For those of you who’ve been following the cured meat marathon, and have seen the amazingly simple steps I took with the two duck breasts I got, here’s what happens next. F0r those of you who may have missed this thrilling adventure with salt, click here. (or scroll down)
Now that my duck breasts had cured in salt for more than 24 hours, it was time for the next step. As you can see, it’s just like after being at the beach- they’ve been rinsed of salt and dried, and they have a deeper color.
Step 5: Rinse And Dry Duck
I then got my mise en place, which includes the Third Ingredient, White Pepper (after Duck Breast and Kosher Salt). I took out my butcher twine and some cheese cloth, and the trusty shears.
The Third Ingredient, and the Wrapping Stuff
Step Six: Pepper the Duck
I sprinkled the duck breasts on both sides with the ground white pepper. This adds a nice fruity smell, some bright pepper flavor, and deters insects during the drying process, which will last for the rest of the 8 days.
Step Seven: Wrap in Cheesecloth, Tie With String
As you can see, I wrapped the peppered duck breasts in cheesecloth, and tied them up with butcher string with extended loops, so I have something to hang them from. Step Eight was to hang them on a h0ok in the basement, which is about 65 degrees, with about 70 percent humidity, or a little higher since we’ve had lots of rain this week.
I’m planning to serve this, sliced very thin, with pieces of melon as a canape at our big party next week. We’ll see!
