Pork Capicola

Capicola is a traditional dry cured, cold cut meat of Italian origin. It is a whole muscle meat which is dry cured for sometimes months and is served in extremely thin slices. It is very flavourful and melts in your mouth. Enjoy very thinly sliced on your charcuterie boards with cheese, olives etc and a chilled beer or wine.

Finished product from my last batch of Capicola

Recipe and method below.

Day 1 of new batch of Capicola

Day 7 coated and netted

Hung in charcuterie fridge (61% humidity, 17 deg C)

Ideal is set to 70% and 16 Deg C but meat losing moisture will affect humidity.

Only 4 - 5 Weeks to go

Pork Capicola, can be called Capocollo or Coppa

Ingredients:

• Coppa (Pork Neck) – 2kg
• Salt – 1 cup
• Brown Sugar – 1 cup
• Coriander seed powder 25g
• Nitrite,  – 4g
• Black Pepper – 20g
• Fresh Thyme - 5 sprigs
• Red Chilli flakes - 50g
• Fennel Seeds – 20g
• Garlic Powder – 50g
• Onion Powder - 50g
• 500 ml white wine
• Cotton Netting
• black pepper, paprika and fennel for coating.

Method:

• Combine all spices and salts.
• Rub into meat covering the surface entirely. Make sure you rub into all the gaps and cracks to ensure a complete cure.
• Add Garlic and Thyme, press firmly into meat. Add additional spices, wine and seasonings of preference.
• Place meat into a cryovac bag or container.
• Place into refrigerator for 7 days.
• Turn meat every 24 hours. 
• There will be moisture build up. This is normal. Turning the meat over every 24 hours ensures this moisture coats the meat and helps enable the curing process.
• After 7 days, remove from the bag or container and rinse under tepid water thoroughly, ensuring to remove all excess salts and spices from the surface of the meat.
• Put the Capicola into netting, ready for ageing.
• Dust your meat with a small amount of additional Chilli flakes, black pepper, paprika and fennel seeds.
• Hang in your charcuterie fridge @ 70% humidity and 16 Deg C.

This batch will be ready after approximately 5 weeks, when the meat weighs approximately 2/3 of wet weight. Dry ageing for longer will result in a lighter, saltier, denser end product. Therefore age according to personal preference.