Lonzino Dry aging question/issue

[Marko]

Hey all – so im curing about 6 – 3lb pork loins and just pulled two of them out yesterday as they reached their target 35% weight loss that I have usually followed.

Here is the not-so-great photo of my lonzino. I added some lines in so its easier to see what im talking about. If you look at the cross section of the meat – on the bottom there is a ‘fat cap” which of course slows the drying process, but what I didnt realize is on top, just below a layer of meat, there was a vein of fat running through the loin, which resulted in a area (see circled area) that was significantly less dried the the rest of the meat. And above that fat vein, of course, the meat dried significantly faster.

Has anyone ever experienced this? Also, what are your weight loss percentages that you use? 35% has generally worked for me, although im thinking of heading to 40% as I like a slightly firmer meat. Should I leave this meat to cure even longer since it has obviously not finished yet?

I have also included a picture of another lonzino that was ready at the same time this one was that looked perfect, of course no fat was hindering the process on this one.

Under-dried lonzino

Perfect Lonzino

[Paul F.]

I’ve made two Lonzino’s without Umai bags and three with… Just came here to order another pack of bags to make more now that the outside temp is getting cool enough to age them in the garage if I need to (I don’t recommend it vs the fridge, of course… but if my garage is at 40 degrees for three weeks, what do I need the fridge for!).

Anyway… my solution to the inconsistent dryness levels was to just over-wrap the umai bag with a regular vac seal roll, seal it, and fridge it for a couple weeks! The moisture levels in the lonzino equalized.. the case hardening softened, and the “raw” area gave up some moisture to the over dry areas.

Using the bags is MUCH nicer than having to cultivate mold, hanging the loin at room temp, and HOPING that the salt and cure keep the nasties away…

Oh, and I usually have used 35% as a benchmark… but one ended up 42% and it was very nice. Little tougher to slice, of course, but a nice texture.

Hope this helps, even though the question is more than a month old! Like I said, just found the forum…

Paul F.

[Marko]

Thanks Paul for you response.

So what i ended up doing, just FYI, is after i cut the lonzino in half and saw it was a bit less dry in the center, i wrapped it in parchment paper and just tossed it in the fridge…forgot about it for a week or two… then when i took it out it was MUCH drier than my normal lonzinos, probably as yours were. It was hard, but still sliced in my slicer pretty well. The flavor was still really good and I enjoyed the different texture. It was also more salty, mostly likely from concentrating down some more.

Either way, still a success!

[Author]

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