Cured:salted, spiced,dried, smoked, potted, pickled, raw

Published 2010 by Jacqui Small. 

Shortlisted for an Andre' Simon Award

Guild of Food Writers’ Awards Recipe Book of the Year 2011

Many people ask me exactly what is curing – curing is a collective name for all forms of preserving; drying, salting, smoking, spicing, marinating, potting, pickling and raw. It is a subject as old as man himself – who even as a hunter gatherer faced the eternal problem of how to store food in times of plenty for leaner times.

What I love about curing is that it is culinary alchemy. It is like turning base metal into gold. For example a good jam captures the essence of the main ingredient. The flavour is intensified and takes on something of its own. This is true of every kind of preserving; think salmon then think about smoked salmon, think beef then think pastrami, and think pork think prosciutto. Curing is exciting and addictive and best of all it is easy to do; it uses few ingredients and simple techniques, but it takes its time. This is true slow food. Once you have mastered the basics you can play around with ingredients and create all kinds of new flavours.

You may say, why cure now that we have fridges and freezers. As I have already said curing intensifies, deepens and enriches the flavour and offers room for experimentation. Curing also prolongs the life of meat, fish and vegetables and once you have cured your loin of pork, smoked your salmon, potted your rabbit these delicious dishes keep really well which means you always have something delicious in the fridge to offer friends or simply to treat yourself with.

Like making preserves you need top quality seasonal ingredients. Let the seasons work for you and don’t rush things, be organised, start with small cuts of meat and fish until you have perfected the curer’s craft. Remember this is not science, there are rules but you must use some common sense. Temperature and humidity will affect timing, each piece of meat or fish will respond differently. There is much to learn from experience

Curing is liberating – we have all become slaves to the last minute meal but this puts great pressure on the cook. Gravadlax may take three days to make but it takes only a few minutes and a few ingredients to prepare – add boiled potatoes and a dill sauce and at the end of it you have a meal fit for a king with no hassle what so ever. You just need to think about it in advance.

One last word Curing is not only about preserving lumps of meat and fish; it allows you to make all kinds of delicate dishes on a very domestic level. Salting and spicing takes roast pheasant to another level. Confits de canard, transfers a few inexpensive stringy duck legs into a melt in the mouth treat. Smoking a trout on the top of your kitchen stove and eating it hot is sublime and the secret is simply to think ahead.

WHAT THE PAPERS SAY:
NIGEL SLATER The Observer, Sunday 12 December 2010
Those who get a taste for curing salmon might like to take a look at Lindy Wildsmith's new book, Cured (Jacqui Small, £30). There is a beetroot gravadlax like the one below, which was a good starting point for my own cure, plus every possible recipe for the home curer, from a marinated spiced tuna loin to salted pork with lentils. A useful stocking filler for the more serious cook.

FOOD AND TRAVEL MAGAZINE : "A gift for the chef who has everything, this book unveils the delights of curing your own food. An enjoyable read of charming anecdotes and descriptions of regional specialities, the recipes go well beyond the familiar Parma ham and gravlax - think oriental Jerky or pickled oysters"

GREAT BRITISH FOOD:  "Curing, salting, smoking and sousing in-house is a hot trend amongst gastropubs, and this inspiring book encourages home cooks to get in on the action. Its master stroke is to show that great things can be achieved in the domestic kitchen, whether a simple cerviche or confit, or more elaborate stove-top smoke. Enticing stuff for cooks of all levels."

RESTAUANT MAGAZINE:  "As we regress into our culinary pasts we cannot fail to come face to face with the curers crafts - is how food writer Lindy Wildsmith introduces Cured, her 280-page tome on self preservation. Indeed the book takes a look at some of the earliest cooking methods, but is more about contemporary cooking than a genuflect to the good ol'days.
Neatly divided into seven sections - salted, spiced and marinated, dried, smoked. potted, pickled and raw - Cured gives an overview of each technique before attacking a wide range of dishes, from the basics (salt beef, kippers, etc) to more technically challenging (Chinese smoked guinea fowl and crepinette au marrons)."

Cured: Slow Techniques for Flavouring Meat, Fish and Vegetables by Lindy Wildsmith
Jacqui Small, £30 (£24.00 at the Guardian bookshop)

THE GUARDIAN : “Cured feeds my fantasies of living a more leisured, laid-back life where I have time to do all sorts of creative things in the kitchen. A bible on preserving.”
Fiona Becket - Best Christmas Gifts Guardian Dec. 2010

More books by Lindy Wildsmith

Eating Outdoors - 2006 re branded 2008 Sunny Days & Easy Living - Rylands, Peters and Small

Pasta Sauces - 2004 - Rylands, Peters and Small

Preserves (Jams Pickles and liqueurs) - 2004 - Rylands, Peters and Small

Tutta Pasta - 1994 - Aurum Press

for reviews and more info

Lindy's Books on www.thechefsroom.co.uk
 

Preserves
published September 2004