Dry Cure/Salt

In a dry cure, all surfaces of the food are rubbed with salt and the item is left to cure for the time designated in the recipe. Dry curing can be applied to various fish and meat products but is generally not an effective method for safely preserving large pieces, with the exception of country hams such as prosciutto, Smithfield, or Westphalian hams. Both dry and liquid curing are usually done as a preliminary step to smoking. The product is then rinsed of excess curing agents before the smoking process begins.