In this article I will show you how you can make .
Duck Prosciutto is a cured and air-dried duck breast.
The preparation takes about 30 minutes. But the total preparation time is several weeks, because you have to air-dry the Duck Prosciutto.
In this article you will find the complete recipe either as video or in written format.
Have fun and good luck making it!
Table of Contents
Duck Prosciutto – What do you need to make it?
Ingredients for your Duck Prosciutto
Meat:
- Duck breast (depending on how much you want to make, mine was about 350 g each)
For curing:
The amount you need is measured by the weight of the duck breast.
Example:
Your duck breast is 350g. Then you need:
For the drying process I used:
- Thyme
- Pepper
- Marjoram
The equipment to make Duck Prosciutto
Space in the refrigerator
Your Duck Prosciutto must be kept in the refrigerator to dry for at least three weeks. For this purpose it must either be hung up or be put on a grid.
Cheesecloth
The cheesecloth is used to wrap your Duck Prosciutto in it. It holds the spices on the Duck Prosciutto and is permeable to air. Therefore, perfectly suited for air drying.
Kitchen string
The kitchen string is important so that you can lace up the Duck Prosciutto well. This prevents it from falling out of the kitchen towel.
If you want to grind your spices The spice mill grinds the spices while the mortar crushes or grinds the spices.
Make Duck Prosciutto – Step-By-Step Instructions
1. Weigh your duck breast and write it down. The weight is used to calculate how much salt and cure you need in the next step.
2 Calculate your salt & cure quantity. It is 2.75 % salt and 0.25 % Cure #2.
3. Massage the salt & cure into the duck breast. Make sure that it is covered on all sides.
4. Place the duck breast in a vacuum bag and vacuum it.
5. Put the vacuumed duck breast in the refrigerator for 5 days (if it is below 500 g). Turn your duck breast once a day. This ensures that it is cured correctly.
Important: The thicker the meat, the longer it takes (e.g. 2 kg Duck Prosciutto would take about 2 weeks).
6. Once the curing process is finished you can now grind your spices very fine.
7. Get the duck breast out of the vacuum bag. You will notice that it firmed up.
8. Massage the ground spices into the duck breast.
9. Pack the duck breast in a cheesecloth and tie it tightly with kitchen twine. Make sure that it is really tight.
10. Weigh the meat and write it down again. With this weight you can control how much weight your Duck Prosciutto loses when it dries in the refrigerator. This way you will know exactly how long you need to dry it and when it is finished.
11. Hang the Duck Prosciutto in the refrigerator to dry for at least 2 – 3 weeks. It should lose between 30 and 35 % of the weight.
Alternative: A cooler place like a cellar with good air circulation is also possible.
12. After 3 weeks my Duck Prosciutto lost 35 % of its weight. To get an overview, I advise you to weigh the meat weekly.
13. Unpack the duck breast and make sure that there is no mold on the meat. Do not eat if you see mold!
14. Your Duck Prosciutto is ready. Slice it very thin and enjoy it.
How long is the shelf life of the Duck Prosciutto?
In theory cured meat like Duck Prosciutto remains in good conditions for a long time (up to 2 months).
In the refrigerator it can be kept for about 2 weeks. The danger is that it will dry out over time and become tough.
Workaround is to vacuum seal the dried Duck Prosciutto.