What is the difference between braised beef and cured beef? How much salt should be added to cured beef

Beef and mutton are rich in protein and fat, and are the most common choices for people to eat meat. For example, beef can often be made into a variety of delicious dishes, among which the most common are braised beef, cured beef, roast beef, and grilled beef. Today we will mainly look at the specific differences between braised beef and cured beef.

Contents of this article

1. The difference between braised beef and cured beef

2. How much salt should be added to cured beef

3. Steps for making cured beef

The difference between soy sauce beef and cured beef

Braised beef with soy sauce:

A meat product made from beef as the main raw material and marinated with a variety of seasonings. It is a famous specialty dish from Hohhot, Inner Mongolia. It has the effects of replenishing qi, nourishing the spleen and stomach, strengthening the tendons and bones, resolving phlegm and calming wind, quenching thirst and stopping salivation. It is suitable for people with qi sinking, shortness of breath, weak body, sore tendons and bones, anemia, long-term illness, and yellow face and dizziness.

Cured beef:

It is a specialty of Hubei, Sichuan, Hunan, Jiangxi, Guangdong, Guizhou, and Shaanxi, and has a history of thousands of years. Beef and mutton are rich in protein and fat, which can not only increase appetite, but also have the effect of nourishing the kidney and supporting yang, but they often have a fishy smell. Chinese people who are good at cooking use green salt, sodium sulfate, star anise, cinnamon, grass fruit, pepper, fennel and other seasonings to stew with meat, which is the so-called cured beef and mutton.

the difference:

As the names suggest, the cooking methods of braised beef and cured beef are very different. Braised beef does not need to be marinated, it can be cooked after adding seasoning, while cured beef needs to be marinated and baked, and finally enters the key step of hanging and slowly smoking. Cured beef is what we usually call bacon, and the method of making is similar to that of sausage. Braised beef needs to be seasoned during the production process, while cured beef is marinated before production. The biggest difference between the two is the method. The taste of braised beef is more soy sauce, while cured beef has more spice flavor.

How much salt to put in cured beef

The curing of bacon is very particular and critical. Generally, according to the ratio of one pound of meat to one ounce of salt, rub the salt evenly on the meat, especially on the skin of the meat, which needs to be rubbed with salt several times, otherwise the skin of the smoked meat will be difficult to chew. You can also add some white wine. Do not add other spices, so that the smoked bacon will have a pure meaty aroma. Put the salted meat in a large basin, cover it and marinate for three days. Turn it over once a day, put the upper meat down and the lower meat up. Make sure the meat is evenly marinated. After three days, thread the meat piece by piece with wire and hang it in a cool place to dry, or hang it in a vent to air dry.

Steps for making cured beef

1. Materials: Select the hind legs of the cow, remove the tendons and oil film, and cut into strips 45 cm long, 1 to 5 cm thick, and 2 to 3 cm wide according to the meat stripes.

2. Marinate: Mix the seasonings and mix them evenly with the meat, marinate in a jar for 5 to 7 days. For large pieces of meat, the marinating time should be extended, and the jar should be turned over continuously to allow the salt to penetrate deep into the muscle. After taking the meat out of the jar, wash the meat, put it through a knot, hang it on a bamboo pole to drain the juice, and dry it.

3. Drying: expose the meat to the sun, bake it on a kang at night or put it in a drying cabinet for dehydration and drying. The temperature in the drying room is between 40 and 50°C. It takes about 30 hours to dry and harden. It is ready when it is cooled thoroughly. The finished product rate is 45% to 50%.

4. Packaging and storage: Use cartons, wooden boxes or bamboo baskets as outer packaging, moisture-proof paper as inner packaging, bundle firmly and place in a ventilated and dry place.