Curado Meats

09/27/2026

Another overzealous effort to fulfill a sandwich craving in an unrealistic timeframe 😬

But here. She. Is.

This was a side project I was nervous about. Mortadella isn’t just fancy bologna, it’s an emulsified delicacy (that sounded a lot better in my head). I wanted to treat this with the respect and diligence it deserves, and man, did it pay off.

After 3 days, I finally gathered my courage to slice it at 12am. “Who doesn’t love a midnight Mortadella?”, I asked myself.

No one. No one doesn’t not love a midnight Mortadella.

I spent 30 minutes slicing 45 seconds worth of meat, just mesmerized by the patterns. Sometimes the pistachios would disappear for a slice or two, then eleventy-seven would appear again all at once. I’ve made a mental note to mix those better next time 😬

Anyway, enjoy looking at my sandwich. I bet you wish you had one of your own. I took it to bed and within 3 bites, I was running to the kitchen. Burrata + blankets = bad.

All this to say,

Side quest: Successful. Mortadella is now on the menu.

09/18/2026

I can never leave anything alone 🤦🏻‍♀️

This bacon smokes for 18 hours and I’ll open the door 46 times. What can I say, I like to watch the color change! 😂

Anyway, I’ve done a terrible job of keeping bacon stocked and I apologize for that. I’m still working out the cure time while keeping everything absolutely fresh. SO, go place your orders—and hurry. Half of it has already been reserved 😬

I welcome any and all website feedback as well!

Curadomeats.com

09/06/2026

I literally squealed when I saw this pepper.

Those deep, abundant stretch marks. That beautiful crimson trying to break through. Not to mention it’s perfectly sized—not too small, and not suspiciously large.

I’m making some smoked jalapeño cheddar sausages with this gem (and a few others). I’m excited to taste the heat it brings as well as the added color.

Sausage making is so fun. This jalapeño brought me so much joy 😂

08/28/2026

One crucial detail will make or break your ground meat recipe:

Temperature

This is a #22 grinder. 1.5 HP, the hopper and auger alone are 25 pounds. It’ll grind 50 pounds of meat in 4 minutes—I’ve seen it. It’s one of those “buy once, cry once” machines.

Pretty simple use: plug in, connect parts, put meat in big hole, meat comes out of smaller holes. Anyone can use it. But the fun thing about creating meat products, is that every single step has a nuanced technique that will take your recipe to the next level. It’s where so many home sausage makers fall short and become frustrated with the craft. Sure, it’s plug and play, but if you don’t respect your equipment enough to learn how it performs best, you’re setting yourself up for failure.

The biggest question I see from home sausage makers and salumieri is “why did my fat smear?” And it’s almost always because of the temperature. Remember when I said this thing’s got 1.5HP? It’s FAST. With smaller grinders, heat is a bigger issue. A commercial grinder can get meat through quickly enough that it doesn’t spend a lot of time where heat is produced. Grinders for home use are another story. They don’t have the capacity to push contents through as quickly, so your meat and fat spend more time in contact with the warm parts—the auger, knife, etc. This not only causes smearing and fat-out, but the definition of fat particles in salami is at risk and can compromise bind and drying consistency. If you’re starting with completely thawed meat, it gives you less temperature headroom.

My hopper, auger, knife, and plate go in the freezer for hours (sometimes overnight), and the meat gets partially frozen prior to grinding as well. When doing large loads, it’s wise to temp the meat throughout the grind process. Staying in the low 30’s is ideal. If you need a second grind, throw the new die and the previously ground meat back into the freezer for a bit.

Safer product, better fat definition, easier cleanup ✅

08/26/2026

Happy International Dog Day to the best pups!

These three keep me laughing and smiling all day long. They’re best friends with each other, and so well behaved!

And of course I’m remembering my sweet Daisy Bone today. We lost her in May, but I think about her often. There are no words to describe what our dogs really do for us. Their love is overwhelming, and their impact is immense.

Thank you for showing me true, unconditional love every day of your lives!

Love your babies too? Show me them! I want to see who makes you smile when you come home 🐶

08/14/2026

This is one of my wilder ideas…

I’ve been wondering if it would work for weeks. Well, there’s only one way to find out 🤷🏻‍♀️

This will either be a major triumph, or an epic failure. I’ll let you know how it goes 🫣

Can anyone guess what I’m making??

08/06/2026

08/04/2026

7 years ago, I fell in love with the art of Salumi. It is a craft that takes immense knowledge, attention to detail, and absolute control. Do it right, and you’ve mastered an art so ancient and beautiful, it should warrant an infinity stone. Do it wrong? Well, you’ll only do it wrong once 😬

Many people ask me how it’s possible to keep a log of raw meat safe while it hangs at 55° for months at a time. And to that I say, “that’s the magic of meat curing, baby” 😎

Bacterial culture and salt are mixed into the meat. Their jobs are, respectively, to lower the ph and hijack water molecules. In meat curing, we operate on a safety premise of water activity, or “aw” for short. The low ph creates a somewhat acidic environment that most pathogens struggle to survive in. Without water to bond to, these pathogens cannot survive long enough to consume sugars and starches produced; they cannot multiply, thus remaining at levels safe for human consumption.

Penicillium Nalgiovense, or Mold 600 is added to the outside right away. This is a “good mold”. It not only imparts that signature “old world”, umami flavor to the salami, it also creates a barrier on the outside so competing molds can’t come in and spoil the meat. Aspergillus and Cladosporium are the most common—they are also toxic to consume, especially for those with compromised immune systems.

Salami fascinates me because it destroyed so many fears I had about meat products—likely the same ones a lot of you grew up with (especially when it comes to pork). Nature has made available so many tools for us to use that increase the longevity of the resources we need to survive. How cool is that?

Follow for more cool meat facts you didn’t know you wanted to learn 😏