Bresaola Recipe - Homemade Bresaola with Beef, Venison or Bison (2024)

Home | Charcuterie | Bison Bresaola

4.84 from 6 votes

By Hank Shaw

June 06, 2012 | Updated October 27, 2020

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Bresaola Recipe - Homemade Bresaola with Beef, Venison or Bison (2)

One of the best ways to get into curing meats is to doa bresaola, air-cured loin of some sort of red meat. Thinly sliced, it is a magnificent piece of charcuterie, deep red, light on the tongue and very meaty. Bresaola is the easiest charcuterie project you can make, other than bacon. It’sis nothing more than lean meat, salted and air-dried.

It is a Northern Italian creation, but many, many other cultures have something similar: The Spaniards have their lomo, the Armenians have pastirma, the Greeks call it apokti and the Swiss bindenfleisch. In some cases the meat is beef, others pork, and in a few instances large wild game is used.

It is always a solid muscle, usually the eye round, which is a sort of false tenderloin that hides within the back legs of four-footed creatures. But a length of loin or backstrap works just as well.

For these photos, I chose to go with bison eye round. No, I did not go out and shoot a buffalo and not tell you about it. I actually ordered it from Whole Foods. Beef eye round works well,and although I could have used some venison backstrap, I did not want to part with it for charcuterie. I don’t kill many deer a year, so backstrap is precious.

Bresaola Recipe - Homemade Bresaola with Beef, Venison or Bison (3)

In a nutshell, all you need to do is salt the meat down and then hang it in a cool place until it is as firm as you want it. An Italian bresaola is coated in spices, however. So are pastirma and apokti. The only hard part of it all is keeping humidity even and high for the weeks or months you’re hanging this puppy.

It is essential to keep the humidity above 70 percent. I start mine at 85 to 90 percent for a few days, then ratchet it down 5 percent a week until it gets to 70 percent, then I hold it there for a month. After that I ratchet it down to 60 percent, where it can stay indefinitely.

If your humidity goes too low, you risk what’s called “case hardening,” which is when the outside dries and hardens faster than the inside. This can be anything from unsightly to dangerous. In the case of the batch in the photos,it was pretty mild: The outside of the meat is a little darker than the center, but it is all cured and nice.

In bad cases, the outside can harden so much the inside can no longer lose its moisture — and then the meat rots from the center. Tragedy.

To make a curing chamber, you will need an old fridge (look on Craigslist or something), a temperature regulator, a small humidifer, and a little fan to keep the air moving. You’ll also need “s” hooks to hang the bresaola up. Here is a good primer on equipment you will need to cure meat.

I cured my bresaola for three months. At the end of that time, the outside was covered in white mold, with a little green here and there. It had a funky-yet-sweet aroma and tasted superb. The long hang time is the difference. You can make a decent bresaola in as little as a month, but the longer you can take it, the mellower the salt and spices will become, and the funkier it will get; and I mean that in a good way.

How do you eat it? I slice it as thin as I can (a meat slicer is best if you have access to one) and eat it as-is. But you can drizzle some olive oil and lemon juice over it, throw some arugula on top and grind a little black pepper over it all. That’s how the Italians do it. I rarely do anything more than stand there and eat it at the counter.

4.84 from 6 votes

Bresaola

Quality of meat is vital here. Use only the best meat you can find, as it is the star here and nothing can hide crappy, factory-farmed meat. Grass-fed beef or bison is best, and moose or elk are also ideal. Mutton would work, as would a length of venison backstrap at least 18 inches long. If you are using pork, see my recipe for lonzino instead. Remember the thicker the meat, the longer the cure -- and the harder to keep that humidity even. If you are just starting out with charcuterie, go for an eye round or loin piece no wider than 2 inches.

