On food and cooking the science and lore of the kitchen ( PDFDrive ) 345

months may convert a third or more of the meat protein to flavor molecules The concentration of mouth-filling, meaty glutamic acid rises ten- to twenty-fold, and as in cheese, so much of the amino acid tyrosine is freed that it may form small white crystals In addition, the unsaturated fats in pig muscle break apart and react to form hundreds of volatile compounds, some of them characteristic of the aroma of melon (a traditional and chemically fitting accompaniment to ham!), apple, citrus, flowers, freshly cut grass, and butter Other compounds react with the products of protein breakdown to give nutty, caramel flavors normally found only in cooked meats (concentration compensates for the subcooking temperature) In sum, the flavor of dry-cured ham is astonishingly complex and evocative Modern Wet-Cured Meats Salted meats continue to be popular even in the age of refrigeration, when salting is no longer essential But because we now salt meats for taste, not to extend storage life, industrial versions are treated with milder cures, and generally must be refrigerated and/or cooked And they’re made very quickly, which means that their flavor is less complex than drycured meats Industrial bacon is made by injecting brine (typically about 15% salt, 10% sugar) into the pork side with arrays of fine needles, or else cutting it into slices, then immersing the slices in a brine for 10 or 15 minutes In either method the “maturing” period has shrunk to a few hours, and the bacon is packed the same day Hams are injected with brine, then “tumbled” in large rotating drums for a day to massage the brine evenly through the meat and make it more supple, and finally pressed into shape, partly or fully cooked, chilled, and sold with no maturing period For some boneless “hams,” ... hours, and the bacon is packed the same day Hams are injected with brine, then “tumbled” in large rotating drums for a day to massage the brine evenly through the meat and make it more supple, and. .. and generally must be refrigerated and/ or cooked And they’re made very quickly, which means that their flavor is less complex than drycured meats Industrial bacon is made by injecting brine (typically about 15% salt, 10%... injecting brine (typically about 15% salt, 10% sugar) into the pork side with arrays of fine needles, or else cutting it into slices, then immersing the slices in a brine for 10 or 15 minutes In either method the “maturing” period