Bresaola
Discover the art of making Bresaola through my carefully crafted recipe, a journey that transforms high-quality beef into an exquisite, air-dried delicacy. Originating from the northern regions of Italy, Bresaola is celebrated for its lean texture and deep, wine-infused aromas. My recipe guides you through the meticulous process of curing, which involves a harmonious blend of salt, juniper berries, rosemary, and thyme, followed by a patient aging period that allows the flavors to develop fully. The result is a beautifully rich, ruby-red meat with a delicate balance of savory and slightly herbaceous notes, perfect for adding a touch of Italian elegance to your charcuterie boards or salads
Bresaola
This Bresaola recipe is a journey into Italian culinary tradition, guiding you through the process of curing and aging beef with a blend of herbs and spices, resulting in a lean, flavor-rich delicacy perfect for enhancing any charcuterie experience.
Equipment
- Vacuum Pack equipment If not available, you can use a ZipLock bag
- Vacuum bags or ZipLock Bags This is only used during the brining period
- Gloves
- Natural casing or Collagen Sheets I use collagen sheets because easier to work with and give amazing results when using a high humidity curing chamber
- Butcher's twine
- Elastic Netting
- Sharp knife
- Waterproof labels
- Thin tip permanent marker
Ingredients
- 1.5 kg Eye Round Beef
Spices
- 34 grams Salt
- 22 grams Sugar
- 4 grams Insta Cure #2 This is totally optional
- 5 grams Crushed Black Pepper
- 3 grams Fresh Rosemary
- 4 grams Fresh Thyme
- 3 grams Juniper berries Roughly crushed
- 4 Bay Leaves
Instructions
- Remove all fat and silver skin from the beef eye of round. Bresaola is very lean.
- In a small bowl, mix together the kosher salt, sugar, Instacure #2, black pepper, crushed juniper berries, chopped rosemary, chopped thyme, and crumbled bay leaves to create the curing mix.
- Rub the curing mix all over the beef eye of round, making sure to coat it evenly.
Brining
- Place the beef eye of round in a vacuum-sealed bag and seal it tightly. Alternatively, place the meat in a ziplock bag and try to remove as much air as possible.
- Place the beef eye of round in the refrigerator and let it cure for 7-10 days, turning it over every day to redistribute the curing mix.
- After 7-10 days, remove the beef eye of round from the refrigerator. You can rinse it thoroughly under cold running water to remove any excess curing mix but I prefer leaving it on for a richer flavor.
Curing
- Pat the beef eye of round dry with paper towels and wrap it with a collagen sheet or put in a casing.
- Place the elastic netting around the meat and then add some twine on top.
- Weigh your meat and write down the weight
- Add a label which should have:1) Name of your Charcuterie2) Date you start Curing3) weight of the meat4)Target Weight (starting weight minus 35%)
- Hang the Eye Round in a cool, dry place with good air circulation, ideally at a temperature of around 13-15°C and a humidity of around 75-80%.
- Let the meat hang for 4-8 weeks, until it has lost around 30-40% of its original weight. Do not rely on time to know when it's ready and always weigh your meat and check for a desired loss which in this case is 35%.