Curing: salt and nitrite
Also searched as: curing, pink ham, curing salt, nitrite salt, cured ham, bacon
In short: When curing, salt preserves the meat. Nitrite in curing salt also keeps it pink and protects against dangerous germs.
Like a museum conservator: they keep the painting fresh and the colours bright, but they change how it looks.
Simplified model
What happens
draws out water and slows down germs. Curing salt also contains a little nitrite. It binds to the red muscle pigment, which then stays pink even when cooked: that is why ham is pink but a roast is grey. Nitrite also inhibits dangerous bacteria and gives the typical ham flavour.
Why it matters
Explains why ham and frankfurters are pink but roasts are not, and why curing salt is not used like table salt.
Rules of thumb
- Dose curing salt only as the recipe says; do not use it in place of table salt.
- Do not sear or grill cured hard; at very high heat unwanted substances can form.
- Pink colour in cured meat does not mean raw.
Levers
2
In practice
1
Meat
Cooked ham is cured and cooked, which is why it is pink. An uncured pork roast turns grey at the same temperature.
Sources · 1
- Harold McGee: On Food and Cooking (2004)