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Course: Cured Meat

Cuisine: Italian

Servings: 12 people

Author: Hank Shaw

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 0 minutes minutes

Curing Time: 30 days days

Total Time: 30 days days 15 minutes minutes

Ingredients

  • A 4-pound piece of eye round or loin trimmed of fat and sinew
  • 34 grams of kosher salt, about 2 tablespoons
  • 40 grams of sugar, about 3 tablespoons
  • 5 grams of Instacure No. 2, about a heaping teaspoon
  • 10 grams of maple sugar, about tablespoon (optional)
  • 15 grams of ground juniper, about 2 tablespoons
  • 3 grams of dried marjoram, about 1 tablespoon
  • 5 grams of dried sage, about 2 tablespoons
  • 25 grams of ground black pepper, about 2 tablespoons

Instructions

  • Make sure your meat has most of the fat and all of the sinew removed. Bresaola is supposed to be lean. Trim the ends to make a nice cylinder.

  • Mix all the spices together and massage them into the meat so it is well coated. Save any excess spices.

  • Put the meat and the excess spices into a plastic or other non-reactive container and put in the refrigerator. Cure this for 12 days, turning the meat over once a day. Pour off any liquid that accumulates, and redistribute the spices as needed. If the meat is 2 inches wide or less, cure for only 6 to 10 days. The meat is ready when it feels firm.

  • Rinse off the spices under cold water and pat dry with paper towels. It's OK if some spices stay stuck to the meat. You just don't want them all there for a bresaola. In pastirma and apokti, new ground spices are added at this step, so if you want to, you can add another round of spices -- just leave out the salt, curing salt and sugar.

  • Truss the meat, or fit into a sausage netting; you can buy these online through Butcher & Packer. Hang in your curing chamber.

  • Set your humidity so it is between 85 and 90 percent for a week. Set your temperature in the curing chamber between 50°F and 55°F. Check your humidifier every couple days to make sure it has water in it. Ratchet the humidity down 5 percent each week until you get to 70 percent. Leave it there. It's OK if it jumps higher from time to time, but under no circ*mstances should you let the humidity get lower than 50 percent. Your bresaola can survive a few of these humidity "accidents," but be vigilant.

  • Monitor mold. You actually want a layer of white mold on the bresaola: It protects the meat from nastier molds, and helps the meat to dry evenly. You can inoculate your bresaola with a special mold culture you can buy through The Sausage Maker. Remember: White mold is good. Green mold is not the end of the world, but wipe it away periodically with vinegar. Black mold is bad. If you get a serious growth of black mold, toss the meat. Vinegar is your friend here. Keep tabs on the bresaola and molds will not get out of hand.

  • After at least a month and as much as 6 months, when your bresaola is firm enough, take it out of the chamber and into the fridge. It will last there indefinitely. You can also keep it in your chamber, or you can seal and freeze it.

Notes

NOTE: If you have a 3-pound piece of meat, you can leave the spices the same. But you will need to decrease the amount of salt, sugar and curing salt. For a 3-pound piece of meat, you will need 25 grams of kosher salt, 30 grams of sugar and 4 grams of Instacure No. 2.

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Tried this recipe? Tag me today!Mention @huntgathercook or tag #hankshaw!

Categorized as:
Appetizers and Snacks, Charcuterie, Featured, Italian, Recipe, Wild Game

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About Hank Shaw

Hey there. Welcome to Hunter Angler Gardener Cook, the internet’s largest source of recipes and know-how for wild foods. I am a chef, author, and yes, hunter, angler, gardener, forager and cook. Follow me on Instagram and on Facebook.

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Bresaola Recipe - Homemade Bresaola with Beef, Venison or Bison (2024)

FAQs

What kind of meat is used in bresaola? ›

Beef bresaola normally uses meat from the top of the hindquarter of the cow – the part that contains the cuts of meat known as topside and silverside in the UK. The best bresaola originates from Valtellina, a mountainous alpine valley in the northern Italian region of Lombardy.

What is venison bresaola? ›

Bresaola, red wine marinated and air dried meat, is usually made with beef, but using venison just made it seem more luxurious and more of a treat.

How is bresaola prepared? ›

To make bresaola at home, grass-fed beef (several different cuts are used) is trimmed of all fat and then rubbed with salt and spices before curing in the fridge for several days. It is then hung to air-dry for months. The spices can vary but often include black pepper, juniper berries, cinnamon, cloves, and garlic.

