introduction to the craft.

CHARCUTERIE—a culinary specialty that originally referred to the creation of pork products such as salami, sausages, and prosciutto—is true food craftsmanship, the art of turning preserved food into items of beauty and taste. Today the term encompasses a vast range of preparations, most of which involve salting, cooking, smoking, and drying. In addition to providing classic recipes for sausages, terrines, and pâtés, Michael Ruhlman and Brian Polcyn expand the definition to include anything preserved or prepared ahead such as Mediterranean olive and vegetable rillettes, duck confit, and pickles and sauerkraut. Ruhlman, coauthor of The French Laundry Cookbook, and Polcyn, an expert charcuterie instructor at Schoolcraft College in Livonia, Michigan, present 125 recipes that are both intriguing to professionals and accessible to home cooks, including salted, airdried ham; Maryland crab, scallop, and saffron terrine; Da Bomb breakfast sausage; mortadella and soppressata; and even spicy smoked almonds.

Charcuterie — a culinary specialty that originally referred to the creation of pork products such as salami, sausages, and prosciutto — is true food craftsmanship, the art of turning preserved food into items of beauty and taste. Today the term encompasses a vast range of preparations, most of which involve salting, cooking, smoking, and drying. In addition to providing classic recipes for sausages, terrines, and pâtés, Michael Ruhlman and Brian Polcyn expand the definition to include anything preserved or prepared ahead such as Mediterranean olive and vegetable rillettes, duck confit, and pickles and sauerkraut. Ruhlman, coauthor of The French Laundry Cookbook, and Polcyn, an expert charcuterie instructor at Schoolcraft College in Livonia, Michigan, present 125 recipes that are both intriguing to professionals and accessible to home cooks, including salted, airdried ham; Maryland crab, scallop, and saffron terrine; Da Bomb breakfast sausage; mortadella and soppressata; and even spicy smoked almonds. 50 line drawings Foreword by Thomas Keller 1. INTRODUCTION The Reason for This Food, This Book: Why We Still Love and Need Hand-Preserved Foods in the Age of the Refrigerator, the Frozen Dinner, Domino’s Pizza, and the 24-Hour Grocery Store 2. RECIPES FOR SALT-CURED FOOD Salt: How the Most Powerful Tool in Your Kitchen Transforms the Humble into the Sublime 3. RECIPES FOR SMOKED FOOD Smoke: The Exotic Seasoning 4. SAUSAGES The Power and the Glory: Animal Fat, Salt, and the Pig Come Together in One of the Oldest, Divine-Yet-Humble Culinary Creations Known to Humankind 5. RECIPES FOR DRY-CURED FOOD The Artist and the Sausage: Techniques and Recipes for Individualistic, Idiosyncratic, and Temperamental Dry-Cured Meats 6.PÂTÉS AND TERRINES The Cinderella Meat Loaf 7. THE CONFIT TECHNIQUE Fat: The Perfect Cooking Environment 8. RECIPES TO ACCOMPANY CHARCUTERIE Sauces and Condiments: Not Optional Acknowledgments Sources Index An introduction to the creation of pork salami, sausages, and prosciutto outlines key techniques in the areas of preserving, cooking, and smoking, in a volume complemented by 125 recipes including Maryland crab, scallop, and saffron terrine; Da Bomb breakfast sausage; and spicy smoked almonds. 15,000 first printing. A comprehensive overview of "charcuterie", the craft of solting, smoking, and curing meat, describing the different preservation methods used, the unique flavors they create, and the many uses for these types of meat