Charcuterie: The Craft of Salting, Smoking, and Curing

I read through most of this book twice, before my 14 year old son and I took a whole hog butchering class at a local butcher's shop. Two weeks before the class, we used the author's bratwurst recipe to make sausage from store-bought meats for practice. It turned out perfectly. Following our butchering class, my son and I purchased a whole pastured hog from a local farmer and butchered it ourselves. We saved 20 pounds for sausage making. We used the author's recipes to make breakfast sausage, Mexican chorizo, sweet Italian sausage, and smoked andouille. We cooked samples of the sausages before casing them, in order to check the seasonings (as instructed in the recipes). Every one of the recipes produced exceptional flavors that were beyond my original hopes. We spent no small amount of money and a good deal of sweat equity to get our pork. I am glad that I found this book and trusted the recipes within it. We would have been sorely disappointed if all of our work would have ended in mediocre sausage that we could have found at the local grocery store. Instead, we have made something special that everyone with whom we share our labor recognizes as such. I am eager to see how our pancetta turns out! As the author states early in the book, these are not recipes for the person seeking a quick, time-saving meal. It has been my experience, however, that the effort and patient processes laid out in this book result in a finished food that is worth all you put into it.

Book is very knowledgeable and easy to follow

I absolutely love this book. It's accurate, informative and well-written. The section on sausage-making is particularly good. All of the essential techniques are well-explained and the recipes are excellent. Whether you're a novice or a pro with years of experience, you'll learn a great deal from reading this book. The author rejects the notion that this is "the bible" for sausage-making and charcuterie but many of us disagree. It deserves its reputation as a "bible" for those of us interested in the craft and deserves all of the praise it has received. Unfortunately, the ebook version isn't a very good reference book because it doesn't contain real page numbers. Since the index is only by page number and isn't hyperlinked so that you can jump directly to an entry, it's very difficult to find the indexed entries. Also, within the text there are numerous cross-references to other sections of the book and although they DO contain hyperlinks, many of them are wrong and don't take you to the correct page. Do yourself a favor and buy the hardbound edition. I'm certain you'll find it to be much more useful and well-worth the price.

I have seen this book, at bookstores, at the library, and it was even loaned to me by a friend. I purchased it because I feel that it is the best book on curing meat out there. It is not the newest book but I feel it is much better that any published after it. I have enjoyed making the Tasso ham which is delicious. Here in california where I live it is hard to purchase Tasso ham and as alway home made is much better that store bought. I can mention the many cured meat recipes in the book, the techniques covered buy the book, what in my opinion makes this the Bible of Charcuterie, but unless you pickup the book and sit there for a while absorbing the information, imagining the taste of the finished product, and thinking of the tools you need to produce a good sausage, or an excellent ham, my words cannot do this book justice.

Very good information. Excellent overview of charcuterie. Weights of ingredients are included (in grams) which is excellent. B&W sketches are nice but the illustrations are far and few between - the writing deserves more illustrations. The paper is soft (like a cheap paperback novel) and absorbent, which makes little sense for a cookbook that is destined to have it's pages turned with greasy dirty fingers. Mine already looks like a shop manual. Because of the absorbent paper the type is slightly blurry and gives a sense of being out of focus. The authors get a B++ or better for their writing, the publisher gets a D for putting form before function when designing the book.

Go to book right here

I love this book. I've made several recipes from here and they've all turned out deliciously. I've gifted maybe 4 or 5 of these to my food-loving friends. I'd also like to point out that Mr. Ruhlman is responsive via his Instagram account so when I had a question about the duck prosciutto he offered feedback. His directions are reassuring for those who may be nervous diving into this corner of the culinary experience. There are some very easy recipes like the prosciutto, bacon, pancetta. And then there are some that are more involved that need very specific environments set up. Perfect for the culinary adventurer in your life.

Unravels alot of questions I had. I have been smoking meat for decades, but never really understood cured meats. Going to come up with some tasty creations out of this book!

This is my go to book on this subject. I have others that I use for specific things but this baby is the one that has , well almost, it all. If you wanna make Charcuterie.. you need this book!

Was für ein Buch! Ich habe mehrere Rezepte probiert. Allein der selbstgemachte Bacon war es schon Wert das Buch zu kaufen. Kein Vergleich mit dem traurigen Supermarktprodukt das mit Pöckellake vollgesaugt ist und in der Pfanne Wasser schwitzt und nie knusprig wird. Der gesalzene Lachs ist auch nicht von schlechten Eltern. Die Pastetenrezepte sind ebenfalls gut, die Anleitungen sehr klar geschrieben, auch mit viel "warum?" dahinter. Wer die englische Sprache nicht scheut wird sehr erfreut über das Buch sein.

Finalmente un libro che affronta ta il tema insaccati in maniera scientifica (l'ho scelto americano apposta) linguaggio chiaro e semplice. Sto già iniziando a preparare il Duck ham

Excelente Livro! Recomendo para quem quer ter mais conhecimento em charcutaria!

A complete and extensive ressource for the home-charcutier. All the key technique are really explained for the home production, without expensive appliance or professionnal equipment. A must!