How long does bresaola last in the fridge? ›

A modern, improved method of preserving sliced bresaola uses a vacuum-packing machine. This high-tech tool efficiently removes all breathable air from the product's immediate vicinity, keeping it in pristine condition for far longer than the three days sliced bresaola can last in the fridge.

Can you eat bresaola raw? ›

Bresaola is a type of cured meat that is typically safe to eat raw. It is made from air-dried, salted, and aged beef, and the curing process helps eliminate harmful bacteria. Bresaola is a popular Italian delicacy and is often served thinly sliced and enjoyed as a cold appetizer or part of a charcuterie platter.

Why is bresaola so expensive? ›

The flavors and textures are distinct, but both make for a delicious appetizer. Why is bresaola expensive? Bresaola tends to be more expensive than other cured meats due to the specific type of beef used and the lengthy curing process.

Why is venison better than beef? ›

Given that deer are leaner than cows, venison is generally healthier to eat than beef. An average cut of venison, in fact, has around half the calories and a sixth the saturated fats of a similarly sized cut of beef. It also has more proteins, vitamins and minerals than beef.

Is venison nicer than beef? ›

Venison has an earthy taste — the result of deer feeding mostly on leaves, twigs, fruits and other foliage and their minimal amount of fat due to their active lifestyle. Beef, on the other hand, assumes a much fattier taste because of a diet consisting of hay, silage and grass and cows' lethargic nature.

Is venison the same as beef? ›

venison, (from Latin venatus, “to hunt”), the meat from any kind of deer; originally, the term referred to any kind of edible game. Venison resembles beef and mutton in texture, colour, and other general characteristics. It has virtually the same chemical composition as beef but is less fatty.

Is bresaola good for you? ›

It's, in fact, one of the few cured meats allowed due to the absence of fat, which makes it a lean cut. From a nutritional point of view, it's also rich in proteins, iron and minerals. For this reason, bresaola is an ideal ingredient for a balanced diet, as well as for anemic women or during the menstrual cycle.

Does bresaola go bad? ›

After at least a month and as much as 6 months, when your bresaola is firm enough, take it out of the chamber and into the fridge. It will last there indefinitely. You can also keep it in your chamber, or you can seal and freeze it.

What do you eat with bresaola? ›

Bresaola can be served simple with fresh arugula, a squeeze of lemon juice, a touch of olive oil, and a pinch of salt – perfect for an afternoon meal. I decided to dress this one up with sliced oranges, tomatoes, and nuts.

What is bresaola in English? ›

Bresaola (pronounced bre-zow-la) is air-dried, salted beef (though it can also be made of horse, venison or pork).

What are the white dots on bresaola? ›

The spots could be either mold or salt crystals, although the size you describe sounds more like mold. It is possible that some white mold has developed on the surface in spots where the bag has pulled away from the meat, it should not be a problem.

What deli meat is made from horse? ›

Prosciutto di cavallo: horse ham, served in very thin slices. Salame di cavallo or salsiccia di cavallo: various kinds of salami, variously produced or seasoned, sometimes made of pure equine meat, sometimes mixed with others (beef or pork)

What is the difference between carpaccio and bresaola? ›

Carpaccio is a simple Italian recipe made from thin slices of meat or fish that are served with accoutrements of herbs, oils, vinaigrettes, and vegetables. While bresaola is delicious in carpaccio, the two are not the same. Firstly, carpaccio is made from raw meats while bresaola is made from cured meat.

Is bresaola same as pastrami? ›

Bresaola is a salted, slightly aged beef dried in a room heated by a wooden fire. The cured meat is lean and reminiscent of pastrami, but thinner. It is often served as an antipasto on its own and is similar to carpaccio, with thin slices covering the plate.

What is thinly sliced bresaola? ›

Bresaola is a salted and air dried meat made from the tenderloin or fillet. It has a very dark red color and is simply eaten sliced thinly, with olive oil, lemon juice and black pepper. Keep refrigerated.

What is the most popular cured meat? ›

Types of Cured Meat

The most popular varieties are salami and prosciutto but it is important to note that every culture in the world has its own signature cured meats – meaning there are thousands of varieties to get to know.

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