Category: Smoking - Pork

Capicola - Dry Cured & Smoked     

Ingredients:
Meat:
3-4 pounds of pork coppa or pork loin

Cure:
1 1/2 Tbsp Sea salt or kosher salt
2 Tbsp Sugar
1 tsp Red pepper flakes
1 tsp Curing Salt #1

Rub:
1 Tbsp Coriander seed
1 Tbsp Fennel seed
1 1/2 tsp Black peppercorns
2 Star Anise or 3/4 tsp Anise seed
1/2 tsp Red pepper flakes

Preparation:
1. To make the cure, mix the sea salt, sugar, red pepper flakes, and curing salt. It is essential that the curing salt is evenly distributed in the rub.
Place the pork on a work surface and massage the cure into the pork.
Double wrap the pork in plastic wrap and refrigerate it for 5 days. After 5 days flip it over and refrigerate it for an additional 5 days.

2. After 10 days unwrap the meat. Thoroughly rinse the pork under cold water, lightly blot the coppa with a paper towel, and set it aside while you prepare the rub for smoking.
To make the rub, place the fennel seeds, coriander seeds, anise, red pepper flakes, and black peppercorns in a coffee/spice grinder and grind the spices until you get a coarse rub.
Spread the rub out onto a work surface and roll the coppa in it, coating all sides.

3. Preheat your smoker to the lowest smoke setting. Place a small pan of water in the smoker, this will create humidity as the coppa smokes to keep it moist. Place the coppa in the smoker and smoke for 1 hour, then turn up the heat to 250 degrees and smoke until the internal temperature reaches 145-150 degrees, about 30-45 minutes. Don't overcook or the meat will be dry.

4. Remove the coppa, place it on a plate and refrigerate uncovered for 4 hours.

5. At that point your homemade capicola is ready to eat. Slice thin to serve.

Date added: 2022-06-17
Number of visits: 2379